“You don’t plan on returning clothes that have been worn?”
He had made two cups of green tea as they spoke. “Of course not.”
“Then what will happen to them after I’m done—assuming I wear any of them.”
“I’ll have Beth donate them to Goodwill.”
She couldn’t complain about that. Putting aside the issues of the clothes, however, she still had to find a way out of the meeting with Dawson Chang.
“I’m sure your assistant has better things to do than to go shopping for me,” she stated. “Like I said, I’d much rather skip your business meeting.”
“You’d still need clothes. For dinner tonight. And it’s not at a noodle house in Chinatown.”
“Doing this Scarlet Auction thing is not something I’d like to broadcast to the world. I’d prefer to keep a low profile during this week, so please don’t make me go to this meeting in a public restaurant.”
He seemed to take what she said into consideration. To keep him in a better mood, she drank all of her green tea, which surprised her with its crisp aroma. She wasn’t much of a tea drinker, but this was easily the best tea she had ever had.
“If you want out of this meeting,” Ben said slowly as he eyed her in a way that immediately set her on edge, “you had better ante up.”
CHAPTER TWO
Her resistance had returned, which was why Ben pushed. He could see her guard come up in the way her chin lifted, her shoulders straightened and her lips moved. Those lush, fuckable lips. He wanted to reach over, haul her over the counter and ravish her in the kitchen. But he had to settle the source of her resistance. Was it the sex or the meeting with Dawson?
What the bloody fuck am I doing?
He had no business bringing her to such an important meeting in the first place. He never brought dates, let alone expensive call girls, to business meetings.
But he liked having Kimani around. Knowing that he only had a limited number of days with her made him want to maximize their time together.
“What kind of ‘ante?’” she asked carefully.
“Go take your shower. I’ll let you know afterwards.”
She wanted to know now, he could tell, but she grabbed her stuff and retreated down the hall back to the bedroom. He sent a follow-up text to Beth about the clothes, then one to Stephens to pull the contract that Jake would have signed with the Scarlet Auction. Jake had texted Ben last night:
Need to call in my loaner. Turns out I’m not supposed to sell my sluts to third parties. You’ll have to bring her back.
Fuck that had been Ben’s first thought. But it made sense the Scarlet Auction would want to keep matters to only the parties who had signed agreements with them. Nevertheless, he texted Jake:
Will let you know.
He was far from being done with Kimani, and he wanted his full week with her. His cock had started stirring when he saw her wrapped in his bedsheets, and was now hard as he recalled the many ways she had spent for him last night. He adjusted himself and contemplated what she should ante up. So many options...
The prospects heated his blood. He had to clear his head or he’d be thinking of Kimani during his meeting with Dawson, so he headed down the hall into the bedroom, where he heard the shower going through the bathroom door.
Walking into the bathroom, he saw her standing beneath the waterfall showerhead. Shampoo suds inched down different parts of her body. The frameless shower doors weren’t frosted, so he saw her clearly. He drank in the sight of her breasts, her belly, the black curls at the base of her pelvis, and the rounded arse. His gaze lingered on her buttocks. So ripe for spanking, flogging and caning. And fucking. He remembered well how they’d sounded when he had pounded her from behind last night.
He shed his sweatpants.
Opening her eyes, she gave a gasp upon seeing him. She stiffened.
He didn’t get it. Given how receptive she had been to his attentions, why did he feel like he had to seduce her all over again?
No matter. He was more than up for the challenge.
“I’m just about done,” she said, staring at his ready erection. “Then the shower is all yours.”
“You in a hurry?” he returned, stepping into the shower with her.