Man of the House: A Dark Bad Boy Romance(25)

On a whim, I pulled up my phone and opened my Marauder’s Map. I couldn’t help but notice that Emily’s dot was nearby, in the gym. It was right around the corner, actually, and it wouldn’t be out of the way to go check her out. Or check on her, actually.

As I headed in that direction, watching my phone’s screen, I idly wondered what she was wearing. Probably a pair of tight running shorts and a sports bra, the sweat slowly rolling down her perfect skin, her cheeks flushed from the exercise.

I was totally lost in my fantasy, looking at my phone screen instead of right in front of me. I turned a corner and suddenly collided with someone, nearly knocking her over. I reacted fast, grabbing her back to steady her.

“Shit!” I said. “I’m sorry.”

Emily looked at me, surprised, and then laughed. “Carter. What are you doing/”

“Sorry,” I said again. “I was looking at my phone and not paying attention to where I was going.”

“You nearly knocked me over.”

“Can’t say I’m upset about it.” I grinned at her, staring at her body. I was nearly right about what she’d be wearing, except in reality she had on long tights and her sports bra was a colorful mix of neon making her already fair skin that much more gorgeous.

I could have let her go, since the danger was past, but I found my hands were lingering on her body. She didn’t make a move to step away.

“I would have been pretty upset if you gave me a black eye or something.”

“Don’t worry. I’m very gentle.”

She laughed. “I doubt that very much.”

“You’re right. It’s hard to be gentle when you look like this.”

She rolled her eyes but the smile didn’t leave her face. “Good one. I’m sweaty and gross right now and you know it.”

“Sweaty, maybe. But not gross.”

“Agree to disagree then.”

With her body in my hands, I suddenly had an idea. Maybe it was stupid and the sort of thing that her mother just warned me against, but I couldn’t help myself. My cock was already hard just looking at her, and being so close was driving me insane.

“I want to show you something,” I said.

“What is it?”

“A way for you to get clean.”

“I’m skeptical.”

“Good. You should be.” I stepped back and took her hand. “Come on.”

She bit her lip, hesitating for a second, then nodded. I led her away, down toward the indoor pool.

I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted to, wanted to be stronger and better, but I couldn’t. Not when she was so close, not when she looked so damn good.

I was taking her someplace where she could get clean. But my intentions were very far from honorable.





15





Emily





I followed Carter, knowing I should probably just go back to my apartment, but unable to stop myself. The thought of the night before, his cock between my lips, kept coming back to me. I wanted more. Needed more, and I knew it was only a matter of time before I got it.

He took me down a flight of steps and into the indoor pool area. “I’ve seen the pool,” I said.

“Just wait.” He kept walking, through the back door and into the locker room area. We went past benches and lockers and into another room I’d never noticed before. He opened a door and we stepped inside.

It took my breath away. It was a circular room, maybe an octagon, with a large circular stone pedestal in the middle at maybe waist-height. The pedestal had a complicated gold inlay design that looked like a circular flower blooming to the edges. The room was all white marble and tile, with breathtaking patterns building up along the walls in navy blue and black. There were shower heads all along the sides of the room in eight distinct little stalls, though there were no doors anywhere. The room was beautiful, absolutely breathtaking, and I had no clue that it was here.

“What is this?” I asked him.

“It’s a Turkish bath,” he said. “Well, a more modern version of it at least. There are usually tubs or basins instead of showers along the walls.”

“Wow.” I stepped inside, releasing his hand.

“Normally, you’d undress and lay down on this.” He patted the pedestal in the middle. It was large enough for two or three adults to lay down on it together. “Then the attendant would use a bunch of soap and water to clean you off and massage you.”

I shook my head, smiling. I walked over to a shower stall and marveled at the details in the tiling. “Are you going to clean me off then?”

He came up from behind me and put his hands on my hips. “Undress and find out.”

I laughed, stepping away, my heart hammering in my chest. “Do you come down here often?”

“No,” he admitted. “It’s mostly just for guests that use the pool. But it is really a gorgeous room.”

“It is,” I agreed, and then turned on a shower. The water came out warm and steamy, and I let it run down into a drain in the floor.

I turned toward him and slowly pulled down my tights. He leaned back against the pedestal, watching, as I undressed. My heart beat faster as I pulled off my sports bra and stepped under the water, letting it rinse over me.