Page 114 of Surprisingly Us

She answers immediately.

“Good morning, sunshine. How are you feeling today?”

“Hi, Hans. I’m okay. I just finished up at the practice studio.”

“On a Saturday morning?”

“It helped, you know, to dance out my frustration.”

“Yeah, I get it. How are you feeling after last night? About the engagement?”

“Angry. Confused. Hurt. I still can’t believe he fake proposed without talking to me.”

“And I can’t believe he didn’t ask your dad. It’s tradition to ask for a daughter’s hand in marriage.”

“Is that still a thing?” I ask.

“It’s a tradition.”

“I think traditions don’t apply to fake engagements.”

“And let’s not forget he didn’t even bother to talk to me. I mean, I wasn’t even consulted on the ring.” She’s joking, but there’s still a tinge of hurt in her voice. “It’s a beautiful ring, if not a bit ostentatious.”

“Is that the word of the day?”

“Yes, and I’m so sorry. Do you want me to kick his ass? I mean, I won’t actually do it, but I can hire someone to.”

“Tempting, but no.”

“Okay, let me know if you change your mind. So how did you leave it with him last night? I saw you leave the fundraiser and then Rhys followed you out. Did you two talk?”

“Yeah, and we did some other stuff.”

In the silence that follows, I know Hannah’s eyes are widening and her lips are pressed together processing what I just said.

“Other stuff?” she asks, her tone reaching a new octave.

“Yeah,” I say, hesitantly, but then I remember this is Hannah and she’s never made me feel awkward for my inexperience. “I wanted to. God, Hannah, I wanted it so bad. Is something wrong with me?”

She sighs. “No. I don’t think so. Rhys’s charm is pretty powerful.”

“That’s the thing. He wasn’t coming onto me. I instigated it and then it was like he was annoyed with me, but then he ate me out like I was his last meal.”

“Damn. So, it was good?” she asks.

“I don’t have anything to compare it to, but yeah, it was hot. Oh, and I gave him head. Kind of. I started and then he stopped me.”

My cheeks flush remembering how bold I’d been with Rhys, unzipping his pants and fisting his erection. The cool sensation of his piercing sliding against my tongue and into the back of my throat.

And then, how good it felt with his mouth on me. And how hard I’d come for him. But when my eyes opened this morning, I’d been alone in his bed, and it told me everything I needed to know.

“Jesus, Lettie. You’re checking all the foreplay boxes real fast. Did you have sex with him?” she asks.

“No. And besides, it wasn’t about me, he was simply proving a point. I asked him what he does to make women fall into his bed, and so he had to show me by giving me the most powerful orgasm of my life.”

I had been perfectly happy being a battery-operated orgasm girlie and now I’m not sure I can go back. At least not permanently. No, I had a taste of how good it can be to have a partner that isn’t made of silicone and I want more. I can add that to the growing list of reasons to be furious at Rhys.

“He’s an egotistical, self-absorbed, arrogant, bigheaded asshole.”

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