I watched Joanna open the door and her reaction shot electricity through my veins. The way her shimmering blue eyes widened at my presence was something I was used to. Women were always stunned when they saw me at their door. But it was something I would never get used to. I kept my hands in my pockets, trying to come off as unassuming as possible. It took me a very hefty donation to The Met in order to get back here to see her without a backstage pass. But the moment was worth it.

Every cent of my money was worth it for those pouty lips parted in shock for me.

“Hello, Miss Leone. I’m Robert Cargill.”

I heard her draw in the slightest breath and it sent my world tumbling. She was speechless in my presence as I hovered over her. But it only made me want her more. Silencing that powerful voice only made me want to command her more. My want for her had been growing. Mounting during the duration of the opera. Her notes had filled the caverns of my ears and the intensity of her performance had tugged at a part of my soul I thought had been destroyed years ago. I couldn’t take my eyes off her the entire time, and now I wanted my hands to have that same chance.

That same opportunity to stay connected to her.

“Hello,” she said. “I’m Joanna. Though you, um… already seem to know that.”

“That I do.”

I took stock of her new outfit, my eyes traveling down her body. She was in this beautiful corseted dress that shoved her tits up into voluptuous peaks. I knew of the body she had underneath the rags, but seeing it on display for my eyes only made my cock stiffen even more. My balls were hanging low with want, aching behind my pants as Joanna’s eyes dropped to my chest.

I could see her chest flushing. Beckoning to my lips with its salacious mating call.

“Your performance was phenomenal,” I said. “I’ve never heard anything like it.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. Thank you. Your kindness means a great deal to me.”

I grinned down at her as her eyes glanced off to the side. I followed her vision and saw the roses sitting on her vanity. I counted almost two dozen there. Two dozen red roses sitting in a massive vase full of water.

A spark of jealousy ignited in my chest.

Had someone else been back here to see her? Had someone else touched her? My eyes flickered along her soft curves, looking for any signs that someone else had put their lips on her. I didn’t understand the flaring of jealousy. I hardly knew this woman. Hell, I didn’t fucking know her at all. But I felt like I did. It felt like she was mine. The confident demeanor of the woman on stage had been stripped down to the timid, gentle I saw before me, and all I could think about was how she needed to be cloaked. Protected. Cared for.

And the idea of another man using that to his advantage burned my core.

“Would you like to come in and talk?” Joanna asked.

My eyes panned back to hers as a smile crossed my cheeks.

“I would love to talk to the lady of the evening,” I said.

She ushered me into her room and shut the door behind me. Her dressing room was small, but I could tell she was proud of it. I removed my hands from my pockets and turned around, watching as Joanna pressed herself into the closed door.

She was fighting herself. I could see the battle raging in her eyes.

“How long have you been performing?” I asked.

“This is my first tour, actually,” Joanna said.

“Your first tour, yes. But I’m sure it’s not the first time you’ve performed.”

“I’ve been… on a stage since the beginning of my college career. So… I guess about nine years?”

“Are you sure?” I asked with a grin.

She giggled and shook her head as I took a step towards her.

“Have you ever seen Turandot before?” Joanna asked.

“Opera isn’t really my thing,” I said.

“So this is your first one?”

I took another step towards her and watched as she rolled her shoulders back.

“It is, yes,” I said.

“What brought you out tonight?”

“A good friend of mine and I are celebrating.”

“What are you celebrating?” she asked.

“He and his wife are expecting a child. The two of them are very happy about it.”

I reached out and tucked a strand of loose hair behind Joanna’s ear. Her eyes lit up and her breathing escalated as my thumb lingered on her cheek. I could tell she wanted me. I could see it in her eyes. Her movements were tentative and her stance was rigid, but everything about her was betraying her. The way her pupils dilated and the way her breathing sped up. The way her lopsided grin crinkled the sides of her eyes and how her body mindlessly leaned into my form.

I watched her nuzzle into my touch before I pulled my hand away, her eyes shutting for only a moment.

“What a wonderful thing it is, to be able to have a child,” Joanna said. “Your friend and his wife are very lucky.”

“I’m sure most people would think they are, yes,” I said.

“You don’t think they are?”

“Children, and family in general, come with varying emotional attachments. Those have a tendency to make a man weak”

“Weak?” she asked. “You think having children makes someone weak?”

“I do. And in my line of work, weakness is something that’s preyed upon.”

“What do you do for work?”

For such a timid girl, her voice sure was confident as she talked.

“I own and operate a technological company here in New York,” I said.

“What’s it called?” Joanna asked.

“Horizon Technologies.”

“You own Horizon Technologies,” she said. “No you don’t.”

“Yes I do,” I said with a grin. “Robert Cargill, owner and CEO.”

She kept giggling and shook her head and I found the entire thing… endearing.

Another feeling I hadn’t admitted to in ages.

“So, what does a successful man like you have against the opera and children?” Joanna asked.

“I find the opera boring,” I said.

“Oh, you wound me, Mr. Cargill.”

My cock twitched at my name falling from her lips.

“But children are a hassle. An unnecessary thing men and women convince themselves they need to be happy.”

“You think children are an inconvenience,” she said.

“I think having children with someone only expands what someone can lose if that family is ripped away from them.”

“So you’d rather rob yourself of the love and joy that comes with it because of the threat of some perceived slight you might feel if you lose them?” she asked.

“I promise you, the slight isn’t perceived,” I said.

I could see her eyes budding with a want to fight. I liked that. I enjoyed seeing that fire in her eyes. This curvy little body of hers held more than I thought it would. More surprises than I’d bargained for in my quest to have her. I enjoyed watching her trying to tame her demeanor with me. Trying not to insult me in case I was becoming a fan.

I couldn’t take my eyes off her as I closed the distance between us.

I could feel her chest rising and falling against my body. Her hands were planted into the door and she made no move to shove me away. I brought my hand up to cup her cheek, my thumb running along her lower lip. Her cheeks blushed with a tint that tugged at my cock. So much so that I could feel it pressing into the fabric of her dress.

“What was your favorite part of the performance?” Joanna asked.

Her soft voice pierced my thoughts as my eyes focused on her. I slid my leg between hers, spreading them wide for me as her eyes fluttered closed. Oh, she was desperate. Wanton. With silent prayers rattling around in her head. My heart was slamming against my chest as my lips traveled to hers, my gaze studying her face as she kept her eyes closed.

I could feel her breath pulsing against my lips. Hot and dripping, with only a hint of tentativeness.

“You, Miss Leone.”

Her eyes shot open at my voice as I grinned at her shocked expression.

“You were my favorite part of the performance.”