Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 107660 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107660 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
All of a sudden, our coupling turned from me trying to ease my tension from earlier to panic creeping in at the thought of orgasming in front of someone. Something I hadn’t done since I was a teenager when it had caused damaging effects.
No.
I fisted my hand tighter, searching for control.
But the memory of Lucian’s air of dominance mocked my control—lured me into handing it over to him.
No.
I. Had. Control.
I glanced at the timer. Twenty-more seconds.
I was in control.
Lucian Daire was nothing to me. Nothing.
“Oh, fuck yes, princess. Come for me.”
Princess.
Another moan.
I counted down the last ten seconds.
Nine. Eight. Seven.
A whimper.
Five. Four. Three.
A pulse of pleasure down my spine.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
I jerked forward, dislodging Ash with a gasp of relief.
Without missing a beat, he gripped himself and jerked off until he came into his hand. He leaned into me, catching his breath. Usually, I’d push him away as soon as he finished, but I needed a minute to collect myself. Relief hit me so hard when the timer sounded that I thought my legs would give out.
“I’m gonna clean up,” Ash muttered. He placed a chaste kiss to the back of my head and moved away. The bathroom door closed, and I took one last deep breath before peeling myself from the couch. Once I stopped trembling, I pulled up my pants, ignoring the lingering shiver that ran down my spine when my legs shifted tight around my core.
I stared at nothing, frozen in the middle of my living room, recounting how I almost orgasmed. The whole reason I called Ash was to numb my mind for all of five minutes and enjoy the companionship for however long he stayed. No commitment. No strong emotions that needed controlling. No nothing.
Until now. Now, finding control consumed my thoughts until the whole experience increased my anxiety instead of numbing it.
I squeezed my eyes shut and took a breath, reminding myself that when push came to shove, I always held on to my control. This was a fluke. A one-off that wouldn’t happen again.
I had remained in control, and I always would.
For how long?
I shook my head, shoving the whispering doubt aside.
I was in control, I promised myself, ignoring the fatigue the reminder draped across my shoulders.
Ash reappeared, looking just as devilish as when he arrived.
“Want to stay for dinner?” I asked, heading to the kitchen. I worried that if he left, my mind would spiral in the silence. “I’ve got a chicken and rice dish prepped and there’s enough for two.”
“I’m a growing boy, so I won’t turn down a meal.” He fell back into the corner of the couch and patted his stomach.
“I’m pretty sure you’re done growing, but you guys always eat enough for a whole army. Probably all the energy you burn in your shows. If I ate like that, I’d be the size of a whale.”
“I don’t know, Aspen. I’ve seen you pack away your fair share of food.”
“I’m a growing girl,” I joked back.
He laughed and grabbed the remote from the side table basket, turning on a music station we both liked. While I got dinner ready, he thumbed through his phone.
I’d known Ash since we first signed him and his band, Haunted Obsession, to Quinn Music Group. We’d been teenagers and hadn’t seen much of each other since I’d been in college, and Shiloh managed their group. Once I landed the band manager position, she passed the role on to me, and the rest was history.
“It’s ready,” I called, setting the plates on the counter.
“Yes,” he moaned. “I’m starving and it smells so good.”
“It’s one of my favorites that my mom taught me how to make.”
“Even better. That means it’s authentic.” He smiled and bobbed his brows.
We grabbed our plates and sat at the table to eat in silence until he’d almost finished.
“You know, you seemed closer than usual to coming. Definitely wetter. I had a lot of lady-lube to jerk off with.”
I coughed, clearing the bite that tried to go down the wrong pipe. “Jesus, Ash.”
“What? I’m just pointing out the obvious.” He laughed, holding his hands up. “It made me wonder what was different.”
“Nothing was different.”
He scoffed, not buying my denial. “As much as I’d like to think it was me, I can only do so much within the rules you’ve set up. So, maybe it’s someone else?” he asked playfully, wagging his brows. “You imagining someone else behind you other than me?”
Instead of another objection he’d see through, I rolled my eyes and stuffed a bite in my mouth. He went back to eating, and I assumed that ended the question portion of the night—but I was wrong.
“Why do you do this with me, anyway? It’d probably put more of a kink in your career than mine if anyone found out. So, why risk it?”