Chapter 11
Miles
I f Emma wasn’t sitting across from me stunned by her own words, I’d check her for head trauma. I damn near choked on my drink the second “my man” left the soft pink lips that have kept me in a chokehold since she let me taste them.
Women have tried their luck at cornering me into a commitment, but no one ever claimed me as a way to defend me.
She’s still staring at Carter, who hasn’t gotten the hint to bounce. It’s unclear what they are to each other, but there’s no mistaking Em’s dare for him to say something else. She gets annoyed, but I’ve never seen her fury, the way it hardens the lines of her mouth into a scowl and coils her satin curves.
The Carters of the world roll off my back thanks to years of practice toughening my skin. The shit is laughable, but if he keeps pushing up on Em, his ass will roll out of here on a stretcher.
He blinks slowly and looks between us. “Your man?” His brows bunch; his eyes widening on the woman whose poker face is back in place.
“That’s what I said.”
“ Him? He’s not your type.”
I know this prick with his ankles out in ten-degree weather isn’t casting stones. I’m about to tell him to fuck off but stop at Emma’s head shake. It’s subtle, but I catch it.
Go off then.
She shifts half her body and stands to lean into Carter’s personal space. He flinches. Bitch . “Who I see is none of your damn business. Now, if you don’t get out of my face, I will call my father and have you explain why you’re harassing me on taxpayer dollars.”
His jaw ticks at the threat, and I rise to my full height when his eyes flicker at Emma for putting him in his place. Carter is tall, but I’m taller and big enough to cast a shadow over his lanky frame. He steals another glance but refuses to face me head-on. Thought so . “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he says in a sneer to Emma. “Be ready to leave by six.”
“Make sure you note my plus-one. We will meet you in the lobby.”
Carter swallows his pride and steps back so he doesn’t run into my frame when he leaves.
Emma and I watch him stomp to the other side of the restaurant. Then she sinks back into the booth with a heavy sigh and rubs her temples.
I push over my bourbon, and she reaches for it with a nod. Our fingers graze before she takes a long sip. “Thank you.”
We sit in silence as bookends to a paper “Reserved” sign on the table and unspoken words, which I cut through with an amused smirk.
“I’m your man now?”
“Don’t start.”
I laugh at her groan but ease up. If she needs to pretend we’re together, whatever is going on must be serious.
“I don’t know what the hell that was.” She lets out a breath and swings her thick hair over her shoulder.
This close, I have a full view of her beauty. Emma is stunning. Her mouth and downward-turned lips in a seductive pout are my favorite, second to the fire in her eyes under thick, sweeping lashes. I push down the need to be close to her. She overwhelms my senses enough as it is.
There’s a draw to Emma that’s different from other women. I can’t put my finger on it, but I want to fuck her out of my system. I’ll lose interest, though. I always do.
I scratch my chin. “So, tomorrow.”
Emma waves her hand. “Nope.”
“Does it require fancy shoes, or can I wear Timbs?”
“You’re insufferable.”
“Thank you.” My smile shows off all my pearly whites. “Where we going?”
“Nowhere together, Miles.”
“I beg to differ if you’re calling me your man. Now what did you sign me up for?”
Our staredown is a chess match. I won’t push Emma to explain why she roped me into whatever she did. The feelings I have for her are foreign, but if she needs me to play along on some bullshit, I can do that.
Emma studies me. Her shoulders drop, and her claws retract. “One of my father’s donors is hosting a fundraiser for his campaign.”
I nod. “And that asshole in the ankle pants will be there?”
She snorts, her cheeks tipping into a smile. There she is . “Unfortunately, yes. Carter is my father’s chief of staff. Has been for over a decade.”
“Anything else I should know?” Like whether I need to bury his sockless ass in a ditch?
Here you go.
I shake off the desire scratching at my chest and reach for my glass to drain what’s left.
Were those two ever together?
Why do you care?
“No,” she finally says. “I’ve known Carter since he interned for my father. He’s pretentious and doesn’t mind his business, which should be on the East Coast.
I hear what Emma doesn’t say, the attraction laced with annoyance. Carter means something to her, whether she chooses to admit it or not. It’s clear she means something to him.
Again, why do you care?
“I’m around tomorrow, and I’m game to go.” I keep nonchalance in my shrug. Terrence is balls-deep in his wife, and I don’t have shit else to do besides work. It’s not like I mind dressing up for some overpriced dinner to show off sexy in a suit.
Emma’s brows sinks. “Are you sure? I would skip it myself, but I deal with being an ungrateful daughter enough.” She drops her lashes but recovers. “I should go.”
“You, uh, wanna crash at my spot?” It takes effort to rattle Em, and seeing her like this bothers me.
