“And if they get caught, she loses her job, right?” Her eyes widened, giving me a knowing look. I did understand what was at risk for her, and I didn’t blame her for keeping as much space between us as possible.
“Yeah, she would,” I acknowledged.
“And she might lose her teaching license as well. I can see why she’d have a problem with giving in if she’s even interested. Plus, she’s probably older than him.”
There it was again—the age difference.
“I’m going to ask you something, and it’s not to offend you or anything like that.”
She looked over to where the guys were still playing for a moment and then back to me with a slight downturn of her lips. “Okay, I’m not sure I’m going to like where this is going, but what is it?”
Reaching forward, I hooked my index finger with hers. Her skin was so soft and warm, making me wonder if it felt that way all over. “Not that it matters to me, but how old are you?”
The moment the words were out of my mouth, Pen pulled away. “I’ll happily tell you. Then you won’t be interested in me anymore, and we can get on with our lives.”
Doubtful, but I wouldn’t tell her that.
“I’m thirty-seven. Happy?”
“Yeah, because now that it’s out there, and I can tell you I don’t care that you’re thirty-seven or forty or any age. What I do know is my dick gets harder for you than it has for anyone before you. Neither one of us care. The only one that does is you.”
“Walker, I…” her mouth opened and closed a few times before her eyes got misty, and she looked down at her food. “Yes, the age difference is a part of it, but it’s also because I’d be risking everything for something that will likely fizzle out very quickly.”
Fire burned through my veins and settled in my gut. She had no idea how I felt. “On whose end? Because I can tell you right now, I won’t be getting tired of you.”
“You think your dick won’t get tired of me, but I can assure you, it will.” She steeled herself, squaring her shoulders before she continued. “And it will get lonely when you’re out on the road. Then your dick will get very excited when there are women throwing themselves at you morning, noon, and night.”
I stood, pushing off the table, my food forgotten. The only thing that ran through my mind was Penelope’s words.
I leaned forward and gritted out the words. “That’s not me, and never will be. You don’t know me.”
“And you don’t know me,” she stood, placing her hands on the table only inches from mine. “We don’t know each other. That’s why this is a gamble. Do you really expect me to risk everything on a fling? Because I can tell you I’ve seen more men than I can count say they’re going to be faithful only to crumble once temptation was put in front of them.”
I moved as close as I could with the table between us until there were only a couple of inches between us. “Let me show you I’m different.”
Her gaze landed on my mouth. As if I couldn’t help myself, I licked my suddenly dry lips. “Show me what you’ve got.”
CHAPTER NINE
pen
Walker was seriously trying to kill me with kindness while simultaneously making me one jealous bitch.
Every night the guys invited me over and threatened to get into trouble if I didn’t show up. I wasn’t sure if they were joking or not, but I couldn’t risk it. They were so close to finishing up the recording of their first album.
While Walker never laid his hands on the women while I was around, I wasn’t spending the night to make sure none of them stayed the night. That wasn’t my job, and I couldn’t risk falling into bed with Walker myself.
Maybe if I found some other man who could treat me with respect like Walker did, he could get me out of thinking about the guy I was supposed to keep out of trouble and make his career. You would think it wouldn’t be difficult to find a guy who remembered how you drank your coffee or what you ordered from every place you’d eaten together. Hell, it shouldn’t be that hard to find someone who opened doors for you or helped carry your bags.
Going outside to sit by the pool, I pulled out my phone and started swiping through Tinder. The only problem was none of them had dark hair and eyes that reminded me of midnight. None of them had a jaw sharp enough to cut diamonds either. I couldn’t hear what they sounded like, but I knew they didn’t have that low rasp Walker had. His voice was pure seduction without even trying.
Those dark eyes I was dreaming about appeared in front of me. They held so much kindness in them that I wanted to give in. I mean, what would it hurt if I gave in? If I let temptation take over for one night? Maybe then we’d both get it out of our systems, and we could go on with our lives.
“What are you doing out here by yourself?” He leaned over, and before I could hide what was on my screen, he caught a glimpse. “And why are you looking on Tinder when you’ve got someone who’s very interested right in front of you?
Leaning back in the chair, I brought my phone to my chest before I met his narrowed gaze. “Who says I’m interested in you?”
Turning the chair next to me so he’d be facing me, Walker sat down with a smirk so sexy, I wanted to kiss it right off his smug face. “I see the way you look at me.”
“No, you don’t,” I denied. I hated that I was so damn transparent around him.
“Like right now.” He moved forward until our knees were touching. Heat bloomed through my body, and I wanted desperately to disconnect the hurricane that was brewing inside of me. “You’re looking at me like you want to devour me.”
I jerked my seat back in order to break our connection. “I think you’re confusing me with all the women you’ve been surrounding yourself with.”
“Are you jealous?” He asked with a mocking laugh.
Was he fucking kidding me right now?
I stood, backing away from Walker, and didn’t stop until my back came into contact with one of the tables that sat around the pool.
“Whoa. No, no, no.” Walker stood walking toward me with his hands up in the air, eyes wide. “Pen, no. Don’t take it like that. You know I’m into you, and I’ve been giving you your space. Do I like the idea that you might be jealous? Hell, yeah, I do because that means you feel something for me.” With his hand outstretched toward me, Walker’s face softened. When I didn’t reach out to him, Walker let his arm fall to the side. “Fine, then tell me why you were on some dating app just now?”
I crossed my arms over my chest and narrowed my eyes at him. Who was Walker to ask me anything? I didn’t owe him any answers, and yet, I still answered him.
“Because I thought if I found a guy who could treat me right and give me a few orgasms that my attraction to you might fade altogether.”
Walker stepped toward me and picked up my hand. He ran his long fingers over the tips of mine. “Are you not satisfying yourself?”
“I’m woman enough to admit sometimes a girl just needs the real thing.”
“And you need a real…” His lips twitched to the side as if he was holding back laughter.