“Thirty-one,” he replied. “And apparently way too old for this shit.” He paused, then huffed a dry laugh. “Or maybe too young. I haven’t decided yet.”
I studied him from the corner of my eye—the tiredness in his gaze, the way his shoulders were hiked up around his ears.
A part of me wanted to know his story, simply because it might help me forget my own, at least for a little while. But something told me he didn’t want to talk about it. He wanted to forget.
“Do you want to get out of here?” I blurted. “I’m staying with a friend, so maybe a hotel?”
I didn’t know where I found the courage to utter the words, but there they were, out in the open. It was as if I’d left my own body and was existing in a different reality—one where I could afford to be carefree again.
“Get out of here?” he repeated slowly.
I nodded, my cheeks burning. My skin was on fire, but it was too late to retract the words. Besides, I didn’t want to takethem back. There was nothing wrong with two consenting adults choosing to forget their troubles for a night.
“Yeah.” I would have to bolt if he asked for clarification. I only had so much courage stored away. “Do Greeks not usually leave bars with perfect strangers?”
His chest shook a little as a chuckle broke loose.
“They do.” Shit, maybe he wasn’t interested in me. “I have one condition.”
My eyebrows arched. “Hopefully, it’s a condom.”
He laughed fully this time, the sound so damn delicious that my toes curled and I leaned closer to soak in the sound.
“That’s a must, but that wasn’t what I had in mind. My condition is no hotels.” My cheeks colored with embarrassment at the idea of getting lost in this handsome man in a dark corner. No, I couldn’t do that. I opened my mouth when he added, “I have a penthouse on the top floor. It’ll give us privacy.”
“Oh.”
“Is that a problem?”
“No, that’ll work,” I breathed out.
Then his fingers closed around mine and I slid off the stool, following him toward the elevator that would take us up ten floors.
My heart hammered against my ribs as I shoved all thoughts from my mind, yet grief lurked in the hollow corners.
I stumbled and Lykos slowed his stride, steadying me. “Second thoughts?”
There was sincere concern in his voice, and maybe on a different day, I would have left him, gone home, put pj’s on, and debriefed with Sophie on the mysterious man I’d met. But I didn’t, because deep down, I knew he could make me forget. And forgetting was the only thing I’d let myself want for years now.
I met his dark eyes and shook my head. “No second thoughts.”
We stepped into the glass elevator and the doors slid shut with a soft whisper, sealing us inside the quiet capsule. Then the lift began its smooth ascent—up, up, and higher still—so effortlessly that it felt as if we were floating rather than rising.
With every passing floor, the city stretched like a living map beneath us. Streets unraveled into ribbons of light, and the higher we climbed, the wider the world seemed to yawn.
Finally, a soft ding broke the silence.
The elevator slowed to a gentle stop and the doors parted with the same quiet elegance.
Towering windows framed the skyline and warm light spilled across polished floors. The space was vast, and I couldn’t help feeling like I’d stepped into the sky itself.
Before I could comment on the view, he whirled me around and pinned me against the entryway wall.
We stood face-to-face, his erection hot and heavy against me. My chest heaved, each quick breath brushing my breasts against his expensive suit.
“I’ve never done this before,” I murmured, then quickly added, “Gone home with a stranger.”
He lowered his forehead against mine and rasped, “Me neither. And truthfully, it’s been a while for me in general.”
