Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 103033 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103033 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Eeep!
“I’ll try to find the courage.” I grinned. “When it comes to history, I can usually ramble for hours.”
“I look forward to that,” he replied. “What angle did you choose for your paper?”
I spotted Santiago coming toward us, so I kept it brief—which obviously made me stumble over my words. “Okay, so aside from the Cold War, I think Falklands is an excellent display of the importance of, um, like, you know, a navy using its own strength and what a force it becomes when you add intelligence—like, we had the spy satellite and…yeah. So, in short, the angle is the, uh, the results we see between naval warfare and intelligence when they come together.” Right then and there, Santiago reached us, and I had to wrap things up. “I sort of liken it to the smart bombs we’ve seen since Desert Storm.” Judging by the flash of recognition in Professor Aavik’s eyes, he understood and approved of my analogy. “On its own, the Navy can cause a lot of destruction, but when you add intelligence, you get the precision-guided munitions that strike right on top of the target.”
“I guess I just stepped into the History Lovers group on the Mclean forum,” Santiago joked.
Professor Aavik grinned, and it was the most charismatic grin. “We’ll hopefully revisit that very soon, because I suddenly want to pick Gael’s brain about a paper he’s just started.”
Triumph! Maybe he could like me, too, and want to be my friend.
“No complaints from me,” Santiago said. “This is my brand of geekery.” He turned to Professor Aavik. “Where’s your car?”
“At home. I walked,” he replied.
Santiago lifted his eyebrows. “You walked here from Georgetown?”
Oh. He lived in Georgetown too?
“Yes?” Professor Aavik didn’t see the big deal. I had to side with Santiago. That had to have taken at least an hour! “It’s a nice forty-minute stroll—and the weather is good.”
I scrunched my nose and peered up at the gray sky. And it was what, forty degrees?
Shudder.
“All right. Get in the truck. The little one can sit in the back.” Santiago unlocked the truck and patted me on the head.
I was the little one!
He opened the door for me, and I jumped into the back seat, but before I could put on the seat belt, Santiago was there to do it for me.
I tensed up, surprised by the whole thing.
“Let me know if I’m crossing a line.” He pressed a kiss to my cheek as I heard the belt click into its place.
I sucked in a breath and managed to shake my head. At the same time, I got a whiff of his cologne or aftershave, and the delicious scent gave me a brain fog.
For those brief seconds, he was so close to me, and I couldn’t form a coherent sentence. He put on my seat belt for me. Like I’d seen Colt and Lucas do for Kit.
A drawn-out shiver rolled through me, and I blinked dazedly as Santiago smiled and shut the door.
Since I’d joined House Mclean, I’d listed myself as a Middle because of my core desire to explore a Daddy/boy dynamic. I’d never actually tried anything like it; Caleb wasn’t kinky, and he’d been my first boyfriend. My fantasies came from porn and reading online—and how that specific kind of porn filled me with a sense of this is it. It clicked for me. But I didn’t truly know. However, things like this, when Santiago behaved like a Daddy with me… It evoked a response within me that was strong enough to move mountains. I wanted so badly.
I wanted to throw myself at him and beg him to show me his kinky universe.
Kit seemed convinced that Santiago wanted to play with me, maybe even start something, and considering Santiago himself had told me…I should really get over myself and just scream yes.
I refused to let him slip through my fingers. He’d been so incredibly kind to me, so protective and helpful, and I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him since he’d walked into Waffled. I wanted to know everything about him. I wanted to make him smile and…do dirty things with him.
I freaking had to make a move. Today. Maybe I could even get him to spend the night with me. How wild was that?
The ride back to Georgetown was uneventful, but I learned some things by listening to Santiago and Professor Aavik. They seemed to go back at least a few years; they were clearly friends, and perhaps there was something more between them as well. If I wasn’t mistaking their chuckles and the flirty smirk on Santiago’s face, they might be interested in each other.
Santiago asked what it was like to be home again, and Professor Aavik said it felt good. He’d enjoyed the West Coast, but it wasn’t for him in the long run. Also, he was “finally reconnecting with Walker,” which meant a lot to him.