She laughs. "Do you have any wiggle room? Maybe a utility closet?"
"Maybe." Absolutely. "Do you always negotiate?"
She sticks out her tongue. "Please don't say what you're about to say."
I cock a brow.
"You know: Bella, you should be a lawyer."
"I wasn't about to talk about your career."
"Good. I don't want to know about yours either. No offense. I just—"
"I'm deeply offended. But, thankfully, I'm secretly a criminal assassin, so it's convenient you don't want to know."
She laughs. "You have a hiding in plain sight strategy?"
I nod.
Her eyes go to my bare arms, the left then the right. "I don't think you're an assassin."
"You don't think I could kill someone?"
"I'm sure you could. But could and do are different things. I don't see it."
"I thought you didn't want to talk jobs."
Her smile lights up her brown eyes. Already, her shoulders are softening. Already, she's happier than when we met.
Her eyes meet mine. "I've never met an assassin before."
"That you know about."
She laughs. "True." She tilts her head back to finish the last of her gin and tonic.
My head fills with ideas about her bouncing on my lap, throwing her head back like that as she comes again and again.
Screaming my name again and again.
The tension in my shoulders eases.
It's been a long time since I've wanted someone this much. Already, everything is coming into focus. The music is clearer. My scotch is richer. The air is sweeter.
I finish my drink, drop it on the counter, then order another round. The bartender is quick enough I forgive him for the shit beer.
I grab our drinks, slide my arm around Bella, and lead her to a cozy booth in the corner.
I'm not in the mood to fuck in a bathroom.
But I want to see what her eyes look like filled with pleasure as soon as possible.
She takes a long sip and sets her drink down. Her hands go to the bottom of her skirt. "You're really good at this."
"I have a lot of experience."
She looks up at me. "I… um, actually, it's been a while. A long while."
"Yeah?" I bite my tongue. Fuck. Maybe I'm a pervert, but I love being a woman's first anything. Even first in a while.