Page 20 of Midnight Dissonance

He tried bargaining with himself. Promising himself that he would head to the club this weekend and find whatever submissive he could to satiate the longing she had stirred up inside him and fuck it out of his system. Because he couldn’t possibly have felt the Ryan click with a woman fourteen years younger.

Except he had.

And the longer he went with Lexi ignoring his texts, the more doubt crept in. He didn’t want to want her. He didn’t want to have experienced the Ryan click with her. She didn’t have any type of career. She lived in her sister’s house.

And yeah, it was snobbish of him, but so be it.

But their second kiss had put the first one to shame. And he’d jacked off to fantasies involving her every night this week.

“Something bothering you?” Jase asked him.

Josh’s head whipped up from the paperwork they’d been reviewing. He enjoyed working with his cousin, Jase. He was a fucking brilliant businessman. He and his sister Emilia shared CEO duties. And he and Jase looked like they could be brothers and not just cousins, but the Ryan blood ran strong through their veins.

And maybe Jase would have an idea about what he should do about Lexi. Because he couldn’t get her or their kisses out of his mind. “The Ryan click. What does it feel like exactly?”

Jase leaned back in his seat with an arched brow. His black hair was trimmed and expertly styled. His suit jacket hung on the back of his chair. He had his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and his tie was loosened. “Any reason you want to know about the Ryan click? Did you feel it with a sub at Eros?”

Bloody hell! Jase was too smart for his own good. Of course he would realize he was asking because something had happened with a woman that had rattled his foundation. “Just answer the question, asshole.”

Jase chuckled, and a shit-eating grin appeared. “What does the Ryan click feel like? It’s as if the world suddenly stops, and everything in your life finally makes perfect sense. Because everything that happened in your life has led you to this point—to her—and you know your life will never be the same. And it’s like your life just clicks into place now that she’s there.”

He had just described in perfect detail the exact emotions swirling in him during each lip-lock with Lexi. But he had to be certain. It was too important, and he didn’t want to mess this up. “And that’s what you felt for Rose?”

Rose was Jase’s wife and the mother of his child. They’d met, had a torrid night together, and he’d knocked her up. It took some finagling on both their parts, but they married over a year ago, and Jase had never appeared so happy.

“Yep. The first time I kissed her.” Jase grinned with a far-off look in his eyes, like he was taking a trip down memory lane and recalling his first kiss with his wife.

The first time. Yep. He knew exactly what that was like. Because the moment Lexi put her lips against his, the world screeched to a grinding halt. And that had never happened with another woman. “Okay. Thanks.”

“And who have you been kissing that you think you felt the click with, hmmm?” Jase asked with a wry grin.

If he told him, the rest of the family would know before nightfall. And he didn’t want the news reaching Lexi. She was already difficult enough. And it was going to take him waging a full-out seduction campaign to get her to change her mind about him. The last thing he needed was his family meddling in his affairs. As well-meaning as they might be. “I’d rather not talk about it until I’m sure.”

Although he was, damn it all. It had felt like choirs of angels had sung the hallelujah chorus when they fecking kissed. Time had stood still. And a desire to cherish and protect her had grabbed him by the bloody throat and had yet to relent. But it was because deep down, he knew she was his and they were meant for one another. It was simply a matter of convincing her of that fact.

“Careful that you don’t try talking yourself out of it. I know I did for a time, much to my profound regret. When I think of the time Rose and I lost because I couldn’t extract my head from my ass, it drives me insane. And I’m gonna make a suggestion that will save you a lot of heartache and time. Stop kidding yourself. Because if you felt even half of what I described or something similar to it, you felt the Ryan click. Don’t try fighting your emotions. Although I’m sure you feel a bit scrambled. I know I did when Rose and I were just beginning. But I’m here to tell you that once you feel the click, your fate is sealed. Because no one but her will suffice.”

That’s what he was bloody afraid of. He grimaced. “Thanks for that.”

“I didn’t say it is going to be easy. So, who is she? Someone from the club?”

“We should get back to the acquisition. We have a lot of ground to cover—”

Jase tossed his head back and issued a booming laugh.

The fecker.

“I’m going to enjoy watching you squirm, cousin,” he said with a mile-wide grin.

“And I’m sorry I asked.” But not really, because he’d given him the clarity he’d so desperately needed. He wasn’t crazy. He had felt the click with Lexi. A woman who had rejected and sneered at his every attempt to interact with her.

“Can we get this done? I’ve got a meeting with my team in thirty.”

And the sooner they were finished, the sooner he could look up her band's website and find out where they were playing tomorrow night. Because he was done waiting for her to stop being a brat.

What she needed was a firm hand to guide her. And he would be the Dom to do it.

8

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