Page 20 of Desperate Temptations

“You good?” I ask with a smirk, grabbing the passing joint from him.

Ethan shifts on the chair again. “Can’t remember the last time I took a bath.”

“It felt nice though. Helps all your… muscles.”

He blinks at me for a second and then snorts.

I hum. “But the water and salts helped, right?”

He shrugs. “Yeah, it felt good. I’m… sore still.”

“Mhmm. You weren’t gonna bounce back in a few hours. It’s not a rubber band.”

A muted laugh escapes his throat and he shakes his head before blowing out a breath. Ethan looks over at me. “Was that your first time… uh, being on top?”

“No,” I say with a small shake of my head. “But it was my first time rubbing dicks together like that. I’ve always wanted to try, but usually the men I hook up with… We’re going more for a quickie than anything else.”

“You’ve never done that before?” he says, surprised.

I smirk again. “Nope, you were my first.”

He grins, and then rolls his eyes. “What other firsts you got?”

“Oh, I’m sure there’s plenty. I’m not that adventurous.”

Ethan nods. “Yeah, I get it.”

There’s a weird tension swirling around us, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. I’ve never been one to stick around after, but this is Ethan. We temporarily live together, and I’m hoping it’s more than a one time thing.

My eyes look over the city, and I clear my throat. “I’ve never… uh, dated.”

Ethan’s head snaps to me. “You’ve never dated? But all those?—”

“Not dates. Just hook-ups, casual things here and there,” I say wistfully. “But one day, I’d like that, you know? The whole thing. I want the flowers, the planned dates, the anniversaries.”

My tongue runs along my bottom lip, my heart aching when I think about a future that may never be.

“You’ve never gotten flowers?”

I scowl, passing the joint back to him. “Have you?”

He frowns. “Guess not.”

We both know he’s gotten them plenty of times for Lynds.

Ethan clears his throat. “The lawyer messaged, setting up a meeting for later this week.”

My stomach twists with uncertainty. “That was fast.”

“I’m sure her father heard about what happened outside the company’s parking lot, and he’s speeding it up,” he says with a sigh.

“You gonna try to talk to them again? I can’t imagine their excuse on why they kept this all hidden.”

Ethan turns away from me, his eyes glossing over as they stare off into the distance. “I don’t know if I care to even find out why. What will it change?”

I shift in the chair. “It may not change anything, but it can give you closure.”

“Closure? The only person that can give me closure is buried six feet under.” His jaw tightens and I look away, not wanting to see the grief that consumes his face.

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