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“Nothing. He gave it to me.”
“He’s the guy you had sex with, isn’t he?” Savannah pressed with a knowing grin.
“Sanna. I already told you, I don’t want to talk about it. Give me that,” I ordered as I snatched the woman from her hands. “I’m going to bed.”
“Hmmm, it must have been disappointing. You’re grouchy.” She pouted.
I closed my eyes and issued a heavy sigh. Disappointing? No. Mind-blowing? Yes, and then some.
“Come on, Mel. You and I always compare, you know…” Sanna flashed a guilty look Dylan’s way as his brows arched up high and his blue eyes grew wide.
“Compare notes? Do you now, kitten?”
“No,” she whimpered with a nervous chuckle. “We don’t compare. We just talk about…oh hell.”
“Language, precious,” Nick warned as he stepped into the foyer. Cocking his head, he glanced at the figurine in my hands. “What do you have there?”
“It’s one of Joshua Lars’ sculptures, Master. Isn’t it beautiful? He gave it to Mellie, but I still can’t get her to tell me what she gave him.”
Nick smirked as he took in my disheveled state. “I’d say a very memorable night.”
“That’s what I think, too,” Sanna replied in a conspiratory whisper.
“This is quite stunning,” Nick nodded as he, too, admired the kneeling woman. “The man is obviously talented.”
You have no idea.
“So, you’re really not going to spill the beans, even to me, your only sister?” Sanna asked, her bottom lip sticking out in a dramatic pout.
“Stop pestering her, kitten,” Dylan chided. “If she wants you to know, she’ll tell you.”
“Yes, Sir.”
I felt guilty keeping the details of my night from Sanna, but I needed to sort the barrage of emotions pinging through me. Sort them, dissect them, and then put them away. Something had happened inside his magnificent loft. Something that had the potential to haunt me the rest of my life.
“I’m sorry, Sanna. I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow. Right now, I just want to take a shower and climb into bed.”
She studied me in microscopic appraisal, then frowned. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, of course. I’m just wiped out,” I replied before planting a reassuring kiss on her cheek. “Let me get some sleep. I promise we’ll talk in the morning.”
“Okay, but if you need me, I’m always here for you, sis.”
“I know, and I love you for it.”
Feeling as if I didn’t deserve her unconditional love, didn’t stop me from gathering it around me. Raw and confused, her devotion soothed the craggy edges of my jagged nerves.
Sanna still wore a skeptical expression as I said my goodnights then climbed the stairs. I couldn’t fault her for being concerned. Even before she found Dylan and Nick, I’d always confided in my sister. But my encounter with Joshua left me feeling defensive, as if talking about what we’d shared might somehow sully its sanctity. That alone had me perplexed. I hadn’t expected a one-night stand would leave me feeling so damn fragile. I should have been choking on guilt and shame and finding ways to forgive myself instead of hoarding and savoring the memories. Sanna would want answers for my unusual demeanor, but then, so did I. Hopefully by morning, I would have it sorted out.
“Why are you obsessing over him?” I groused as I stripped off my clothes and climbed into the shower. “You had a fabulous fuck. Get over it.”
As the hot water washed Joshua’s scent from my skin, a pang of regret slid through me. The thought of erasing him from my skin dismayed me, and the emptiness that accompanied it was alarming. I’d never pined for a man before, at least not to this degree. The bizarre sensation made me prickly and on edge.
No matter how hard I tried to compartmentalize the aftereffects of my night with Joshua, I couldn’t stop tossing and turning. Visuals of the incredible ways he’d unraveled me spooled through my brain, and the more I tried to push them away, the brighter and bolder they became. I’d washed away his scent, yet I could still smell his skin. Even brushing my teeth couldn’t erase the taste of his slick come branded on my tongue. My lips still tingled from his toe-curling kisses, and his deep, rich voice refused to stop echoing in my ears. The man was like a ghost, fixated on haunting my psyche.
Glancing at the clock, I groaned. Four thirty in the morning, and I was no closer to sleep than I’d been when I crawled into bed two hours earlier. Tugging the extra pillow from behind my head, I wrapped my arms around the firm foam cushion and closed my eyes. Giving in to my foolish fantasies, I imagined clinging to Joshua’s rugged body, and finally drifted off to sleep.
The soft snick of the door woke me, and when I opened my eyes, I saw Savannah approaching the bed. A weak smile tugged one side of her mouth as she nibbled her bottom lip; a clear indication she was worried. Tossing back the covers, I patted the mattress and turned on my side. Without a word, she pounced into the bed beside me.
