Bait (Wake, #1)(37)

I grabbed my clothes and went back into the bathroom to dress. I looked at myself in the mirror. I'd trim my face in the morning. My hair would behave for a while since it was damp. I brushed my teeth and I was ready to go.

I was so excited to get back and finish the night messaging with Blake, or even better—maybe talk to her. She said she might call. I'd hoped that she would.

“Are you ready? I'm hungry,” Aly said already standing and holding her purse as I came back out.

“Yeah, let me grab my phone.” I looked to the bed, then found it on the side table. I pocketed it and my wallet. It was nice to be a man. I had two things I needed and I was ready. Aly stood there with a bag full of shit. It never made any sense to me, the stuff women carried around with them.

We ate at an Italian place down from our hotel and ordered a deep-dish pizza to share. We both had beers and we talked about the next day. We solidified the plan of me going to the meeting and her catching up with us for dinner.

“I think I'll go shopping while you're working. Might as well do something useful,” she joked. “Want me to wear anything special tomorrow night?” I recognized the tone of her voice. So far on the trip, she'd kept everything professional, but now after three beers in, her filter was clogging her real intentions for agreeing to come along on the trip.

“Something business-dinner appropriate. Whatever is fine,” I said, trying not to play into her hand, taking a drink of my beer. I wasn't going to give her the wrong impression. I wasn't interested anymore.

The whole situation was pretty awkward. Dating your co-worker, and boss's daughter, no matter for how short of time, only led to a pain in the ass afterward.

Marc was cool, because he knew I'd been honest with her. I'd been upfront with him about everything.

We finished our dinner and walked back to the Omni. As we passed the bar, Aly looked up at me. She'd been quiet all the way back to the hotel. She asked, “Do you want to get a nightcap before we go up.”

Nightcap. Honeybee.

“No. I better turn in,” I told her. She looked disappointed but kept walking alongside me to the elevators.

“I wish you'd tell me what you want, Casey.” She stared at the doors while we waited for the lift to pick us up. “I'll do anything,” she said. The doors opened. We walked inside and she backed up against the far wall, opposite the doors and faced me.

I met her eyes and saw need in them. I only took a few steps inside and turned to press the buttons, giving her my back. I didn't want to face her. I liked Aly, as a friend, and I didn't gain anything from seeing her want me. Those watery green-eyes begging me to kiss her would be too much to say no to. I am a man. And she was a beautiful woman who only wanted to be with me.

All I'd thought about the whole evening was racing back to my room, to have a QWERTY conversation with a girl who wasn't available. Yet, right there stood a woman throwing herself at me and I wasn't interested.

Maybe I wasn't a man.

The doors opened and I left the elevator with Aly close behind. I could hear her heels click against the floor behind me. I still hadn't said anything to her. What was I supposed to say? There wasn't an argument to be had.

She said what she needed and I didn't need to reply. I walked past her door and stopped at mine to insert the key card. I slipped it in and pulled it out.

Red light.

I did it again and got the same result. The f*cker wouldn't work.

I felt her arms wrap around me from behind and her hands wandered down to the crotch of my pants, her fingers wrapping as far around me as she could through the fabric. She pressed her tits into my back and said, “You can have me, Casey. I know that you don't want a relationship, but that doesn't have to be what this is. I can f*ck you without the label. I don't have to be your girlfriend.”

I pushed my forehead against the door and thought. What was I to do? I wanted to talk to Blake, but there was a woman all but jerking me off through my jeans right there. That second.

I tried the key again. Still, it didn't work.

She removed one hand from me and produced a key from somewhere. She held it between two fingers in front of my face, and I rolled my head across the wooden door to look at it. She pressed her chest harder against my back.

“You'll need this,” she said.

“I have the same key. The lock isn't working.” I really wanted to go inside.

“I changed the keys. I told them we lost yours and these are new. Let me come in.”

“Open the door, please.” I hadn't made a move to encourage her, well—my cock got hard, but I didn't have any control over that—I just wanted in the room. I shifted on my feet and felt my erection move in her hand. It felt good.

I hated that it felt so good.

She unlocked the door herself and let it swing open. I walked in and turned around to see her, standing in the doorway, she looked like a starved puppy. I wanted to feed her, but she wasn't my dog.

I looked at her head on. “You should go to your room.”

“Just tell me what you want. I'll do whatever you like.”

“I want you to leave. I'd like to go to bed.” I walked toward her, growing sick of the situation.

If a woman was followed to her room, and groped, and then the man came into her room uninvited, then that would be grounds for arrest. When a woman did the same thing to a man, well, the man still got to play the part of the *. Double-f*cking-standard.