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She shook her head. “It isn’t. That’s not one of my kinks. Truthfully, I’m probably pretty vanilla. For me, it’s the…” She paused.
“It’s the submission you want to explore.”
Liza nodded. “I’m struggling to understand where this desire is coming from because I’ve never felt this burning need with past lovers. Never felt compelled to obey—God, I really hate that word—someone else’s demands.”
“There’s nothing wrong with wanting someone else to take control in the bedroom. It’s a common turn-on for a lot of people—male and female.”
“And you don’t mind? I mean…being the one to…” She waved her hands around rather than speak the words.
“I’m a control freak, Liza. Perhaps you’ve noticed.”
She snickered.
“That character trait doesn’t turn off when I step into a bedroom. If anything, it’s stronger there.”
“So, I guess this,” she gestured between them, “makes sense. We’re sexually compatible and we’re both single. Feels like a win-win.”
“It does.”
“Even if you are a Russo,” she tacked on with a wicked grin.
“No one is more surprised by this than me, Ms. Moretti.” He enjoyed the way she laughed at his joke, and he recalled Christmas Eve dinner with his brothers. The way Conor and Gage had cracked up at each other’s jokes. Yet with him, they became more serious, less fun.
Liza’s lighthearted behavior sharply contrasted how other people acted around him. Perhaps that was part of her appeal. She didn’t act like he was the world’s most miserable bastard; rather, she seemed to enjoy his company. Then he realized the same held true of Arnold and Johnnie.
“Taking out the relationship factor makes this a lot easier for me too,” Liza continued.
Matt knew why, though it chafed.
If the two of them maintained a casual affair—without commitment or emotion—she could keep her association with him a secret from her family and friends, most of whom would not approve of her sleeping with him.
Those sins of the past reared their ugly head again. Memories of the things he’d done to her family—and to his—had ensured he’d spent years wallowing in self-loathing and regret.
The constant drip-drip-drip of water.
Dark red blood congealed on the snowy-white tiles.
The blue-tinged skin of a lifeless arm.
Look deeper.
Matt restrained a shudder. There’d been a time when he thought he had managed to put those horrors behind him. Then Gage shared the guilt he’d felt in regard to their mother’s suicide and sent Matt back to those days just following her death.
Liza picked up her mai tai and took a long drink, finishing it. “Should we head inside? Shower and relax for a little while, then figure out dinner?”
Matt rose, grateful for the reprieve she’d just offered. He’d excuse himself once they returned to the room, hide out on the porch until he could shut down these unwanted thoughts.
“That’s a good idea. I need to check my messages. Make sure Gage and Conor haven’t driven Russo Enterprises into the ground in the past twenty-four hours.”
“I don’t think you have to worry about Conor. I get the feeling he’s as big a workaholic as you are.”
“He is,” Matt confirmed.
“Gage, on the hand, is another story entirely,” Liza added, as they gathered up their things and started walking back to the hotel. “The cat’s away, so I suspect your IT mice are spending a lot of time playing in that game room you foolishly let your brother build at work.”
Matt sighed. “He insisted it was to test the games produced by the tech company he bought, but I’m afraid you’re probably right. I spend a lot of time debating whether Penny has been a good or bad influence on my brother. In the past, Gage at least attempted to hide his nerdy side. Now it’s hanging out there all the time for the whole world to see.”
“Which probably means Russo Enterprises is safe,” Liza said, grinning widely. “Because those two won’t put the video game controllers down long enough for him to do any lasting damage.”
