We found ourselves alone in the elevator. I looked down and could’ve sworn he had an erection. Thank goodness the wetness between my legs wasn’t visible. The vibe between us had somehow been altered by that voyeuristic experience.

“Well, that was interesting,” he finally said, his eyes hazy.

In that moment, it all seemed to hit me. I burst into laughter. Then Milo did, too. We laughed until the elevator dinged open on our floor.

I wiped my eyes. “I’ll never look at a pineapple the same way again.”Chapter 8* * *MatteoIt surprised me that she asked me to come to her room for a drink.

After our outings thus far, Maddie had escaped to her room and never invited me in. I was always fine with that, because it made it easier not to blur things between us. I knew she wasn’t interested in crossing that line with me. She’d made that crystal clear. And as attracted to her as I was, it was better for both of us if things stayed platonic, uncomplicated. That’s what we both needed right now: to have fun and make a clean break when we parted ways. Having sex would ruin that plan.

But the fact that she’d asked me to her room tonight—of all nights—was ironic. That whole experience upstairs had made me horny as fuck. I hadn’t realized just how hard up I’d been. And it had nothing to do with anyone there, but instead the idea of sex and Maddie put together. So given that, tonight would have been the one night I preferred to go to my room alone, so I could rub one off in the shower and put myself out of my misery. Instead, I was left sitting on the chair across from Maddie as she lay splayed out on the bed in that sexy dress. It was basically a form of torture.

Maddie sipped her hard seltzer and surprised me with a question. “If I wasn’t there, would you have given Carolyn her fortieth-birthday wish?”

I laughed. “No. No interest in Carolyn, or anyone else there, for that matter.” I took a sip of my drink. “You?”

She shook her head. “No. Troy wasn’t my type.”

My brow lifted. “Anyone else there your type?”

She hesitated. “Nope.”

I decided to admit what I was feeling. Pretty sure she’d noticed my dick was hard in the elevator anyway, so maybe it was better to be honest. “There was no one there who interested me, but somehow collectively, the idea of everyone so turned on—it got me worked up, I guess.”

Maddie looked flushed. Her voice was low when she said, “I thought I was the only one.”

Even though I’d suspected she was turned on up in the penthouse suite, hearing her admit it only made the situation in my pants worse.

I needed to change the subject. Stat.

“Any idea what you want to do tomorrow besides shop?”

She shrugged. “Just see some of the sights. Walk around, maybe check out the Santa Fe Plaza.”

“That sounds good.”

When she yawned, I took that as my cue and opportunity to escape this tense conversation. I needed a release.

I stood up. “Well, I’ll let you get some shut eye.”

As I moved toward the door, she suddenly got up off the bed. “Wait.”

My heart started to beat faster. “What’s up?”

She looked like she wasn’t sure what she’d planned to say. Until she muttered, “Can you unzip me?”

Fuck. What is she doing?

A man can only take so much.

“Sure.” I walked back over to her.

She turned around so her back was to me.

I slowly lowered the zipper on her dress, swallowing hard as I gazed at the soft skin of her gorgeous back. She hadn’t worn a bra. Her tits were so perky, apparently she didn’t need one.

Unexpectedly, her dress fell to the floor, showcasing nothing but a red lace thong over her flawless ass. I felt my pants tightening by the second. This wasn’t good. She kept her back to me, lingering there, seemingly wanting me to suffer. And then it dawned on me what she was doing. She was giving me that fucking show she’d promised me. My reward for performing in Steamboat.

The devil inside of me silently begged her to turn around, to show me everything, to take her thong off, lie back on the bed, and spread her legs wide so I could see her glistening pussy. The devil wanted her to beg me to fuck her.

Instead, she covered her breasts as she turned around and blushed. Then, she escaped into the bathroom.

I was wrong. The devil wasn’t inside me. She was behind that bathroom door.

And my gut told me she wasn’t intending for me to follow. She’d already made her intentions clear. This was simply a cock tease of epic proportions.

Don’t get me wrong. It was a cock tease I’d gladly accept.

I heard the water in the bathroom.