I didn’t, but I nodded anyway.
“Either way, he’s dominant.”
“Yeah, I’d gathered that.”
“As in,verydominant. All the guys in our circle are bossy and overbearing.” She held up a finger and rushed on, “In a good way. A way we like and welcome and consent to. But Rhys takes it to another level.”
Again, I’d gathered that from what Daisy had said and what I’d observed with my own two eyes.
“I’m not doing a good job explaining this.” She took a second. “Okay, you know the guys who say they like to be in control, but they really just mean they want to be selfish?”
I knewofthem, but that wasn’t the kind of disappointment I attracted.
I got the guys who wanted me in charge. Sometimes, I was cool with that, but a little give-and-take would’ve been nice.
At my nod, she continued. “That’s not Rhys. He’s not pretending. It isn’t playtime. It’s who he is, and he’s insanely strict even though it’s only for one night. And he’s extra stringent about that part. He keeps himself, um, detached.” She made ayikesexpression before rushing to clarify. “I’m totally messingthis up and making him sound like a user manwhore. He’s not. He’s upfront and blunt about his preferences, and he cuts things off before they even begin if he senses she wants more than that. Usually, the women are happy with whatever they can get because he, uhhh, delivers.”
I wanted to say that the feeling that filled me was disgust at his manwhore sex life, but I didn’t judge what—orwho—single people did so long as it was legal and consenting. Instead, it was jealousy that knotted my stomach.
That and stupid curiosity.
I went with the disgust instead. “That’s got to be a lot of women.”
“You’d think so, but no.” Her brows lowered, and she tilted her head. “I actually don’t remember the last time there was anyone.”
“You don’t technically work here anymore,” I pointed out. “He could have a new woman every night.”
“Then I’d definitely know of at least one of them. Word always gets around in our group. That’s how I know that for the limited time he’s with a woman, she does what he says, when he says.”
Nope. No disgust to be found.
That pounding heart rate—and the reaction farther south—from the night before returned.
Tenfold.
The visual of kneeling in front of Rhys, totally vulnerable and at his whim, filled my head. His tattooed hand teasing my skin. His fingers in my hair again, forcing my mouth open so he could fill it with something other than his tongue.
Then when I was done, I would tell him that was neat.
My lusty mood crashed around me.
And then it plummeted to Hell to wait for me when Harlow added, “And he expects her to call himSirthe entire time.”
Rhys
I’d wanted a reaction.
I fuckin’ got one.
Just not the kind I’d been hoping for.
On the surface, Lo seemed fine as she worked alongside me through chaos. Even with staggering entries from the line outside, Saturday night made Friday look like a ghost town.
She kept her cool, working hard—both with orders and to fuckin’ avoid interacting with me. When she did deign to look my way, there was no brightness in her pretty brown eyes. Her smile was forced, but only when it was aimed at me. Everyone else got that easy one I wouldn’t have expected from the serious detective.
The worst part, though?
Her attitude was suddenly gone. There was no snark. No eye rolls.
