Reign A Romance Anthology - Nina Levine Page 0,276

and I watch her add her details. Yet, she doesn’t call her own phone.

“You have my number,” she says as though the next step is entirely up to me.

The following night after training, Brax asks if I want to head out for noodles with him and the lads. In the back of my mind, I still hope for Star to turn up.

“I’m not in the mood. I’ll go home and fix myself something healthy,” I tell him.

“We can bring you a dish?” Brax suggests. I assume he believes I’m having another bad day.

“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll whip up a dish of pasta.”

“Okay, mate. Catch you later.”

I’m not relying on hope for a chance that Star will come. I need her, so as soon as they leave, I pull up her phone number and send her a text.

Me: Are we still on for tonight?

I receive a reply before I get a pot of water on to boil for the fettuccine.

Star: Be there in 10.

Scrap the pasta. I quickly heat leftovers from yesterday, so I’m organised when she arrives. There’s no way I’m wasting time in the kitchen. She arrives with her beautiful smile, and I lead her straight to my room. I close the door and pull off my shirt before stepping to her and unzipping her dress. When I do, she loops her arms around my neck and kisses me with the same neediness and longing.

“Have you been thinking about us getting it on all day?” I ask her between breaths.

She takes my hand and places it between her thighs. “You be the judge.”

Instinct takes over.

“Lay on your stomach,” I demand and point to the bed. “Spread your legs.”

We fuck on repeat for the next two weeks.

Star comes to my room.

I give the commands…

On your back.

On all fours.

On your knees.

With every day, she becomes more submissive to my demands, and the only thing to come from her smart mouth are the kisses she saves for me.

Monday morning after our training session, I’m thinking about her. We barely left my room all weekend.

“Catch you at home,” Brax calls out as I walk to my new black BMW SUV.

I pull out my phone and call Star.

“Hey. Are you busy?”

“No, why? Do you need me to come to yours?”

“Nope.” Although the idea of being between her legs is something I’ll never object to. “Can I swing by and pick you up? I need to go shopping and would love some female advice.”

The phone is silent.

I check the screen to make sure we’re still connected.

“Star?”

“Sure,” she rasps. “Can you give me ten?”

“I can. And I’ll need your address.” I haven’t been back to the house in the valley since that first night. Guilt fills me she has always come to mine, yet assumed it a no-brainer in keeping us low-key.

“I’ll text it to you.”

“I’ll wait out front.”

“No. Wait a few houses down the road,” she adds quickly and ends the call.

I toss my training bag in the trunk and before I start the car, my phone vibrates with an incoming call. It’s an unknown number, and I hesitate before answering it.

“Dustin, it’s Jason from Riverside Real Estate.”

“Right.” I rub the side of my neck. It could have been someone less friendly.

“A house is listed that interests you. It’s close to the river and ticks all the boxes that appeal to you. It’s for sale, not for rent, and I know you preferred to rent first.”

“I did, but if I find the right house, then I’m prepared to buy.”

“That’s what I thought. Do you want to meet me after lunch, say around one?”

“Sounds good.”

“I’ll email the address.”

I check the text message for Star’s address and set it in Maps in my car. While driving over the Story Bridge, my hands sweat on the steering wheel, and it’s not from the humidity, especially with the specialised air conditioning in the new car. When I arrive, I drive slowly past her house, peering at the entrance before parking a few houses down the road.

What the fuck was I thinking on the night I came here? There’s a high steel fence and thick overgrowth to conceal most of the building. I’d lost any instinct about keeping me safe that night. Yet I don’t regret it as I met Star, and she is more my type than any chick I know.

I send off a text and wait for her to come to the car.

Not long later, she knocks on the window and then opens the door. I