“Don’t tease me, darlin’,” he rasps. “Suck.”

So demanding. My body aches for him. I part my lips and slide the tip of his cock into my mouth. He hisses and his body arches up, pressing him further. I slide my mouth down further, taking him as deep as I can. I swirl my tongue up and down the vein on his shaft, keeping my lips tight. His groaning becomes ragged and his fingers tighten in my hair.

“Shit. So fuckin’ sweet.”

I move quicker, bobbing my head up and down, sucking him in as deeply as I can take him. I feel him bumping the back of my throat. I close my eyes, trembling all over as I feel his cock swell in my mouth.

“I’m goin’ to come, Dancer, fuck . . .”

I don’t take my mouth away. Instead, I suck him harder and faster. His groaning gets louder and louder until his hips do a final jerk and I feel him explode into my mouth, hot bursts of come sliding down my throat. I swallow all of him, sucking and licking until there’s nothing left. He slumps backwards, holding himself up on his elbows as I pull back, kneeling in front of him and grinning.

“You sucked that like a boss,” he rasps.

I burst out laughing, shaking my head from side to side at his comment. “A boss? Really? You felt that was the most appropriate comment at a time like this?”

He chuckles and looks over at me. “Seriously, you just took that shit like a pro. Are you a pro?” He cocks his eyebrow at me.

“No, I’m not a pro. I just . . . I like it.”

“That’ll be a damned first.”

“You’re to tell me no other women have enjoyed having their mouth on your cock?”

“Baby,” he murmurs, staring at the sky. “Firstly, if you say cock again I’m going to flip you over and fuck you. Secondly, of course I’ve had women enjoy my dick, but nothing like that.”

“That’s what they all say.” I laugh, twisting and dropping down beside him.

He snorts and rolls towards me, pulling his pants back up. He pulls me into his arms and tucks me into his chest.

“It’s nice out here,” I say, sighing with contentment.

“It makes me happy,” he says, stretching out.

I am just relaxing into his arms when his phone begins to ring in his pocket. He stares down at it and I see Lena’s name flashing on the screen. He stiffens and untangles himself from me, sitting up and staring at it.

“You can answer it,” I say, my heart aching. “I’ll be silent.”

He looks at me, his eyes flashing with pain. I turn away, unable to take his expression, the way he’s so torn. You’ll never be number one. Never. I hear him click the answer button and say, “Yeah?”

He’s silent for a moment.

“Macy, why have you got Mommy’s phone, honey?”

Macy is ringing him? How does a three-year-old ring him?

“What do you mean Mommy won’t wake up?”

He’s on his feet now, straightening his pants with one hand and holding the phone with the other. He gets to his bike and turns to me, but I’m already right behind him, my eyes wide and concerned.

“Put her on the phone.”

A long, dreaded silence follows.

“Okay, Daddy is coming now. Stay right there and don’t move, okay?”

He nods twice and then hangs up, turning to me. “She’s saying Lena won’t wake up. I gotta go.”

I nod, understanding but feeling something awful tugging at my heart. He hands me my helmet and I quickly pull it on, not wanting to hold him up. I keep wondering how Macy rang him. Perhaps he’s taught her; a great deal of parents do. Or was it Lena just playing a game? I get onto the back of the bike after him and he quickly takes off.

The ride home is nothing compared to the ride here. Thoughts are traumatizing my mind, making me realize what a troubled situation I’ve been put in.

We arrive at the dance studio and Nate pulls up in the lot. I get off the bike quickly and he turns to me, meeting my hurt expression. “I gotta go.”

Without another word he zips away, leaving me broken and devastated on the side of the road. Is this all I’m ever going to be? A woman he goes to as an escape? What have I done? What the hell have I done?

CHAPTER 24

NATE

I bust through the front door and see Macy sitting on the floor beside the couch where Lena is laying. I squint and rush over, lowering to my knees. Lena is out of it, the smell of whiskey strong on her body. Her arm is flopped over the side of the couch and she’s got vomit surrounding her head and mattered into her hair. Fucking shit. I quickly lift her head, sitting her upright before checking her breathing and then her pulse. It’s there but it’s faint.

“Is Mommy okay, Daddy?” Macy asks.

“She’s okay, baby,” I grind out. “Can you bring me her phone?”

She rushes off and brings me Lena’s phone. I flip it open and dial for an ambulance. They assure me they’re on their way, so I turn back to Lena. I slap her cheeks softly. “Hey, wake up.”

She groans, but she doesn’t open her eyes.

“Macy, baby,” I say, turning to my little girl. “Can you get Daddy a towel?”

She nods again and runs away, coming back a minute later with a towel. I put it under Lena’s head, using it to prop her up as much as possible until the ambulance arrives. They do, a few minutes later. They quickly get to work, lifting her onto a stretcher and taking her out.

“Do you want to meet us there?” one officer asks.