the old-fashioned, slaying-dragons way. Not in the I’ll-physically-protect-you way. Not in the putting-himself-in-danger or sacrificing-for-them way. In fact, damsels kind of annoyed him.
That sounded cold even to his own ears. But he was determined to make sure that the women in his life were strong and confident and knowledgeable and never dependent on anyone else for survival or happiness.
He didn’t teach self-defense classes or anything, though he was a big supporter and advocate of those. He wasn’t a psychologist or a counselor. Though, again, he was a big fan of those. He was a financial coach, who worked almost exclusively with single moms and widows. He taught women how to make, invest, and spend their money so that they were financially independent.
He didn’t feel worried or protective of his clients. He felt motivated. Energized by the opportunity to help. And often frustrated. With the women who thought they were “dumb about money” or “not good at math” and couldn’t handle their finances. And the men who liked having women depend on them. He also got exasperated with the women who attended his seminars and then hit on him. It was like they weren’t listening at all. He wanted them to leave his seminars understanding that they didn’t need a man.
He’d also recently been very uncomfortable with one of his attendees. His most recent seminar had been Michelle’s third time participating, and she’d made it very clear afterward that she was only there because of him.
Finding a woman naked in his bed in his hotel room had been a shock. That was the kind of thing that happened to Dax and… No, really only Dax. Grant had quickly dissuaded her of any idea that he was interested and had told her he thought it was best she didn’t come to any more seminars. He’d been able to get her out of his room without getting hotel security involved—which, according to Dax when he’d heard the story, meant the woman wasn’t really a fan—but Grant had decided that he needed to start wearing a wedding ring and talking about his “wife” at these seminars. Or at least bringing an assistant along. He thought, for the right price, Piper would accompany him, but he wasn’t sure he could afford her.
Jocelyn Asher, however, was neither a mom nor a widow. And she was most definitely making him feel protective. And he’d love to find her naked in his bed.
He didn’t like that. He didn’t want to nurture or take care of someone.
But he couldn’t stop thinking of her.
Following her out to her car tonight had truly, initially, been out of concern. She’d seemed quieter than he’d expected her to be at a meal with her friends. Then when those friends had commented that she’d been acting strange, and Maggie, clearly the mother figure to all of her daughter’s friends, had seemed legitimately concerned, he’d gotten concerned.
But then Jocelyn had told him it was because she was attracted to him, and he couldn’t keep his lips off her any longer.
Once he’d tasted her, resisting her was futile.
He was going to have to figure out why she was making him feel so protective. But first, he was going to get her naked.
Again, maybe not the wisest decision, but fuck it. He had no idea how to fight it. Nor did he want to.
Dax and Ollie got to make dumb decisions all the time, and they always landed on their feet. This was Grant’s turn.
They pulled between two stone columns with lamps set on top and drove up a curving driveway.
Grant knew his eyes were wide as Jocelyn stopped her car in front of a three-car, carriage-house-style detached garage. The garage was set back from the main house. An enormous 1800s Victorian mansion, to be exact. The house sat back from the road several yards and was surrounded by trees, grass, and flowers.
The fading light of the evening didn’t give him a perfect look at everything, but his first impression was that of a gorgeous, peaceful, old, and majestic property, and he knew his mouth was hanging open as he got out of the car and met Jocelyn at the front bumper.
She was wearing a pale pink sundress with a subtle flowered pattern. The skirt hit her just below the curve of her calf and her dainty feet were in nude-colored sandals that showed off pale pink toenails. The bodice of the dress, however, was strapless, leaving her shoulders and arms bare, showing off lots of smooth,