Refrain (Soul Series Book 3) by Kennedy Ryan Read Free Book Online

me.
    Everything about tonight feels . . . rich and decadent. For one, we’re alone. Gep nor anyone from the security team accompanies us. Our intimacy, our aloneness is worth more than diamonds to me. The costly dress caressing my hips and legs feels rich. The raw silk licking over my braless nipples. The outrageous satin thong Rhyson bought for me a few weeks ago is the only thing tiny enough to wear under this tight dress. Even the early summer air, losing its cloying thickness the longer we drive, feels as light and clear as champagne.
    “So where are we going?” I probe.
    We’ve been driving for twenty minutes and he’s barely said a word. I’m unfamiliar with this Rhyson, distracted and tightly wound. His energy, coiled into a figure-eight knot, permeates the car’s interior, but none of it is focused on me. He’s completely in his head. I’ve gotten spoiled by his undivided attention. Maybe his “appointments” didn’t go well today.
    “Rhys? Did you hear me?”
    “Sorry.” He turns his head long enough to catch my eyes. “What’d you say?”
    “Where are we going?” I slow my speech as if he needs to read my lips.
    “I told you it’s a surprise.” A smile quirks his mouth. “You’ll see soon enough.”
    “How’d your appointments go today?” I ask, not wanting to sink back into the silence where his mind is elsewhere.
    “Fine.” His voice remains neutral, but a smile I can only describe as secretive curves on his lips. “We’re here.”
    “Here” is Tide, a Pacific-side restaurant nestled against the curving California coastline. Extremely popular, and judging by the queue of cars snaking from the entrance, packed. There’s a flurry of activity as we approach, with patrons leaving their cars and valets hopping in to drive off and make room for more. My eyes swing to Rhyson’s and find him already watching me.
    “What do you think?” For the first time since we left the house, I have his full attention. His eyes are trained on my face, watching closely for my reaction.
    “It’s gorgeous.” I look back to the restaurant’s glass paneled walls offering shadowy glimpses of the ocean view. “Crowded. You know everyone comes here, right?”
    “Right.” With a satisfied nod, he gets out so the valet can take the car.
    An attendant opens my door and offers me a hand.
    “I’ve got her,” Rhyson says, inserting himself between me and the eager valet.
    I step out, and Rhyson’s eyes drop to the indecent length of leg the panels of my dress fall back to display. “I love this dress, Pep, but it’s a hazard. I’m hoping to get through the night without punching some ogling idiot in the face.”
    I tip up a few inches to kiss him, but remember where we are. Rhyson and I aren’t that couple who do pubic displays of affection. We save all our passion for behind closed doors. A few paps have caught us holding hands and snapped a picture here and there, but not much more than that. By design. I’m pulling back when Rhyson grips my hips, bringing me back to my tiptoes. His mouth slants over mine in pure possession, one hand palming the curve of my ass while the other slides over the naked skin of my back. He juts into my mouth, searching for my tongue, and we groan at the taste of each other. My heart slams against his through our chests, and my hand drifts up his neck and into his hair. My fingers curl compulsively into the heavy, thick waves. I want him so badly. I need him more than air. I love him beyond all my girlish imaginations. I forget for just a few moments that we are surrounded by people and inevitably cameras. A flash over his shoulder punctures my haze and reminds me that we aren’t alone.
    “Rhys,” I whisper against his lips, putting a few inches between us. “Someone just took our picture.”
    He leans down to give me another kiss, unchecked and hungry.
    “Good.”
    Well, okay. I missed the PDA memo, but if he’s fine with it then so am I.
    He enfolds my hand in