The Ending I Want

It’s a knee-buckling kiss. I have to grip his arms, so I don’t fall over.

“So, am I allowed to take you for dinner before I take you back to my place to fuck you?” he murmurs against my lips. “Show that pretty hair off that I got into trouble for paying for.”

My eyes flutter. “I could eat,” I say, still feeling breathless from his kiss. “But I’m paying for dinner.”

He tips his head back. “You are not paying for my dinner.” He looks appalled at the idea.

I let out a sigh. “Okay, Caveman, how about we go dutch?”

“How about I pay for it all, and you can just like it?”

“How about I don’t? You wanna pull my hair while you fuck me from behind? Then, I’m buying dinner.”

He laughs low and deep. “Fine. I won’t pull your hair. I’ll just fuck you the old-fashioned way and still buy you dinner.”

“Ugh,” I grumble. “You’re impossible.”

“I’m not impossible.” He chuckles. “I just know what I want. Okay, how about this? I’ll buy you dinner, and you can pay me back in sexual favors when we get back to my place.”

“Um, you want me to hooker myself out for dinner?” I glare at him.

A salacious look crosses his face, his lips tipping up into a grin. “I have always wanted to fuck a hooker.”

“You ass!” I slap his chest with my hand.

Chuckling, he wraps his arms around me and presses his nose to mine, staring into my eyes. “I’m not an ass. I’m hot. And you want me bad.”

“That’s debatable since you just called me a hooker.”

“I didn’t call you a hooker.” He frowns.

“You asked me to pay for my dinner by giving you sexual favors.”

“Ah, now, you’re just twisting my words all up. I said I’d always wanted to fuck a hooker—”

“Not making me feel better.”

“And I didn’t call you a hooker. Babe…” He brushes his nose down the side of mine, kissing my cheek and then the corner of my mouth. “How about you let me buy you dinner, and I’ll go down on you in thanks? How does that sound?”

“You want to thank me with oral sex for you buying dinner? How does that make sense?”

“It makes sense because I get to pay for dinner and not have you mad at me.” A sexy smile slowly creeps onto his lips.

“You have a really weird idea about what constitutes winning, Hunter.”

“And that’s why I’m so successful in business, Boston.”

“Because you have no clue what winning means?”

“No. Because people would rather be fucked by me than fucked over by me.”

Laughing, I shake my head. “You are a strange man, Liam Hunter.”

“And aren’t you just glad you met me?”

I stare up into his face. “Oddly, yeah, I am.”

He kisses me one last time and then releases me.

I follow him over to his waiting car. He opens the door, and I climb into the backseat. Liam gets in next to me.

“Hey,” I say to Paul.

“Hi, Taylor.” Paul smiles at me through the rearview mirror. “Your hair looks great.”

“Thank you.” I smile at him.

“Take us to Cam’s,” Liam tells Paul.

I rest my head on Liam’s shoulder, a feeling of contentment around me, as Paul pulls out into the London traffic.

“So…Megan…she’s nice,” I say, chewing on my thumbnail.

We’re still in the car. London traffic is heavy, like all the time. I’m staring out the window, looking at the cars next to us.

I feel Liam look at me, but I keep my eyes on the window.

“She is. Why do I feel like there’s something more to that statement than just Megan being nice?”

“Well…she’s very pretty.”

“She is pretty.”

I stop chewing my nail and slide my eyes to him. “And…Jamie was telling me that you helped her buy the salon.”

His brows draw together. “Jamie has a big mouth.”

“So…did you? Buy it for her, I mean? Because that’s a massively kind thing to do for someone—buying them a business.”

“I’m a massive guy—in all respects.” He flicks a smile in the direction of his crotch.

I’m too frustrated to even laugh, so I just sigh and stare out the window again.

I don’t know why it bothers me so much that he bought the salon for Megan. I guess…I just think he must really care about her to have done that for her.

Since I lost my family I haven’t had anyone to care about me. I know it was my choice, to keep people away, but that doesn’t stop me from feeling envious that Megan had Liam when she needed someone.

For the last four years, I’ve had no one.

So, what I’m feeling right now, this envy, it’s stupid. I know that. But I’m a girl, and I’m dying, so I’m allowed this moment of stupidity.

Liam takes my chin in his hand and turns my face to him. “I didn’t buy the salon for Megan. I loaned her the money. She paid me back once the business started making money.”

“Oh, okay.” I turn my face back to the window.

He sighs. “Is there something else?”

I lift a shoulder.

“Taylor.” His tone is firm.

I turn back to him. “Well, I’m just wondering…if you’ve slept together. I just kind of got the impression that you had. And if you have in fact had sex with Megan, then taking me there, to a place owned by a woman you used to fuck—or still fuck—well…it was just really poor taste.”