Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 33692 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 135(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33692 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 135(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
“Did he hurt you?”
“No.”
“Did he force himself on you?”
“No, not at all,” I tell him. “He was just so angry with me. It scared me to death.”
“I’m sure you were. This guy… he sounds like a real asshole.”
“He didn’t start out that way. He was sweet. Thoughtful,” I say. “But he changed.”
“Or maybe he was that guy all along and tried to make you think he wasn’t.”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
As the reality of my situation settles down over me, my chest tightens and I have trouble breathing, almost as if I’m suffocating beneath a thousand-pound weight. I bury my face in my hands and do my best to staunch the tears. I would’ve had better luck trying to hold back the tide.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” I say. “I can’t live there with him anymore. Not after last night. But I still haven’t found a job…”
I sniff loudly and wipe my face with my napkin, doing my best to keep myself from falling apart in front of Cash…or from falling apart any more than I already have. The tears streaming down my face only add to my humiliation. I take a couple of moments to collect myself, and when I finally raise my eyes, the expression of sympathy I see on Cash’s face breaks my heart all over again.
“You okay?” he asks.
“Honestly? Not really,” I say, appalled at the way my voice quavers. “I just don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“Here’s what you’re going to do,” he begins. “I need help in the bar. I’m going to hire you as a server here. I’ve also got a spare room in this place that you will use until you get on your feet and get your own place.”
“That’s sweet,” I say, shaking my head. “But I can’t take charity—”
“It’s not charity. It’s a job. I’m going to be putting you to work.”
The offer is intriguing, and I’d be lying to myself if I said I wasn’t tempted. But part of me wonders if it’s because it seems to be a good way out of my current situation, or because I have this carnal pull toward the man I can’t quite understand. Either way, I don’t think it’s a good idea.
“I appreciate it, Cash. But you’ve already done far too much for me. I wouldn’t feel right putting you out like that.”
He waves me off. “You’re not putting me out. Like I said, I need help in the bar.”
I wipe my eyes again. “Thank you. But I think I’m just being dramatic. I’m sure after a night apart, he’ll have calmed down and we can talk it out. I’m sure I can make him understand what he did and how he scared me. I’m sure he’ll change.”
“You know he won’t. Guys like that don’t.”
“Maybe not. But I got myself into this. I need to be a big girl now and get myself out.”
Cash sits back in his chair and stares at me for a long moment. His gaze is intense and makes my skin prickle as an uncomfortable heat builds between my thighs. The longer he looks at me, the wetter I get. I like the way his eyes make me feel. Maybe a little too much. Especially considering the fact that I have a boyfriend—a boyfriend I don’t want to sleep with. Add to that, part of me wants Cash to throw me onto the table and have his way with me, and it makes things in my head even more complicated and confusing.
“Okay,” he finally says. “Just know that if you change your mind, the offer stands.”
I give him a small smile. “Thank you, Cash. For everything.”
3
CASH
It’s been a few days since Cassie left my place, and I haven’t been able to get her out of my head since. In my mind’s eye, I can still see the way her wet hair framed her round face, the way her emerald-colored eyes sparkled, and the way her clothes, drenched from the rain, clung to her body, revealing her womanly curves. And of course, I can still smell the faint, sweet musk of her panties.
Just thinking about it now makes me rock hard, and I would give anything for a chance to be deep inside of her. To feel her soft, supple body wrapped around mine. To hear her moans and gasps in my ear. To feel her nails scratching their way down my back and feel the way she shudders and writhes as she comes. I would give anything to look into her wide doe-eyes as I explode and fill her up with my seed.
Given that she hasn’t called or come by since she left that morning, I figure the chances of that happening are about as good as me walking on the surface of the moon, so I have to contend myself with my memories and fantasies of that sweet little thing. Unfortunately for me, that means a lot of jerking off in the shower. I sigh and shake my head as I hook the new keg to the taps. I close the door to the cabinet under the bar, wipe my hands on a rag, and use it to polish the taps as the front door opens.