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It’s as if he could see right through me if I let him, so I put on my best poker face.I don’t want to delve into the heavy stuff tonight—the pill-popping and drinking that escalated since my abduction.
Tonight, I want to know more about Kingsley and indulge in this incredible meal.“That’s it,” I say, doing the scout’s honor motion again.
A fleeting laugh escapes his lips.“You’re a quick learner, Miss Slater,” he says, his voice a deep, velvety timber that triggers an involuntary response from my thighs.He tilts his head as if deciphering some unspoken language my body is mumbling.“One more,” he decides, pouring me another glass of wine.
Something about the way he takes charge makes me feel both seen and attended to.
“Yes,” I murmur, my voice coming out breathy and charged.“One more.”
What’s happening to me?Normally, I’d bristle at anyone setting limits for me, but tonight, I find it oddly comforting.
Changing the subject before my face turns entirely crimson, I ask, “Do you have any siblings, Kingsley?”
He looks up from his glass.“I have a younger sister, Indy.She lives with her boyfriend in Texas.”
“Is that where you’re from?”
“Originally, yes.But I enlisted as soon as I could and spent my entire adult life serving this great country.Until a few months ago…” His words trail off, a flicker of something—perhaps nostalgia or regret—passing over his face.But just like that, it’s gone, as if sealed away in some hidden compartment.
“You left, why?”I dare ask, unable to stop myself.
He sets down his cutlery.“Because I didn’t have anything left,” he answers, and I believe him.
I don’t want to pry further.I can sense the deep emotional wounds behind his words.He picks up his cutlery again, diverting his attention to his meal.
Switching gears, I bring up my family.“Well, you know I have two brothers, obviously.”
“I do,” he says, visibly relieved to move the conversation to safer ground.
“Rosie is wonderful, and I can’t wait for her and Vincent to marry.”
“And Julius?He’s recently married to Isabella,” Kingsley probes, a note of suspicion coloring his question.
“Yes, and you met Fox, her son.They’ve only been married a few months, but the best I can tell, it’s going well,” I say cautiously.
“Well enough to keep up appearances,” Kingsley remarks, finishing off the last bit of his steak.
I’m taken aback.How could he possibly know it’s a marriage of convenience?“How did you—”
He cuts me off.“I’ve trained in counterintelligence for nearly a decade.It’s plain to see what the arrangement is, although I wonder if it’s progressed further now?”
“Well, you’re not just a pretty face then,” I reply, slightly irked by his bluntness, but he must have picked up on the chemistry I did when they were in Sardinia.
A smug grin stretches across his face, but I know how to wipe it off quickly.“So, where can I find a Dom?”I throw the question at him like a curveball.
His fiery gaze locks onto mine, and the atmosphere around us seems to tighten.“What?”
“You heard me just fine, Kingsley,” I reply, my voice a mix of defiance and genuine curiosity.
I’m venturing into uncharted waters, and if he isn’t willing to be my Dom, I at least want him to steer me in the right direction.
He meets my gaze, eyes burning.“Why would you askmethat?”His heated look sweeps over me, sending a new wave of butterflies fluttering through my stomach.
“Because you’ve awakened something in me,” I say.“Something I’ve been curious about since that night.”
“No,” he shoots back, signaling for the check.
“Wait, I haven’t finished my fries yet.”
