What the hell did he care? Mackenzie wasn’t his problem any longer. She chose her path that didn’t include his stop.
Derk pulled out his cell and scrolled down the favorites. He hit send. On the third ring, the phone was answered. "My place in twenty."
19
“Are you sure you’re full?” Grant asked, chuckling at Mackenzie.
She leaned back in the plush dining room chair and groaned. “I shouldn’t have eaten the dessert. I really shouldn’t have.”
His devilishly handsome grin spread wide.
“I think I need to take a nap.”
Grant laughed and jerked his head. “Come on, you can sleep it off in my bed or the sofa. Your choice.”
She stiffened.
Each night for the past week she and Grant went out after she got off work. Tonight he brought her back to his high-rise luxury apartment. Tonight, when she climbed into Grant's car at midnight, after her shift, and he explained his plans for their evening together, she understood where it might lead.
When Grant led her into his apartment, decorated in sleek, bold lines with a black, grey, and white color scheme, and gave her a tour, she took note of the lush bedroom complete with satin black sheets. Really? Was there a display at every department store specifically for single men and that specific bedding? She'd also noticed something out of the norm in the oversized bathroom. A pair of handcuffs, a blindfold, lube, what looked like a set of diamond jewels, and pieces of silk. Okay, maybe she'd been snooping. How else did a woman get to know a single man? A lesson learned from discovering Derk's hidden secrets. She knew what those items were. She read romance novels. Grant was into BDSM. That explained a lot of his subtle commanding persona.
Mackenzie could very well accept his bed, knowing he'd jump on the opportunity to join her. And maybe enlighten her to a curious lifestyle she'd never been introduced. Or she could blatantly choose the couch. Her rational mind screamed for her to take the bed. But her heart wasn't in the same place. The issue with that? Her entire life she made decisions with her heart instead of her head.
"Don't over think," Grant whispered, interrupting her internal struggle decision making.
She smiled shyly.
He reached over the glass dining room table for her hand, his eyes and aura silently commanding for Mackenzie's touch. Obeying the look, she slid her palm into his. Gently, soothing, mesmerizing, he ran his thumb over the soft, sensitive skin between her thumb and forefinger.
"Have you thought about us?" he asked, his voice a low, husky molten of chocolate. "How good we'd been together?"
She opened her mouth to respond, but he rebuked her with a slight shake of his head. She clamped her mouth shut, his demeanor stating he was in control.
"I can give you the world, Mackenzie." He leaned forward in his seat, pulling her to him. He reached up and stroked her cheek with the back of his free hand. "I'll take care of you, give you everything your heart desires and more. Just say yes to me. To us. And it starts tonight." He lifted her hand and kissed her naked ring finger. She was transfixed by his hungry gaze. "You'll never have to work at the bar another night. You'll want for nothing. And I'll worship you, soul and body. I'll open you up to a world where you'll learn things about yourself you didn't know existed."
She tilted her head. Was he going to admit to what she discovered? "What things?"
He scooted closer. His lips brushed against hers. "Not now," he said softly. "Come to bed with me."
Oh, God. Did she want to do this? Her lover track record was terrible.
Wait. Why did this have to be a life changing choice? Was there an ultimatum here?
"What if I say no," Mackenzie tested.
Grant pulled away, leaned back in his chair and studied her. Casually he crossed his ankle over his knee. Her eyes swept down his body. The designer clothing he wore fit him like the material was designed specifically for his body. The way the suit conformed to every muscle showed the amount of work he put into his physique.
His piercing gaze locked onto her and refused to waver. He tapped on his sensual bottom lip with his forefinger.
"I'm looking to settle down, Mackenzie," he said. "I want you to be the one I make a home with."
"You don't know me," she countered.
"I know enough," he shot back. "I know enough that you're everything I want." His eyes glazed over.
Why? She didn't understand. "What am I missing here, Grant?"
He leaned forward and brushed her hair off her shoulder. "Nothing that needs addressed at the moment."
What the hell did that mean? He was coming across as somewhat cagey, but not quite. If that made any sense.