Page 110 of Dirty Like Dylan

“And then there’s you,” Amber said, her tone slightly accusatory.

“Yeah.” I laughed. “There’s that.”

“Big brother the rock-star-underwear-model. I could see how a girl could feel like she might disappear.”

I grinned, but then got serious. “Thank you for taking an interest in her.”

Amber looked genuinely surprised. “She’s interesting. And besides… she reminds me of you, actually.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Not the emo part. But there’s this thoughtfulness in her eyes. This deep, kind quality. She has your eyes.”

“Does she?”

“Yes.” A silence fell, and I could feel her eyes on me as I drove. “So why didn’t you tell me you were taking me there?”

“Honestly?” I glanced at her. “Thought you might’ve been scared off if I told you.”

“Uh, yeah.” She smiled, but then she looked away, the smile fading. “Guess you’re starting to figure me out then, huh?”

I was.

I was figuring out how she used her camera to distance herself from people. How she used it to protect herself, avoid getting close.

How she often felt like she didn’t quite fit in.

She was a lot like Ash that way.

Ash used his rock star image, his player persona, his cocky attitude and crude tattoos to keep people out. And he’d always lived on the edge, keeping himself on the outside of things, not even wanting to fit in.

But maybe that just helped to explain why I liked Amber so much. Because I’d been drawn to Ash from the first day I met him, too.

Maybe I’d just always preferred the misfits.

* * *

When I took Amber home to bed at the end of our date, and Ash was waiting up for us… and he joined us in my bedroom… It hit me that it felt kind of off. For the first time ever, I was so focused on her, on wanting her… it felt uncomfortable having him here, in my bed, while I was with a woman.

I didn’t like the feeling.

So I tried to ignore it.

Amber had pulled out her camera when we were coming back on the boat, and she didn’t put it away when we got home. Her, taking photos of me, had become foreplay that we all enjoyed. She kneeled above me on the bed, taking photos of me laid out beneath her, as I slid my hands up her thighs, under her dress. And Ash started feeling her up.

Clearly, he’d missed her, and I watched his hands roaming over her body, undressing her, until she couldn’t hold the camera steady anymore… caught between the arousal of watching him make her feel good, and that odd discomfort.

I watched him remove the camera from her hand, pull her down to the bed, and fuck her. It was the only time, so far, that he’d fucked her in my presence before I did.

And it turned me on.

As always, I was transfixed by the pleasure I saw him giving her. But more than that…

I was fascinated by her.

And yes, I could feel myself starting to want her in ways I wasn’t used to wanting a woman.

I wasn’t a caveman, but women, in my life, had always been for fucking and fun. Relationships were serious things. I wasn’t a serious guy. So for me, hanging with women was casual, or I didn’t bother with it.

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