As he thrust deep inside her warm, welcoming body, he thought wildly that nothing had ever felt so good, that no other woman had ever made him feel so much like a man, and that he never, ever wanted to let her go.
Chapter Nine
Late November
For what was probably the third or fourth time already this evening, Sasha offered up silent thanks that she had taken so many workshops over the years on meditation, and had spent so many hours working on her own deep breathing techniques. Because for the better part of the past ninety minutes, she'd found herself utilizing nearly every method she knew of to control her nearly nonexistent temper, and to restrain herself from giving the teenaged girl sitting across the table from her a good hard smack.
Matthew had been so excited at the prospect of finally introducing Sasha to his children that she hadn't had the heart to dissuade him. It wasn't that she didn't like kids, not that she'd had much experience with them over the years. She had dated a guy a couple of years back who had two small children, and the relationship had fizzled out pretty quickly when he realized that Sasha had no intention of settling down anytime soon. It hadn't taken a rocket scientist to figure out that he had really been looking for a stepmother for his kids, especially since he had primary custody of them. Since then she had more or less kept her distance from guys with kids from previous relationships, not wanting to be thrust into the unwelcome role of surrogate mom at this stage of her life.
At least Matthew's kids were older - sixteen and thirteen - and both of them seemed self-sufficient and mature. Though given the snooty way his daughter had been acting all evening, Sasha thought dourly that her behavior was more like that of a spoiled little girl than a teenager.
Hayley had been in a sullen, withdrawn mood from the moment Sasha had arrived to meet her, Matthew, and Casey for dinner at this trendy restaurant. The girl had barely acknowledged Sasha, and the replies she'd made thus far to any questions posed to her had been short and grudgingly given. She had spent the better part of the meal practically glued to her smartphone, texting back and forth with several friends, or checking her email. None of Matthew's admonitions to put the phone down and join in the conversation had had any sort of effect, and considering the angry, irritated expression on his face, it seemed that he was giving up on things improving anytime soon.
Casey, on the other hand, was friendly and easy to engage, and seemed more than eager to talk about school, sports, and whatever else Sasha asked him about. He was a very likeable, entirely genuine kid, and seemed almost grateful for the attention she was paying him. Unlike his brat of an older sister, who had just rolled her eyes when Sasha had politely inquired if she had begun to think about what colleges she might want to attend.
It was pretty darned obvious that Hayley wasn't happy about having her father's new girlfriend along for dinner, a possibility that Sasha had cautioned Matthew about more than once. But he'd dismissed her concerns, stating firmly that his daughter wasn't a little girl any longer, and that she needed to accept the fact that her parents weren't getting back together.
Sasha, however, didn't think that was the real motive behind Hayley's unfriendly behavior this evening. The girl paid her father scant attention, and seemed completely bored at having to spend time with him. She had barely touched her food, even though she'd apparently insisted on going to this particular restaurant, and had ordered one of the most expensive items on the menu. There had been another eye roll from her, accompanied by a look of scorn, when Sasha had ordered the only vegetarian entrée on the menu, followed up by a look of complete shock when Matthew had also ordered the same dish.
And when the delicious Moroccan vegetable tangine that they ordered had arrived, Hayley had made a huge production number of turning up her nose in disgust and telling her father in disdain, "I can't believe you're actually going to eat that, Dad. It looks like someone puked up their guts. And it smells awful."
Matthew had quietly rebuked Hayley for her comments, but the girl had just shrugged and resumed texting, more or less ignoring the very costly steak she had ordered.
Sasha glanced across the table discreetly at Hayley, who hadn't glanced up from her phone or said a word for at least ten minutes. She tried to imagine her own mother tolerating such rude behavior for even a minute, and shook her head with a wry smile. Katya might be short-tempered, impatient, and outspoken, but she had raised Sasha with very strict standards of behavior, had taught her from a very young age how to act like a lady and always mind her manners. Katya wouldn't have hesitated even for a second to rip the phone from Hayley's hand and refuse to give it back until the girl showed some respect to her father and the others at the table. Sasha's own hand itched to do just that, but she would never be as bold and confrontational as her mother, so she kept her mouth shut. Besides, she reasoned, Hayley was Matthew's daughter, not hers, and it wasn't any of her business how the girl behaved.