Thrill Me (One Night with Sole Regret 9)

“That’s where my baby’s father lives,” she said. “Even if it turns out he isn’t you.”

Right.

This could not be happening.

“Maybe it’ll be easier to get a job far away from your last place of employment,” he said.

“Maybe.”

She didn’t seem too eager to get back to work. He watched her for a moment, wondering if she was just looking for a handout. Surely she would have ordered herself a larger meal if she was a freeloader. Or maybe she’d done that so he wouldn’t see what she was really after. He decided to give her the benefit of the doubt until she proved she was digging for gold. Kelly was a better judge of character than Owen had ever been; Owen wished his friend hadn’t left for Galveston right after the performance since he could use a little advice in the Caitlyn department as well. Kelly seemed to like Caitlyn and like her with Owen. Kelly had never told any other woman Owen’s closely guarded secrets, so she must have Kelly’s stamp of approval, but how did Lindsey fit in? Or did she even have to? Yeah, if she was the mother of his child, he’d have to fit her in somewhere.

This could not be happening.

Lindsey’s hand inched closer to his. “You seem distracted.”

Now why would he be distracted? Owen tucked his hand beneath the table, relieved when the waitress appeared with an overflowing tray of food.

He dug into his steak first, trying not to feel too guilty about eating for two while the person at the table who was actually eating for two didn’t even have enough food for one.

“Do you like shrimp?” he asked, picking a perfectly prepared breaded butterfly shrimp from his second plate.

She swallowed the last bite of her toast. “Who doesn’t like shrimp?”

“I love them.” He set one on the edge of her already empty plate. “Try one.”

They each sampled a shrimp, and the tender-on-the-inside, crisp-on-the-outside morsels were amazing. So amazing he almost reconsidered his plan.

“Good, huh?” he said.

“Excellent.”

He pushed the plate of shrimp, fries, and coleslaw toward her. “I can’t eat all this and finish my steak,” he said. “Eat those for me.”

“I couldn’t,” she protested.

“They’re just going to go to waste.”

She stared at him for a moment, and he was pretty sure he was as transparent as a spotlessly clean window, but she didn’t embarrass him by pointing out his generosity.

“Well, if it’s just going to go to waste.” She nibbled on a fry while a smile brightened her face.

He should probably be mean to her, he thought as he gulped down his glass of water, but it seemed she already had enough meanness in her life. What was wrong with showing her a bit of kindness and some compassion?

When her foot found his beneath the table and then her bare toe slid up his pants leg to stroke his calf, he immediately understood everything that was wrong with that plan.

Chapter Two

Caitlyn grabbed an unread copy of Popular Science and carried her cup of coffee to the round table in her breakfast nook. She normally didn’t drink coffee late at night or have time to read the stack of magazines accumulating on her kitchen counter, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep. Not with a certain rock star dominating her thoughts.

Owen had seemed so nice, and that young, gorgeous groupie that had showed up after the concert—Lindsey—had been so pregnant. Caitlyn couldn’t believe she’d allowed herself to call him within ten minutes of walking away from that scene. There was no way she was already that attached to the guy—they hardly knew each other. It had been an amazing one-night stand. Why couldn’t she just leave it at that?

Because she still wanted him.

Caitlyn sipped the rich black coffee and flipped through articles that couldn’t hold her attention. Instead, her mind was playing through the hot and dirty sex she’d experienced over the past twenty-four hours. She squirmed uncomfortably in her chair as she began to imagine all sorts of new scenarios she wanted to try with Owen. She had no doubt he could fulfill her every sexual fantasy. So maybe Owen wasn’t the man she was supposed to spend the rest of her life with, but they could still enjoy each other’s company. She’d just have to be careful that he didn’t grab her heart the way she wanted him to grab her thighs before he filled her with that beguiling pierced cock of his.

She pushed her magazine aside and reached for her phone. Was he still awake? Should she call him again? How desperate would she look if she did something like that? She didn’t want him to know how much she wanted him, so instead of calling him or texting him, she did something far more desperate. She searched his name via Google.

There wasn’t too much information about him on the Internet. She knew far more personal stuff about him than was included in a short paragraph on Wikipedia that was nearly identical to the bio on Sole Regret’s official website. She found thousands of pictures of him, however, and he looked gorgeous in every single one. And in almost every shot he was posing with a different woman. Caitlyn might have convinced herself that all those women were just fans of his music, but they weren’t touching him in a platonic way, and he wasn’t trying to keep his distance.

“You are quite the man whore, Owen Mitchell,” she said quietly to one of the few pictures of him without a woman clinging to his chest or arm or ass; he was glued to Kellen Jamison’s side. She guessed she shouldn’t be surprised by Owen’s popularity. He was young and attractive and sensational in bed, not to mention famous in certain circles, but the man she’d spent last night and most of the day with had been sweet and charming and attentive. “I guess that’s why they all fall for you.” Including herself.

She sighed and switched off the screen of her phone. Could she pursue a man who wanted nothing from women but a good time and to get his rocks off?

“Yep,” she said. She wasn’t ready for a committed relationship anyway. Not after the way Charles had treated her. A man-whore rock star was exactly what she needed at this juncture in her life. Owen could fulfill her every fantasy without all the scary attachments that came with commitment and relationships. All that nonsense that Kellen had said the night before to make her feel like she could be special to his womanizing friend abandoned her instantly. Strangely, it was a relief. She could take Owen as a lover and use him the way he’d used so many women in the past. Assuming he still wanted her.

Her phone dinged with the delivery of a text message. She smiled when she saw it was from Owen.

Are you asleep? I’m lying here in my bunk thinking of you.

She giggled like a schoolgirl. He was sweeter than syrup. It was hard to believe he was the same guy who went through women the way most guys went through socks.

A second message dinged in.

And that makes me all hard and uncomfortable. Are you there?

Her breath caught as she read his words. Was this sexting? She knew about it, but Charles hadn’t been interested at her lame attempts to gain his attention.

I’m here, she answered in a text of her own.

Can I jerk off?

He was asking her? Was this some sort of game he was playing?

Can I? she counte

red, suddenly feeling the urge to touch herself.

No. I want you horny the next time I see you.

Three days, she reminded him. He’d wanted to see her tomorrow, but she’d told him she was angry with him and was making him wait three days. What kind of idiot put the guy off for three days? He’d be completely over her by then. But she was sticking to her guns. They would not see each other until Sunday.

Tomorrow. Or I’m going to jerk one out right now.

She laughed. Is that a threat?