Chapter 32

{Hailey’s pov}

The room was dim, lit only by the orange flicker of Kiara’s lighter as she lit another joint. Smoke curled between us, softening everything, walls, time, even my thoughts. We lay side by side on the carpeted floor, music low in the background, bare feet tangled in blankets and lazy laughter.

Kiara turned to me with a grin. “Okay, back to Bourbon. Don’t act like I forgot. That mysterious man who paid for your time. You said you went to the room?”

I nodded slowly, eyes half-lidded. “Room twelve.”

“That even sounds sexy,” she muttered. “Keep talking.”

I laughed under my breath. “I got off the stage, still dripping sweat, and the supervisor just grabbed my arm. Said someone already paid for me. Cash. Clean. No name. Just… ‘Room 12.’ I didn’t ask questions.”

“You didn’t even see him before that?”

“Nope,” I said, leaning back against a pillow. “Didn’t know his name. Didn’t see his face. Nothing.”

Kiara leaned in. “So? What happened?”

I exhaled, remembering every heated second like it had just happened yesterday. “I walked in. He was already waiting. Sitting on the edge of the bed, legs spread, dress shirt unbuttoned halfway down. Didn’t say anything at first. Just stared.”

Kiara blinked. “Okay, I’m sweating already.”

I smirked. “He had this quiet confidence. Like he didn’t need to speak to own the room. He pointed to the bathroom. Told me to shower. Said he didn’t want to touch me until I was clean.”

Kiara’s jaw dropped. “Excuse me?”

“Dead serious,” I said. “His exact words? ‘If I’m going to taste you, I want your skin fresh. Clean. Just you.’”

Kiara moaned dramatically. “Where do they make men like that?”

“I didn’t argue. I got in that shower so fast.” I laughed again. “When I came out, towel wrapped around me, he just looked me over. Told me to kneel.”

Kiara sat bolt upright. “Stop.”

“Told me to drop the towel. Said, ‘On your knees. Don’t touch me until I tell you.’”

She covered her mouth. “You’re not making this up.”

“I wish I was,” I said, eyes half-glazed with memory. “He stood there, calm as ever, while I knelt in front of him. I didn’t even think. I just… obeyed.”

“And then?”

“I undid his belt. He didn’t help. Just watched. And the moment I started—”

Kiara cut in. “Was he big?”

I gave her a look. “Girl.”

She fell back, laughing. “Oh my God. Yes!”

“He made me take my time,” I continued, voice softer now. “Held my jaw, told me how he wanted it. Deep. Slow. Made me look at him the whole time.”

Kiara was practically breathless. “He was a god.”

“Then he pulled me up, laid me on the bed, and said, ‘Now, don’t move.’”

“Please tell me what happened next.”

“He got on top. Straddled me. Kissed my inner thighs, slow like he was memorizing me. Then…” I hesitated, a little blush creeping in. “He lowered himself. And I did the same.”

“Wait—”

“We 69’d.”

“Bitch.”

“He didn’t rush anything. It was like he was in control of every inch of me. The way he groaned when I touched him… I swear, I’ve never heard a man sound like that.”

Kiara groaned into her pillow. “I need holy water. Keep going.”

“We moved together like we’d done it a hundred times. Like we were synced. And when we were both—”

“You finished together?” she gasped.

I nodded. “Like a wave crashing. I just laid there after. Breathless.”

“What did he say?”

“Nothing. He kissed my hip, zipped his pants, and threw a bundle of money. No name. No goodbye. Just… vanished.”

Kiara stared at the ceiling. “He’s not real. That man was sent by the universe.”

“I’ve been thinking about him ever since,” I whispered.

“Did you ever ask the supervisor who he was?”

“She said she didn’t know. Just that he dropped cash and asked for discretion. But I swear, if I go back to Bourbon and see him again… I’m not letting him leave this time.”

Kiara sat up, eyes wild. “Hailey, you have to go back. You have to find him. You can’t have the best 69 of your life with a ghost.”

We both burst into laughter, wheezing from smoke and story.

Then she leaned closer. “What if he’s someone from here?”

I blinked. “From where?”

“Here,” she whispered. “This estate. Lachlan land. What if you already know him… and don’t even realize?”

I paused. Something about her words sat heavy in my chest. Familiar.

“I never saw his face,” I said slowly. “But I’ll know his voice if I hear it again.”

Kiara leaned back, puffing her joint like a queen. “Girl. I’m officially obsessed with your mystery man.”

“Yeah,” I said, more to myself than to her. “So am I.”

We lay there in silence for a while, smoke curling above us like thoughts we couldn’t reach. I didn’t say it aloud, but something told me I’d see him again.

Soon.

And this time, I’d make him speak.