Page 82 of Filthy Twisted Devil
He lowers his chest to mine, grinding his hips harder as he takes my mouth in a long, consuming kiss. His pace gets rougher and erratic, like he’s getting close to losing control. I can feel the tension in his muscles over me. I’m close, too, the heat radiating from my belly through my whole body.
“Luke,” I gasp. “I’m almost there.”
“Let go for me, Eden,” he orders. “Come with me.”
Sensation roils through me as I come hard, almost convulsing around his cock. Luke buries a groan in the pillow beside my head as he follows me, hips jerking, his release spilling hot between us. “Eden,” he breathes into my hair, like my name is the only word he has left—the only one quiet enough to keep us safe.
Luke presses his forehead to mine, panting as he comes down. “Are you okay?” he asks. “That wasn’t too much?”
“No. It was perfect.”
It was. Until I’m able to cross that line with him, I don’t think anything could possibly feel any better than that.
Luke cleans us both quickly with some tissues before pulling me into his arms. We lie tangled in bed together for much longer than we should.
Because we both know that tomorrow, Luke goes back to Toronto and we both go back to reality. I’ll spend four more days on the ranch with my family, pretending my heart’s not breaking when I watch him go.
34
LUKE
While I was in Sundre, I learned the Locke brothers’ schedule. I learned that from eight to noon on Tuesdays, they’re tied up checking on the cattle with the visiting veterinarian. I made sure that the medical supplies rep would arrive during that window to deliver Rose’s new wheelchair, one with a wheel that won’t stick. The rep assured me that she’d make sure the replacement wheelchair worked well for Rose, and she’d dispose of the old one without any fuss.
Save Rose, none of the Lockes will know about the new wheelchair. I know Rose will keep quiet about it. She knows how proud her children are, and that they wouldn’t want “charity,” even from me. Still, I’m half-expecting a call from Wade, insisting that they couldn’t accept the gift without paying me back.
What I get instead, two days later, is a single text from an unsaved number my iPhone suggests is Rose Locke.
Rose
It rolls like a dream, darlin’. Our secret.
There’s no way to explain why I read it four times, or why it stays with me all week, like something I didn’t know I’d been missing.
Wade never does call. So naturally, I stop by Eden’s office just to see if she’s heard from her brothers. Flair Events is only a ten-minute drive from the Twisted Devil tasting room, anyway. At least, that’s the excuse I give myself for dropping by, hours before I’m supposed to see her tonight. I also might have conveniently forgotten to confirm whether I was picking her up or meeting her at the restaurant. Another excuse to see her, just in case.
When I arrive at Flair, the receptionist at the front desk straightens. She flashes me a dazzling smile.
“Welcome to Flair Events,” she says. “Did you have an appointment today, Mr. Windsor? I don’t have you on our calendar.”
I shake my head. “I'm here to see Eden.”
The receptionist blinks. “Did you have an event that she was working on…”
“Just visiting my girlfriend.”
It shouldn't feel as good as it does, repeating that lie. Every time I get to pretend Eden is mine, it’s a chance to act like the fantasy is real.
The receptionist’s expression falters slightly. “Right,” she says after a moment. “I hadn’t heard.”
I stopped myself from asking her, “Really?” Over the past few weeks, Eden and my relationship has been as public as it's ever been.
To make sure the Air Canada deal goes through, I’ve kept Eden busy on a publicity spree, flaunting my non-tawdry, perfectly respectable fake relationship. If there’s been a gallery opening, a charity fundraiser, even a goddamn ribbon cutting in town, Eden and I made sure to attend. Our pictures are all over the society pages.
Which, apparently, the receptionist doesn't read.
“So,” I say awkwardly. “Which way is Eden’s office?”
“Down the hall, last door on the right,” she mutters, annoyed.
