Page 15 of Hushed

But he’d asked a sincere question, so she looked around the room and tried to retrace her thoughts.

“This is just a small sample, mind you. But at one point I turned my head to the right, and I saw my computer desk. It made me remember that I never did turn in a quote on a graphics package for the bakery that just opened down the street. The bakery made me think of blueberry scones. Blueberry scones made me think of the blueberries in my fridge that have probably gone bad, which made me think of how long it’s been since I cleaned out my fridge. And that made me think of the other day when a friend’s fridge broke while they were out of town, and I went over to help them throw everything away and clean up. Then I remembered I needed to get my trash downstairs. Then I got embarrassed by how messy this place is. That made me think of the time Reggie bought me a cleaningservice for my birthday and I got mad at him. And it just goes on and on and on.”

Gage whistled. “I’m starting to see your problem, sweetheart. That’s quite a busy brain you have. Come on. Get dressed. I want to try something.”

Kenzie frowned. “What are you up to, Gage Allard?”

Gage winked. “I’m on a mission.”

Gage and Reggie turned everything into a mission. Most of the time, it was amusing. Sometimes it was annoying. Tonight, it was just intriguing enough to have her pulling on her denim shorts to go with the t-shirt he’d handed her.

“Grab your headphones, your favorite vibrator, and a sleep mask if you have one,” he said while he buttoned his shirt.

The requests seemed strange, but she was already all in, so she grabbed the headphones off her desk and hooked them around her neck, then she selected a vibrator out of the nightstand and tucked it into a small purse along with a sleep mask.

Outside, they hailed a cab, and Gage directed the driver to an expensive hotel in a part of town that was way outside her price range.

She was no closer to understanding what he was up to, but she was curious and excited.

When they reached the hotel, he strolled up to the counter and requested a suite, then presented that shiny black card again. Kenzie thought it looked heavy.

He held her hand as they walked through the lobby toward the bank of elevators.

When they were inside the car, he backed her against the wall after pushing the button for their floor and nuzzled her neck with his beard. The sensation sent sparks straight to her clit, and she was dying to have his mouth on her again. It didn’t matter that she wouldn’t orgasm. It would still be pleasant. And she could finish herself off after he fell asleep.

When they got to the obscenely enormous suite, he nodded to the giant bathroom. “Take a bath and relax if you want.”

But that was the last thing she wanted. “I just want to try again,” she whispered.

Gage pushed her into the bathroom and up against the counter and kissed her tenderly. “And taking a bath and relaxing is part of trying again.”

“How is taking a bath going to help me orgasm?”

He trailed kisses down her neck as his fingers slipped under the hem of her shirt. “Trust me,” he murmured against her neck. “Arms up.”

He lifted the top over her head, then unbuttoned her shorts and pushed them over her hips and down her legs.

Standing naked in the bright bathroom lights made her momentarily self-conscious about her shape, and about the extra fluff around her middle and on her thighs. But one look at Gage’s face as he devoured her with his eyes was enough to squash the negativity. She’d worked too hard on body confidence to let any of that shame come creeping back.

“I need you to take a shower or a bath while I prepare a few things,” he explained.

“Prepare?”

He chuckled. “Relax. Nothing too intense for our first time. I just have a theory about your brain, and I want to test it out.”

Now he was speaking her language, and she was curious about his theory, so she reached into the shower and flipped it to as hot as it would go.

“Not really a bath kind of girl.”

Gage nodded. “Good to know. But apparently, you’re into Satan licking your asshole. Kinky.”

Kenzie doubled over with laughter. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“You’re the one with literal fire coming out of the shower head.”

“Get out of here and let me shower,” she said between giggles.

When he was gone, she took her time under the spray and did her best to not think about everything they faced tomorrow as they prepared for Reggie’s funeral. Tonight, she just wanted to pretend there was a hot guy who was totally into her and that this wasn’t a pity fuck.

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