Chapter 37
CHAPTER
THIRTY-SEVEN
JULIETTE
Pack. A. Bag.
Wow.
That is hot as hell.
Though I’m pretty sure anything and everything Slade could do is hot as hell. I’m more than happy to do that, though. Packing a bag sounds like a great idea, especially considering I don’t even have a bed at my new place.
Slade slips his arm around my waist, shifting me to his side, and together we make our way back into the bar.
I’m still reeling from the fact that he’s got a ten-year-old son.
Not because of his age or anything that makes sense to me.
It’s more about his life here. I didn’t think these guys did the family thing.
The music in the bar is playing, more like background noise to drown out the conversations and possibly other noises. Those noises being cries of pleasure, because apparently, we weren’t the only ones who couldn’t keep it in our pants.
My eyes widen as I take in the room. There are people doing every variety of sex, in positions I didn’t even know were possible. I press my lips together, trying not to gawk, but I know I fail.
Then I wonder if Elodie is doing these things, too, and I’m beyond curious. Part of me doesn’t want to see it, but curiosity wins, and I scan the room for her. Slade doesn’t stop walking, though, so even if she’s somewhere in the bar area, I don’t get the opportunity to find her.
Together, we walk through the bar area and head toward the bedrooms. I know the layout of this place fairly well, even though this is only my third time here, but cleaning it room by room, specifically the back bedrooms, makes a girl familiar with what is where.
He stops in the middle of the hallway and turns to face me. His eyes connect to mine, and my breath hitches as I hold it, waiting for him to say something. I don’t know what he’s going to say, but the pause in the hall, the way he looks at me, has my mind spinning until he finally speaks.
“I can’t invite you into my room because Cade is sleeping there, but there’s a guest room if you want to stay.”
I place my palm against his chest, tipping my head backward, my gaze focused on his sparkling dark eyes as they search mine. This man could ask me to sleep in the hallway on the floor with him, and I’m pretty sure I would agree—well, maybe not the floor.
“I would love that, Slade. If it’s not going to be an issue?”
He snorts. “The only issue that I’ve got would be sending you home right now.”
I don’t try to hide my smile. It would be pointless because I’m happy. His words make me happy. He wants me here, and if he didn’t, I have a feeling I would know. I don’t think Slade would do anything he doesn’t want to do.
“I would like that,” I say.
He smirks. “Thank fuck.”
He cups my cheeks, and then his mouth is pressing against mine in a hard kiss. I welcome it, accept it, and let it penetrate. I could fall in love with this man. I’m probably already there, but I’m afraid to actually admit anything like that, even just to myself.
Without saying anything else, he lifts his head, takes a step backward as his hands fall from my cheeks. He turns to continue down the hall, this time without slipping his arm around my waist. I miss his heat, as if it were a living, breathing thing. I want his touch, and I take a chance.
I slip my fingers into his hand. He doesn’t even stumble—doesn’t flinch. His fingers curl around mine, and together, we walk a few more feet until he stops in front of a closed door.
He reaches for the handle and he turns the knob before he pushes the door open. It makes a creaking noise before he steps inside. He keeps a tight grip on my hand, gently tugging me behind him, and then stops.
The room is dark. I don’t bother flipping on the lights. I don’t think I care. All that matters is that I’m here with him, and I am fully aware of how crazy I sound, considering I know next to nothing about him.
Slade releases my hand. I hear him moving around the room before a lamp is switched on, bathing the room in a soft glow. But I don’t look around the room, because all I can see is this man.
Tall and gorgeous.
He turns his head, and I have to press my thighs together as his coal gaze sears mine.
His lips curve up into a knowing grin. No doubt he can tell what I’m feeling, sense it or smell it or something. I don’t know, but I feel completely feral around him. I want to rip his clothes off and trace his tattoos with my tongue.
I want him to confess his undying love to me and make every single thing that Victor said to me, did to me, and forced me to endure vanish from my memory banks. I shouldn’t give a man that kind of power over me.
It’s almost as if I’ve learned absolutely nothing from Victor, but that doesn’t mean that a girl can’t dream. I wish I could forget Victor ever existed in my life. I wish I could push it away, and there would only be Slade.
“Tell me,” he demands.
“Tell you?” I ask.
He hums. “Tell me. What has you looking at me like that?”
I bite the inside of my cheek. I can’t imagine how I’m looking at him, but I’m not going to just offer up all those thoughts that have been swirling around. No way in hell. He’s going to think I’m a crazy woman if I do.
“Nothing,” I lie.
He snorts, taking one step toward me, then another, before he stops. “I told you about Cade, and you’re going to meet him. I need more from you, Jules. I need to know if Cade is in any danger. If anything from your past could come to Boulder City.”
Yeah, I know what he’s asking. He’s right to ask because this could be a situation where Cade could be in danger at some point, but I don’t want to tell him. I don’t want to admit it. Because if I do, I’m afraid that this is done.
He’s not going to want to be with someone who could bring someone like Victor to their front porch. Especially not when it involves his son. I don’t blame him for walking away from me once he knows it all, but I also don’t want him to know how absolutely stupid I was for as long as I was.
“I’ll tell you, but I want you to know that I won’t hold it against you if you want nothing more to do with me. Cade is more important than anything.”