When she paused to take another breath, I quickly interrupted, “Would you like his autograph?”
“Oh, my God, would I? Yes. Yes. I was going to ask if you could maybe ask him.”
I smiled. “I’ll ask. But I’m sure he’ll be fine with it.” It was weird because to me, Kite was just Killian. But these girls saw him as a god. An idol.
I laughed to myself as I led the girl back to our table because I’d compared him to Zeus that day on the school steps.
Killian stood beside the table talking to Fran?ois when I approached with the girl trailing behind.
“Thank you, Fran?ois,” I said. He took my hand and kissed the back of it. “The meal was amazing.” Everything had been perfect, including Killian.
“Mademoiselle, it was our pleasure, and when we are not so busy, you must meet my other half.”
“I’d like that,” I replied, but that was unlikely to happen since our arrangement was over in a month.
He nodded to Killian and then weaved through the tables.
“Killia—” I stopped myself, remembering the fans called him Kite. “Kite, this is…”
“Jenny,” the girl offered, stepping from behind me.
“Jenny,” I continued. “Do you think you could give her your autograph?” I tried not to laugh because it was odd seeing him as a celebrity.
Of course, Killian saw me biting my lip to stop myself from laughing and rolled his eyes.
Then he shifted his attention to the girl. “Of course,” he replied.
The girl took over from there and repeated pretty much what she’d told me in the washroom, except this time at warp speed.
Killian politely listened.
I tilted my chin down to hide my smile.
If only these girls knew what Killian was like before. They wouldn’t even consider walking up to him and asking for his autograph.
The girl finally bounced away with Killian’s name scrolled across a cocktail napkin. I thought of that day I found the orchid on my trailer steps.
The note where he’d signed his name. It read Killian though, not Kite. I still had it tucked away in a book that sat beside the orchid.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Yes. Thank you for dinner.” His gaze flicked to my mouth, and his eyes smoldered. “I was thinking maybe… well, you have fans here and they’re watching so maybe I should kiss you? For the publicity, I mean.”
He didn’t grin. Didn’t respond. Didn’t do anything for a moment and I wasn’t sure if I said something wrong until his hand slid into mine and our fingers interlocked. He briefly squeezed.
I thought he might kiss me when he moved in closer, but instead, his mouth hovered close to my ear as he whispered in the sexiest voice ever, “No, orchid. I’m not sharing the first time you give in and kiss me with anyone.”
I hated dropping her off at this fuckin’ place. It made me uneasy that there was no security in the building, not even cameras. Then there was the smell of marijuana in the stairwell. A stairwell she had to take because the fuckin’ elevator didn’t work. My only consolation was as of three days ago, I had Roman—part of Luke’s security team—keeping an eye on the place in the evenings.
Bottom line was I had to get her out of here. I just didn’t know how to do that yet without pissing her off. Savvy may be kindhearted and sweet and thought everyone had good bits, but insisting she move could shatter anything I’d built so far.
Yet leaving her here didn’t sit well. My instinct was to protect. To make sure those I cared for weren’t threatened in any way. Fuck, Logan and I had put all the money we had into buying a farm for Emily so she’d feel safe after what happened to her.
“I don’t like you living here.”
She half laughed as she turned the key in the lock. “Well, this is where I live.”
“Savvy, it’s a dump.” And she deserved better than this.
She smiled, leaning back against the door, her hand behind her on the doorknob. “So what, are you going to burn it down so I have to move?”
I shrugged. “If I have to.”
She snorted, and it was so damn cute it took everything I had not to kiss her.
“It’s unsafe.”
“I’ve been here for months, and there hasn’t been one incident.”
“It only takes one,” I replied.
“Trevor’s across the hall.”
“The hacker,” I said. “Who makes fake concert passes and whatever else. And therefore has God knows who knocking at his door.” Trevor wasn’t the problem. I had Luke look into him. The guy was a genius and had graduated with two degrees. What I didn’t like was who came to his door for his illegal hacking services.
“Are you embarrassed to date a girl who lives here?”
I jolted, scowling. “Fuck, Savvy. No. You know I don’t give a shit what people say. I’ve never been like that.”
“But you’re dating me for your reputation. Isn’t that a little contradictory.”
I put my hand on her hip and nearly groaned out loud when I felt her shiver in response. “I think you know this has nothing to do with my reputation.”
She tensed. Then within a breath, she relaxed again. “Thank you for tonight.”
She stood on her tiptoes, and before I knew what she was doing, she kissed me. It was brief, but the touch of velvet plush lips against mine was irresistible. And when she pulled back, our lips clung for a second as if not wanting to let go.
Fuck. “Savvy,” I murmured, fingers tightening on her hip and dragging her into me.
My cock jerked, and it took all my control to not scoop her up into my arms, kick open her door and carry her to bed. But this was about her, not me.
And this was far more than fucking her one night. This was letting her in and having all of her. If I fucked her while I was paying her to date me… she’d regret it. I couldn’t have that.
The creak of the door handle turned and then her door was opening, and she disappeared inside, quietly shutting the door behind her.
I stood in the hallway for a minute staring at the door and listening to her heels click on the hardwood floors inside.