Bayli nervously rocked back and forth on the soles of her Skechers before biting the bullet and asking, “By signing, am I committing to more than just a cooking show?”
He let out a low, strained laugh. “Whatever happens when the cameras aren’t rolling, Bayli, is your own business.”
“Just my business?” She dragged a hand from her pocket and pulled off her sunglasses. Brazenly looked him in the eye. “Was that just a one-night stand with us?”
“No,” he was quick to say.
Her breath caught.
“At least, not from my perspective,” he added.
Her skin tingled at his heated gaze, his pointed expression.
She swallowed hard and pushed a bit more. “What about Rory? Was he just curious about me because you’d had me before him?”
“You’d have to ask Rory that question.”
Her gaze didn’t waver. She sensed it was imperative she stand her ground and not withdraw the inquiry or sweep it under the rug. She was already waist-deep in murky waters. Best to know what the undertow might be like, because the current continued to tug at her.
Yet Christian didn’t appear as though he was going to cave.
So she prompted him by saying, “I thought he was interested in me when we first met. The way he looked at me was … fiery. Exciting.”
Christian nodded. “He did mention your incredibly sexy legs when I was on the phone with him on our drive back into the city Saturday night.”
“So you knew from the beginning that he was attracted to me.”
“Of course.”
“And there’s no sort of … competition … between you two? Where I’m concerned.”
Christian let out a long breath. He wrapped an arm around her waist and directed her down the sidewalk. The intimate gesture sent a sizzle along her spine. There was no denying she’d become addicted to both men’s touch from the onset.
“It’s not a competition,” Christian told her. “We tend to share an interest in the same women. Granted, it’s been a while, what with all the work it took to launch the steakhouse.”
“And by share, you mean…?”
His head dipped and he whispered in her ear, “You know exactly what I mean.”
“Yeah. I do.” Still, she had to clarify a few things. “So, given how busy the two of you have been lately, you don’t currently share a … girlfriend? Is that the right word?”
He grinned again. “Yes, that’s the right word. No, we aren’t simultaneously involved with anyone. Except you.”
“But you’re not really involved with me,” she stated the obvious that had popped into her head minutes before. “Not by the standards you’ve defined. Just … individually. And even that’s debatable, especially after last night with Rory.” She huffed a little. “God, he must think I’m such a twit.”
“Hardly.”
“I walked out on him, Christian.”
“That’s between the two of you. Fixable,” he insisted. “If you want it to be.”
If I want it to be …
A shiver chased through her. On the one hand, yes, she wanted to make amends with Rory. To prove she actually wasn’t naïve. To prove that she’d been as into the sex as he’d been; she was just behind the curve experience-wise.
Bayli had been enticed by the idea of a threesome from the time she’d met Christian. Now that she’d been with both men, she was even more intrigued. What had happened with Rory was a setback, a bit of an embarrassment, admittedly. But when she’d woken this morning—around ten because she’d been sleeping off a hangover—she’d had a distinct vision of what she really wanted.
It was perfectly in line with what Christian described when it came to his and Rory’s sexual preferences. They liked to pleasure the same woman. She wanted to be that woman.