Page 6 of Breaking the Alpha
“What brings you through Epson?”
He unlaced her second sandal and eased the shoe off of her foot, but maintained his gentle grasp of her ankle.“Escape,” he grunted as his thumb traced circles on her skin.He seemed to be at war with himself for a moment before he met her gaze.“I’m in the final stretch of my divorce.I got married when I was twenty-two.Next month I’ll be twenty-six.”
He cleared his throat.“I’m not heartbroken or anything.Hell, I don’t know why we got married.”
“Yes, you do.”
His smile was tight.“Busted.Yeah, I do.We got married because she wanted the publicity.I suppose we were in love.Not deep or anything, but enough to make us think maybe it wasn’t a totally stupid idea.”Shaking his head, he chuckled humorlessly.“My ex is a social media influencer.A popular one.She makes a living on the image she projects.Companies pay her to showcase their products online, and weddings are influencer gold.The more I showed up in her posts, the more calls my agent received for work.And the more work I got, the more she wanted me in her posts.Then everything went to hell and now I’m here.”
The hint of anger, confusion, and sadness she saw behind his practiced smiles suddenly made so much more sense.“I take it you aren’t a teacher or plumber.”
“Model and failed actor.We were in a marriage of mutual convenience until it became inconvenient.”
“The end of any attachment needs time to grieve.As I will when the taquitos are all gone.”When he snickered, she smiled up at him.“But that isn’t why you’re here.”
“Tell you what,” he said, scooping a dollop of salsa onto his plate.“Maybe I’ll spill more after you tell me something sordid about your past.And no, wearing fur doesn’t count.”
She bit her lip, thinking back over the last decade.“More than fair,” she said before taking a bite of her enchilada.“I suppose it depends on your definition of sordid.I had a pay-to-play webcam business for six years, if that counts.”
River’s fork froze halfway to his mouth.“As in?”
“As in people, usually men, paid ridiculous amounts of money to watch me make candles, bead necklaces, spin pottery, or, well, do pretty much anything.”When his brows lifted, she smiled.“Naked.”
He did a damn good impression of a fish for a moment before his gaze dropped to her chest and snapped up instantly.“Naked.”
Swallowing another bite of her meal, she nodded.“It was a niche market, so the rates were obscene.I made more doing two hours a day than I did working two jobs.Not exactly sordid by any stretch, but it’s obviously not something I tell everyone.Especially men.”
Setting his fork down, he leaned his head in, the disbelief still evident on his face.“Naked candle making.”
“And crocheting.And jewelry making.I dabbled a little in quilting, but I lack the patience.Coloring was always a big draw.”
“You’re telling me guys paid money to watch you color.Like, with crayons.Naked.”
“I prefer pencil crayons, but yes.Wouldn’t you?”she asked with a grin.
His fish impersonation returned and he sat back in his seat.“Well hell.I didn’t know I wanted to see that until you mentioned it.”He frowned for a second then grinned, shaking his head.“Of all the things I thought you’d say, I can honestly say a naked beading empire was not on any of my lists.”
“Would you be interested in a clothed sample of what my clients received?”
His green eyes went wide before the desire set in and the roguish glint caught her breath, making her briefly consider providing a naked sample instead.“I’d be very interested,” he replied, the hint of a growl in his voice.“What do I do?”
Standing, she grabbed a complimentary pen and notepad and walked over to the kitchen counter, sitting on one of the high-back stools.Crossing her legs and unclasping her necklace, she looked over to him.“Clients were always muted.The odd one paid to have their screen unblocked, but I simply ignored their activities.”
River’s expression was priceless, a mixture of confusion, desire, and disgust.“They wanted you to watch them—”
“There was nothing in the terms saying I would watch.Now hush.I’m muting you.”Closing her eyes for a moment, she found her center and began.
*
Fuck.Me.
River’s jaw was never going to come up off the floor.
Angelina’s voice washed over him as she introduced herself and made casual one-sided conversation.Her lilting rhythm held him in the moment as though he were hypnotized.Every word she spoke was carefully chosen, rolling off her tongue with a sensuality that spoke directly to his cock.
“I selected this one because of the richness of the stone’s hues,” she purred, holding the pendant of her necklace up and skimming her finger along the edge of the rock.“The combination of its smooth finish, the coolness of the surface, the weight—it all works together to create a stunning visual, don’t you think?”
She paused.
