“I’m glad that you enjoyed it.”
“We did. Mimosas are the perfect excuse to have alcohol in the morning.”
“Aye, they certainly are.”
I fold my hands over my clutch so that I’m not tempted to fidget.
“You look lovely.”
“Thank you.” I smooth my hands down my dress. “I hope that my outfit is okay. I wasn’t sure what I should wear since I didn’t know where we were going.”
“My apologies. I should have told you that I’m taking you to my house.”
“Oh.” That’s surprising since it seems so important to him to keep me away from the people in his life.
“Perhaps I should have asked if that’s all right?”
“No, your house is fine.”
“I’d like for you to see where we’ll spend the majority of our time. I mean, if you say yes.”
“That’s very thoughtful.”
“I’m trying to be mindful of what this must feel like for you. I want you to say yes.”
I’m surprised to find that Maxwell Hutcheson is so considerate of my feelings. “I can tell. Thank you.”
Of course, he lives in a home that is more of a castle than a house, complete with the turreted tower. I almost believe that he has brought me here because he knows how much I’d love his renovated castle.
What can I say? I’m still American at heart, and we have a love for and fascination with the castles of Scotland.
“Your home is beautiful.”
“We’re on thirty-two acres so there’s plenty of privacy. And only a mile from Kirkliston. You can get almost anything you need in the village without trekking into Edinburgh, which makes life much easier.”
“Yes, I’m sure that is convenient. How far are we from Edinburgh?”
“Twelve miles.”
We’ve been driving for a while. “It feels much farther.”
“You can blame it on the traffic. It’s brutal this time in the evening.”
Hutch gives me a tour of his house and I’m caught off guard when he introduces me to the housekeeper and cook during our walk-through. I thought that I was supposed to remain unseen by everyone within his world.
“It’s seven. Sonny should have dinner on the table for us.”
How convenient that must be to have dinner prepared and placed on the table for you each night.
Hutch leads me into the dining room and pulls out my chair, pushing under me when I sit. “Is this jambalaya?”
“I asked Sonny to prepare a typical New Orleans dish since it’s probably been a while since you’ve had a taste of home.”
Another display of thoughtfulness from Hutch. “It’s been a really long time since I’ve had Cajun food.”
“Sonny has traveled the world learning how to prepare a lot of different cuisines. Cajun wasn’t one of them but I’m confident that he did a great job. He’s a talented chef.”
“It looks and smells delicious.”
The Cajun holy trinity: celery, onion, and green pepper. The perfect Cajun seasonings and heat. Chicken, shrimp, and sausage. Tomatoes and rice. It only takes one bite to instantly transport me back to New Orleans. “He nailed it.”
“I knew that he wouldn’t disappoint. He also recommended pairing it with this light-bodied French Burgundy.”
I was only sixteen when I left New Orleans. I have no idea what kind of wine complements Cajun food, but this works for me. “His wine choice is perfect.”
We eat without speaking for several minutes, and then Hutch interrupts the silence. “You’ve had some time to think about my proposal. Is there any part of it that you’d like to discuss?”
I’d like to discuss every part of it. “I don’t know where to begin.”
“You can ask me anything. Don’t be afraid.”
I hope that he truly means that. “The sex part. I’m struggling with it.”
“What part of it bothers you?”
All of it. “To begin with, you’re a stranger to me.”
He reaches across the table and places his hand on top of mine. “I won’t feel like a stranger to you for long. You’ll come to know me quickly.”
He seems so certain but how can he know that for sure? I’m attracted to this man, but I don’t know that I can ever be comfortable enough to have sex with him.
“This will never be a real relationship, so being with you on an intimate level feels wrong.”
I wasn’t raised by a mother with the highest of standards, but I was somehow instilled with morals regarding the sexual relationship between a man and woman.
“It feels wrong because we aren’t well acquainted, but we will be. I’m confident that our relationship will progress to a place of comfort quickly because there are no pretenses between us. Our honesty and known expectations will make everything easier and more relaxed. Our time together will be more satisfying because our only motives are to enjoy each other’s company. There’s zero pressure on either of us to be anything other than what we truly are.”
No pretenses. No pressure. No pretending. I must admit that I don’t mind that.
“Are you on birth control?”
Did he just go there with me? Yep. He sure did.
Birth control. Is that a conversation that I’m going to have with this man? Am I going to tell him those kinds of intimate details about myself?
I have to if I’m considering his proposition.
“I take the pill. I have for years.”
“I’m not a fan of condoms.”
“I’m not a fan of the diseases you can catch when you don’t use them.”
“I’m clean.”
“So am I.” And I have the documentation to prove it. “But there are two things that I won’t allow you to give me: a disease or a baby.” I’ll never be that stupid.
“Your birth control pills eliminate the possibility of a baby. Would you be open to the option of having sex without condoms given that I provide you with a physician’s report that I’m disease-free?”
“My list of sexual partners is a short one—very short—but I’ve never had sex without a condom. Ever. If I say yes to your proposal, that won’t change.”
One side of his mouth tugs upward. So damn smug. Like he knows something that I don’t. “You can think it over and we’ll revisit this conversation later.”
We can revisit it as many times as he likes, but I won’t change my mind about not using condoms.
Casual sex. That’s what this is going to be between us. Can I go through with it? Can I give my body to a man who doesn’t love me?
I’ve done it before. But of course, I didn’t know it at the time. I thought that Cameron loved me.
“Sex changes everything between a man and woman. It complicates things. Do you really believe that we’ll do this for three months and then simply walk away from each other without any kind of difficulty?”
“It won’t be a problem if we go into it with the same expectations and are both aware of how things will end.”
A built-in expiration date. A daily countdown to the end. Literally.
Am I really thinking of agreeing to this madness?