Page 47 of Elijah’s Whim

Chapter Eleven

Elijah

Dinner was a total bust at that point, and honestly, I couldn’t be happier. The last thing I felt like doing was refereeing between Shark and Twombley all night. Throw in the secondhand discomfort of all the women being around each other—yeah, no thanks.

What was even crazier was that shit show was my idea in the first place. The theory was a good one, but when the invitation sprang from my lips, I knew the execution had the potential of being like a reality television show.

Then those crazy texts came from Shawna, and now I just wanted to keep my precious little blond kitten inside the house with me all day, every day, where she was safe and secure and I knew where she was at all times.

Now who was the crazy one?

Another thought crossed my mind this afternoon that could’ve knocked the air right out of my lungs if I had been in a weaker state of mind when I realized it. But as days go, this one had been epic, so I’d processed the mindfuck and moved on.

Since Hannah had arrived at the house almost two weeks ago, I’d had no desire to go to LuLu’s club, or any club, for that matter. Equally, I’d had no craving to use my own playroom at the house. There were so many debauched memories of time spent in there involving other women, and I wasn’t interested in any of it.

I was only interested in her.

It felt so good that I couldn’t wipe the silly smile off my face.

There had been another time in my life when I’d gotten sloppy like this and let my emotional guard down. I’d believed I could love and be loved and that I deserved to experience the same feelings everyone else around me did. There had been another woman in my life who’d made me feel like I could be a better version of myself—not just for me but for her. That woman had looked at me like I mattered—not for who my parents were or what I stood to inherit but because I mattered. To her, I mattered.

Until I didn’t.

I gave my head a little shake because the last thing I wanted was to get morose about the past when the future looked so bright. And the future felt so right as I held this little bundle of hot perfection in my arms and made my way across the house toward my room.

“Where are you taking me, kind sir?”

My cock perked up all over again, and I groaned. “Say that again.”

“Where are you—”

I cut her off immediately. “No. Just the last word.”

She repeated the sentence to herself, mouthing the words soundlessly until she got to the last one, and then shot her eyes back to mine.

“I thought we were over that.”

“Explain.”

She groaned. “Oh, not you too. I thought that was Mr. Shark’s catch phrase.”

I barked out a laugh. “Can you reach the knob?” I asked so she could open the door to my bedroom since my arms were still full of her. “Yes, Bas says that often, but it has rubbed off on Grant and me too. You’re very observant, beautiful.”

I wanted her beneath me, and I wanted it to happen in my own bed, right the fuck now. I wanted to smell her on my sheets and have her be the first thing I saw when I woke up in the morning. There were so many things I missed about having a legitimate girlfriend in my life and not just a random fuck every night.

I wanted those things with Hannah Farsey.

But I knew it was too soon to pressure her about it.

If she hadn’t slept with a man in a few years, there was no way she would be ready to commit to a relationship after a couple of weeks. And really, was I?

But that brought up another question—maybe the bigger question. Why hadn’t she been with a man in such a long time? Did I have the right to ask her?

Laughing to myself, I thought, when had that stopped me before?

After laying her down, I stepped back and looked at her, wanting to memorize her there in the center of my big bed. When I closed my eyes, I wanted this to be the first image that came to mind.

My beautiful girl lying there, soaking up my adoration.