The way she cuts her eyes could split diamonds. Shit . “In the spare room, for you to clear your head and not listen to the sexathon in your suite. It’s yours if you want it.” I shrug. “Don’t make it a big deal. I don’t want you to lose a lash pouting.”
Emma’s laugh tumbles in a huff. “Ass.” Her bottom lip slides between her teeth to consider the proposal. “Maybe I will. Keep your side locked.” She pierces me with a look meant to intimidate. “I will punt your balls through your chest if need be.”
“Damn, Em. Why can’t I be nice? Here.” I pull out my wallet and push over my extra key card. “Keep it for when you want your own space. Me and my dick will be on the other side of the door if you need us.”
A slow smile builds. “Don’t tempt me to run up your room service bill.”
“Order me a lobster.”
It’s eleven thirty by the time I step into my room. I toe off my sneakers and pad across the carpeting, through the shadows filtering in from the window, to the bathroom for a shower. The gym was empty, so I hit the weights and released pent-up tension in a way that didn’t involve my hand. It takes a steel grip on my washcloth not to fist myself tonight, but I cleaned my ass without incident.
I’m halfway to the kitchen area for a midnight snack when a sniffle from the adjoining door blends into a wheeze.
“Em?” I knock. She doesn’t have asthma, and she better not have a dick in her mouth. Another wheeze. “Emma. Open up.”
The lock clicks mid-knock, and Emma swings open the door in a huff. “Why are you banging like you’re the FBI?”
My mouth goes dry at the fabric that’s pieced together what she calls pajamas. It’s a silky one-piece with strings around the waist that exposes the dips of her thighs. Her nipples press against the V-cut fabric above the curves of her breasts.
My eyes drag down her bare legs and red toes for a second time. She hasn’t said a word because she’s too busy staring at my dick print. “I’m up here, kitten.”
In a rush to get to her, I almost kicked down the door with a towel wrapped around my waist. My erection is still pointing at Emma, wanting her to stop gawking at it and put it to use.
After a long delay, she finally catches herself and clears her throat. “I—what?” Another peek when I flex my hamstrings. “Stop distracting me, Miles!”
“Me? You’re the one over here either choking or sucking dick, Weezy Jefferson. I knocked to see if you’re okay.”
Her wide eyes contort her face. Someone’s angry . “You ask how I’m doing after you accuse me of having a penis in my mouth? Can’t I laugh at the TV without you high jumping to conclusions?”
Sure enough, an episode of Living Single plays in the background. On the king-sized bed is a small spread of fruits and cured meat.
“Can I go back to minding my business, or do you want to check the closet for a man in hiding?”
My jaw clenches. She better not have a man in this fucking room. I need a release, but since my chivalrous ass gave up my spare room, that leaves my own, someone else’s, or one of those play areas in Ravenous. The first is out of the question. The second would require me to get dressed and go out, and the third would have me hunching over a woman in public, which isn’t my thing. Not usually, anyway.
Even if I did find someone to take the edge off, it won’t make me forget the woman who’s glaring at me for giving enough of a damn to do a wellness check.
I track the change in her breathing and the flush creeping up her neck. My interrupting one of Kyle and Max’s fights doesn’t have her this heated. Her nipples pebble under my gaze, and she conceals them with crossed arms.
If she hadn’t gotten into it with Carter tonight, I’d drop my towel so we could get into each other. But I gave Emma the room so she could have her own space, and apparently eat through her feelings in pajamas that seem impossible to get into, which means…
“What are you doing? There’s no one in the closet!”
“Hush.” I storm into the middle of the hotel room, grab the fruit tray, and head back to mine with a pissed-off woman on my tail.
“Aht, aht!” I spin on her, careful to keep my towel in place. “I’m hungry, and you have a whole Sam’s Club situation on that comforter. This is mine—and stop eyeing my dick!”
Her sharp inhale sends a shiver through her, one that parts her lips and triggers the pulse beating in her throat. Allowing her into my space was a bad idea.
She’s everywhere but under me.
I shut the door in her face and lock the only barrier keeping me from fucking her senseless. “Go to bed!”
“Did you just—” Her fist hits the door. “That’s my fruit tray!”
“Sharing is caring!”
“You’re an ass hair!”
“Yeah, yeah.” I settle on my bed, merely feet from the door that’s become a microphone for her insults. “I’ll see you tomorrow night. Ooh, blackberries.”
“I rescind my invitation! I don’t want you there!”
“Too late!” I wrap my lips around a strawberry. “Ankles expects to see you with your man .” The last word comes out in a nasally attempt to mock her. I crack up at Emma’s frustrated bang on the door and how quicky we’ve shifted from attraction to fury.
“You get on my damn nerves, Miles.”
“You’ll survive.”