Desired (Club Sin 3)

Quiet.

Orgasms gave a euphoric glow, but this was different. Life-altering different.

Kyler watched her as he slid his fingers through her hair, playing with the strands. “Once, though, I remember my mother being royally pissed at me.”

God, how he touched her; so sweet, so surely, so perfectly. “What happened?”

His gaze followed his fingers trailing through her hair, then his eyes met hers. “I broke a girl’s heart.”

“When?”

“I was seventeen.” Continuing to play with her hair as if it pleased him far more than it did her, his gaze became distant, lost in a memory. “I dated a girl in high school who was the daughter of one of my dad’s cop buddies. At that time I thought more with my cock than with anything else.” He blinked, his eyes sharpening. “When I met another girl who was, let’s say … was a bit easier with the boys, I dumped my girlfriend for the other one.”

Didn’t all teenage boys do stupid stuff like that? “Your parents found out about it, I take it?”

He inclined his head. “My girlfriend went home in tears. I remember my dad smacking me upside the head and telling me that I’d grow up to regret that I’d hurt her.” He sighed, twining her hair around his finger. “And he was right. I did. But it was probably one of the most important lessons I’d ever learned from him. Actions cause regrets. It’s something I’ve been cautious of since that day.”

Oddly enough, she couldn’t picture Kyler as that boy, so careless of a woman’s feelings. “You have a lot of regrets?”

“Not a lot, but some.”

How he shared so easily touched something cold inside her, making her warm, regardless of the words he said. Besides, the shame of the actions shone in the hard lines of his face. “Can you tell me another regret?”

Brows drawn together, he hesitated and then said, “Before I became a Dom and learned control, I went through a stage where I didn’t want girlfriends, but wanted as many women as I could get in my bed.”

A frown pulled on her mouth. “I’m guessing with that smile you achieved that goal.”

“Yeah, I did.” His features were cold. The disgust evident in his voice. “There was one girl. I’d met her during police academy, and I knew she liked me. She’d always flirt, trying to get close to me. One night, I weaseled my way into her bed and left her there as if she was nothing more than something for me to stick my dick into.”

“You hurt her?”

He nodded, rubbing Ella’s thigh gently. “Incredibly so, I imagine. I think of her sometimes and hope that she found someone to love her. She was far too good for me at the time.”

Ella had never met the Kyler he spoke of now. She couldn’t imagine him treating a woman with such disrespect. “Well, you learned from your mistakes and changed your ways.”

Oh, how he’d grown as a man.

He watched his fingers swirl over her leg beneath the blanket. “It wasn’t until I joined my old BDSM club did all that reckless behavior stop. I learned there the meaning of being a man and to cherish a woman.”

She stared at him, at this incredible man, then said, “After meeting your family, I’d say your father had a hand in that, too.?

?? All his brothers seemed to be incredible dads to their kids. They were involved and attentive, and to their wives, they all appeared sweet and caring.

A soft smile curved Kyler’s mouth. “I suspect so, but becoming a Dom just centered me in a way that likely would’ve taken a lot longer to discover without the lifestyle.”

She pondered that, gazing out to the club, and watching others fulfill their most erotic desires. More and more, she was beginning to think Club Sin was Eden. And now she was a part of something that special, too. She turned to Kyler. “Is that why you’re always so vocal about everything?”

“I never want misunderstandings, and with women”—he dipped his chin, giving his heart stopping grin—“there is always room for misunderstandings.”

“Why?” she retorted with a snort. “Because we’re emotional?”

“Because I can’t read women as well as I’d like to, so communication is important. It’s the key not to allow misunderstandings to rise up and fuel emotions in a negative way.”

Ella became trapped in that all-consuming stare of his, and a warm comfort enveloped her. She craved to spill all of her past to him. Her heartbreak. Her fears. Her pain. Kyler seemed like the one person who would listen and understand. He wouldn’t judge her. In fact, she suspected he’d do the opposite and commend her for leaving Rory. But why dredge up the past and talk about things that just didn’t matter anymore?

“You’re strong.”

She blinked, pulled out from her deep thoughts. “Pardon?”