We walked back into the club, and I could feel Ronan close to my back, even though I wasn’t holding his hand this time. I still felt a little wobbly, I could barely feel my legs, and kneeling on the ground after that orgasm probably hadn't been the best of ideas.

But it had been worth it to see that look of satisfaction on Ronan's face.

I could feel a smile threaten, and I bit my lip to hold it back. I didn’t want him to see just how happy I was. I could feel that my face was still flushed, but he wouldn’t guess the real reason behind it.

I had been bold. Stupidly so. I wasn’t the kind of girl that walked around without underwear, even though I'd been into leather since it seemed to be the unofficial dress code in the biker world. I probably would have gotten away with jeans and a leather jacket. Ronan had, but I'd had a goal when I left home to go check out the race.

Ronan was someone I hadn't known for all that long, less than a year, in fact. I hadn't been interested in anyone when he first approached me, but it was difficult not to watch him.

The very definition of tall, dark, and handsome, I didn’t think he was the kind of guy a lot of women would be able to resist. I found myself hoping he was keen on me, for the first month I'd known him. I'd hoped he was, based on how he kept coming on to me. I pretended I didn’t notice his interest, but having someone like him after me was a big ego boost.

I slid back to where my friends were still at the bar. I got knowing looks from a few of them that made the flush on my cheeks grow warmer, but nothing could ruin my mood tonight. I'd wanted Ronan for a while now, unsure how to make it happen. I wasn’t some seductress. It had taken a lot of psyching myself up over the past couple of weeks leading up to the competition, to build up my confidence to take what I wanted. I'd bought my outfit the week before, and I knew Ronan had his eyes on me the second he saw me wearing it. I'd worn it for him. Whether or not he won, I wanted to end up with him for the night.

I was head-over-heels in love with him, and it no longer worried me.

My friends played difficult, trying to tug me back into the party while I was trying to excuse myself. They were on the way to getting good and drunk, though. I'd only had the one drink, even then I'd only taken a few sips for courage. They wouldn’t notice I wasn’t around once I was gone.

I glanced around, looking for Ronan only to find he already had his eyes on me. It froze me for a second before a slow smile stole across my face. I jerked my head toward the bar entrance, and he gave me a short nod. Feeling slightly giddy, I made my way outside. He made it outside less than a minute after me.

Neither of us spoke as he took my hand and led me forward. It was some lucky coincidence that the bar we'd picked was close to his place. I knew he was taking me to his apartment, and I knew I would spend the night there.

It wasn’t like I could take him to my place, after all. And I couldn't exactly sneak back home.

I lived at home alone with my dad. Well, technically, I lived with both my parents, though I saw a lot more of my dad than my mom. There were also the guards and the help, but they didn’t live there.

I was an adult, but I knew my dad would still be mad if I went home late. It would be so much safer to go back the next day and say I spent the night at a friend's than to sneak back in. It wouldn’t be safe, at least not for Ronan.

My dad might actually kill him.

I wasn’t sure if Dad was trying to be sneaky about his side jobs. On the surface, he was a well-earning businessman, even though his job description was always vague. I knew my dad was a mobster, and I was worried he would start to ask questions, or even worse, follow me—or have me followed.

I didn’t even have to tell my girlfriends to cover for me, it had happened a few times before, so they knew exactly what to say. Whoever Dad would call, when he insisted on it, would inform the others to corroborate the story. Though it had been a while since I'd needed the excuse for anything other than going to check out races.

We made it to Ronan's apartment, and he surprised me by crowding me against the door. But then he was kissing me, and I melted against him.

I let Ronan do as he pleased. I didn’t have much experience if I was being honest. I had only a couple boyfriends before him, and we'd been dating at least before the sex even happened. Ronan was different, though. He could have whatever part of me he wanted, strings attached or no. Still, when he treated me so gently, tugging me into his bedroom and carefully undressing me, I felt hope spring forth in my chest.

He laid me back on his bed, eyes on me as he undressed then crawled on top of me. He ran his hands all over my body, mouth following with teasing licks and nips, driving me slowly out of my mind. He had me writhing and moaning on his bed in minutes, and I orgasmed at least once before, finally, he was sliding inside me and moving. I wrapped arms and legs around him, doing my best to meet his movements with my own.

I reached my peak first, Ronan following not soon after. He wasn’t done with me, though, and I couldn’t help the pleasure that nearly overwhelmed me, and how he couldn’t seem to get enough of me.

I could lie about it if I wanted, but it was pointless now.

I would have to come clean with my dad because I was crazy in love with Ronan.