Chapter 41: Fate
"I just got into town today. Wanted to unwind before getting busy tomorrow," Ethan said and she nodded.
Though she wanted to ask if he doesn’t live here in Zeden, she decided against, telling herself it was best not to know much. Instead of asking him more personal questions, she decided to talk about other things generally.
They talked for a while—shouting over the music at first, but gradually leaning closer and closer until she could feel the heat of his breath on her skin. Ethan was charming. Funny. Flirty in just the right way. And god, he smelled good.
When he placed a hand gently on her lower back to guide her toward the quieter lounge section, she didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned in.
In the low-lit booth tucked away from the loud dance floor, they talked more. He asked about what she did, and she told him she was in "personal relations," which wasn’t a lie—not entirely. He laughed at her jokes, listened when she spoke, and looked at her like he saw everything.
An hour passed, maybe more, before she leaned in close, her hand resting on his thigh, her voice barely above a whisper. "Wanna get out of here?"
He paused only for a second before giving a small nod. "Yeah. Let’s go."
Ethan drove them to his penthouse, just a few blocks away. If she’d been there as his friend, maybe she would’ve taken sometime to explore the place but that wasn’t why she was there. She was there to satisfy her sexual desires.
She could barely keep her hands off him in the elevator—trailing her fingers along his arm, her body brushing against his in deliberate movements. And once the door clicked shut behind them, it was like a switch flipped.
Rayna turned to him, her heels clicking as she stepped backward into the room, eyes locked with his.
"You good?" he asked, searching her expression for any hesitation. The last thing he wanted was for her to accuse him of rape or anything or the sort.
"Very," she said, pulling her dark hair loose from its clip, the curls tumbling down around her shoulders. "Unless you’re having second thoughts?"