Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
SOPHIE
My throat still burned from the glass of straight liquor I’d just downed, which I’d pulled from Colson’s fingers as soon as I stopped in front of his barstool, shooting back the drink before he had a chance to protest.
“We’re just getting started?” He smirked. “How?”
He was referencing the statement I’d barked at him before I stole his cocktail. A statement that had fallen from my lips without even thinking of what I wanted to say to him.
I should already be walking home—my condo was only a block from here.
But once the four of us had gotten up from the table, I sped off to the restroom.
My whole purpose of going in there was to cool off.
My emotions were getting the better of me.
The sink water I splashed on my face didn’t help, nor did the deep breathing as I stared at myself in the mirror. The two only worked me up more.
And whatever this was—this feeling consuming my chest and making my hands shake—I needed to get it out.
When I exited the restroom and saw he was still here, I knew it wasn’t by chance. An opportunity had presented itself, and I needed to take advantage.
“I—”
My voice was cut off by the bartender, who asked, “Would you like another round?”
“Yes,” Colson and I answered at the same time, not taking our eyes off each other.
“Why don’t you take a seat, Sophie?”
I grimaced. “I’d rather stand.”
He turned toward me, putting his back to the bar.
“Go ahead, then. Say what you have to say.” He glanced down for a second, and when he lifted his head, looking at me through his incredibly long lashes, his smile was smug.
“For what it’s worth, I’m shocked you have more you want to say to me.
Since you running into me in Fort Lauderdale is nothing short of a nightmare, I would think the last thing you’d want to do is spend more time in my presence. ”
“I don’t want to spend time with you. That’s not what this is.”
“No? Then what is it, Sophie?”
My feet pushed harder into the ground. “Stop saying my name.”
It reminded me of our time together at Lush—not that he had used it repeatedly while we were there, but it was the control that had pulsed through each of his syllables; the dominance in his tone brought me right back.
And back there wasn’t where my mind needed to be. It needed to stay in the present, on a face that made me furious, an attitude that clawed at my patience, a scent that made me want to lose my sense of smell entirely.
“But it is your name.” He waited a beat. “Or should I call you Mrs. Rivers?”
My neck craned back. “Why would you do that?”
“It’s what my daughter calls you. Although you don’t wear a ring, I’m assuming there’s a reason she uses that specific honorific.”
This conversation was completely off track, but my curiosity was winning.
“You think I’m married?”
“I don’t know anything about you.” He picked up his new drink, leaving mine on the bar top.
“Why would I be a member of Lush if I were married?”
The bar lights were illuminating his already-tanned face. He’d only been in Florida for a day, according to what Hayden had told me at some point, and the man was already rocking a glow. Damn him. And damn him for looking even hotter because of it.
“Listen, I don’t judge anyone’s circumstance. Everyone has a different motive for being there.”
My weight shifted while I laughed. “And you assume mine is because I’m in an unfulfilled marriage?”
“I don’t assume a thing. All I know is that you’re a mother.” His riveting green eyes never left mine. “Somehow, someway, that baby was created inside you. That I do know.”
I smiled, but it wasn’t out of happiness. “You really know nothing at all …”
He finally took a drink. “Are you going to explain what the hell you’re talking about?”
“No.”
His huff was light and ended in a grin. “All right.” He wiped the wetness off his lips. “Then why don’t we get back to what you wanted to say to me? You know, the whole reason you marched your ass over here instead of walking out of the restaurant.”
I had to remind myself that the whole purpose of still being here was to get out the emotions eating at me. It wasn’t to gaze in his eyes or smell his enticing cologne or take in this sexy beast of a man who had the ability to throw me on top of that bar and have me coming in mere seconds.
“First off”—I had to search for my breath again—“I’m really tired of you calling me greedy.
If roles had been reversed, Troy would have done the same thing.
That’s what you pay him for. But calling me that makes it personal, and that’s not fair.
” I reached for the cocktail. The large solo ice cube made the glass so cold in comparison to the way I’d heated up, and it sent a chill through me.
He lifted his chin. “What else do you have for me?”
“You’re not going to fight back? I’m … pleasantly surprised.”
“I didn’t say that.” His gaze narrowed. “I just asked what was next on your list.”
Think, Sophie. Think. Stop letting him affect you.
“I want to know, is it a coincidence that we keep running into each other? Or are you purposely trying to make my life hell?”
