AMatterofLust by Lisa Fox Page B

I’m a bartender. I know these things.”
    “Of course,” she answered, matching his playful tone. “And
what else does the wise, sage bartender know?”
    “That he’s fucking hot.”
    She couldn’t help but smile. Now that was saying something.
Josh’s boyfriend modeled for Rick Day. Though Trask could easily model as well.
His long, lean frame would look mighty nice oiled down for the camera. Her
insides heated as she pictured him naked and slick, his hair tousled, his lips
parted and moist. Trask was fucking hot. She grinned at Josh. “I did good,
didn’t I?”
    He nodded. “Yes, ma’am, you did.”
    Rena laughed, but the good humor was accompanied by a sore
heart. “Yeah, well, like I said, it was nothing. Just sex.”
    Josh met her eyes. “And like I said, I think you’re wrong.”
    She shook her head. She didn’t want to talk about this
anymore. It hurt too much. She ripped open a box of bourbon and started handing
Josh bottles to put away on the shelves.
    They worked in silence and Rena’s mind churned with thoughts
of Trask. The way it felt to be in his arms. The sound of his laughter. The
look in his eyes after he kissed her. Finally, she sighed. “Do you really think
so?”
    Josh nodded. “Yeah, I really do.”
    Rena nodded back, the emotions spiraling in her chest. “I
think so too.”
    “Then what’s with all the indecision, Rena?” he asked. “Go
for it.”
    Josh was right. She knew he was, but with Trask, there was
so much more at stake. It would hurt too much for him to be just one more in a
long line of mistakes. Because this time, for the first time, it actually
mattered. When he told her he wanted only her, she believed him. And that was
what made it so frightening. Still, she wasn’t the type to back down from
anything and if she wanted to be with him like she imagined, then she needed to
trust him, to have a little faith. Not all men were lying, cheating scumbags.
She thought again about the look in his eyes when he’d told her she was
everything he wanted and her heart filled with warmth. “All right, bartender
man. We’ll see where this takes us.”
    * * * * *
    Trask strode toward Rena’s brownstone, a frown darkening his
features. When he’d left her that morning, she had been distant, closed-off.
Her aura had been gray and black, washed out and hollow, and that wasn’t right
at all. Rena was bold color, light and fire and electricity. He had originally
intended to stay away from her today, give her a chance to rest and recharge,
but the change confused him, made him anxious and frustrated. He did not like
feeling this way. He picked up his pace. Whatever this thing was, it was going
to be solved. Now.
    He turned the corner onto her street, but when he got to her
building, he paused outside, uncertain how to proceed. This was new. He was
nervous. Trask laughed at himself even as the uneasy tension simmered within
him. Rena was his. There was no question of that. He just needed to go in
there, find out what was wrong with her, fix it and then move on. This was not
a big deal.
    And yet, it felt like a very big deal indeed.
    He rang the bell and when she opened the door, he
immediately saw that her fire was back. It made him fiercely happy. This was
his woman.
    She ushered him into the living room and then turned to face
him. “We have to talk.” She took a deep breath, met his eyes. He felt her
conviction. “I can’t just have sex with you, Trask,” she said in a rush. “If we
can’t have something more, then this has to end.”
    Everything in him roared at the thought of losing her, but
he managed to beat down the surge of emotion before it could be unleashed. This
was not terrible, he told himself. It was actually very simple. He just needed
to get her whatever more she wanted. “More of what?” he asked. “I will give you
whatever you want, Rena.”
    “More of everything,” she said, throwing her arms wide. She
was a hurricane of blinding light, her aura a