He said nothing.
“Colson, there are plenty of yacht brokers on the West Coast. You didn’t have to go with Troy’s suggestion. Hell, with your connections, I’m sure you could have come up with dozens of other options.”
The top of his polo was already unbuttoned, but he spread the collar even wider.
“You are correct, I could have found one in California. But Troy told me Hayden was the best, and if you haven’t gathered already, I don’t like mediocre.
If Hayden’s the top, that’s who I want.” The stool had no backing, but he still reclined a bit.
“Let’s break down the make your life hell accusation.
What would make you think I’d give you that much satisfaction? ”
“Because you live to torment me.”
He chuckled. “And why do you think that is?” When I stayed silent, he added, “Or maybe it’s that you’re the one who’s following me.”
My eyes widened. “You know that’s not the case. How dare you—”
“What were you doing at Lush the last time I saw you there?”
My clutch had been living under my arm, and the feel of it was too confining, so I set it on the bar. “I was doing the same thing you were.”
“You didn’t go in hopes that I’d be there?”
Yes.
“No.” My head shook. “Colson, despite what you think, my desire for pleasure does not revolve around you.”
“But it did that night.”
“You call that pleasure?” I tried to keep my voice down and was failing miserably. “Do you realize what you did to me? And the state you left me in?” I forced myself not to pound the rest of the booze, but I still took a large sip, pulling at my tank, as it had started to stick to me.
“Tell me how bad it really was …”
I bared my teeth. “You’re fucking evil.”
“Did you think about me when you got home that night? Did you climb into your bed and take out your vibrator and put it on your pussy?” He licked the inside of his lip. “Or did you use your fingers? I want to hear all about it, Sophie …”
That mouth. I could hump his face; it was so dirty.
But I would never let him know that.
“You’re an asshole.”
“Funny, you didn’t say no to me that night, did you? You knew what I could give you, and you were more than willing to go into a private room with me. You put up no fight whatsoever.” He paused. “Why?”
“Because I thought you were going to get me off, and that was why I was there.”
His fingers went to his beard, and I couldn’t help but glance at them.
Damn it.
“But any man in that establishment could have given you an orgasm.” Every word he spoke felt like he was saying it directly against my lips.
Like the heat from his breath was trickling across my skin.
“Yet you chose me. A man you despise. A man who’s a nightmare.
A man whose presence you can’t stand … unless … ”
I hadn’t met a man who was so attuned to my body as Colson. Who knew how to make me climb, who could drop me just as quickly and immediately bring me right back. Who could make me beg—something no one in this world could do.
Instead of that admission, I replied, “Unless what?”
“Unless everything you’re saying is bullshit.
You want these coincidences to unfold just the way they are.
You wanted to leave Lush unsatisfied because, deep down, you knew your pleasure was what fueled a dominant man, like me, and that only meant I intended to see you again.
So I could give you more.” He paused. “So I could make you come.” His touch lasted just a second, skimming across my hip, but it was enough to make the air in my lungs hitch.
“For you, arguing is verbal intercourse. Am I right?”
I set my drink down and leaned into his face. “Go to hell.”
“Is that what you want? Or do you really want my face underneath this?”
I felt the brief brush of his fingertips on the bottom hem of my skirt. Like before, it didn’t last, but it was enough to set me on fire.
“A night when you can have my tongue for as long as you want it?”
My laugh was short, the exhale covering his entire face. “You think I’d fall for another one of your false promises?”
“I told you, for some dominant men, walking out of that room would be an extremely calculated move. You question me, Sophie, but don’t question my intelligence. I don’t do anything without a purpose.” His eyes backed up that statement.
“And I’m telling you, it takes trust to believe you wouldn’t walk out again. I don’t have that when it comes to you.”
“You don’t?” His fingers were on the outside of my thigh and rising. To the center of my leg. The inner part of my thigh. Higher, higher, and then …
I drew in a loud breath.
“No panties. Did you make that decision with me in mind? Hoping when I came to dinner, I’d finger you under the table?”
“I didn’t know you were coming to dinner. If I had, I wouldn’t have come.”
“But you’re glad I’m here, aren’t you?”
I moaned as he weaved through my wetness. I couldn’t help it. I hadn’t been touched since our session at Lush, and the sensation of him was consuming me. “Colson …”
“Are you telling me to stop? Or are you telling me you want to leave this bar and come to my hotel room?”