BIG BURLY MASTER: An age gap romance by Erin Havoc

Author:Erin Havoc [Havoc, Erin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-10-01T16:00:00+00:00

6

ATHENA

Christopher and I had the best night yesterday. There’s a tiny part of me—okay, maybe not so tiny—that wishes things had gone a bit further than they did, but Christopher is a gentleman, and I know the last day of the congress doesn’t mean the end of this thing between us.

Whatever it is.

Christopher took me to a nice restaurant in town. He held my hand, kissed my knuckles, and shot me the most loving looks ever from across the table. He told me about growing up poor, and the difficulties faced being a dark-skinned man in a career focused on the white and the rich. How hard he had to work to pay for books and materials, and how lonely he felt in his first years. Christopher’s stories inspire me. I’m honored by him sharing them with me.

And somehow, he’s interested in my stories, even when I am the white rich girl whose only difficulties were about overcoming the shadow of my mother. I felt silly, but Christopher made it clear it wasn’t a competition. Everyone has difficulties of their own, and he doesn’t want me to feel inferior because of mine.

I almost tell him. I almost tell him why I wear the long sleeves, but at the last second, I’m ashamed. My cheeks burn with self-consciousness, and I’m afraid he’ll run off if he finds out. He might think I’m too broken to be fixed. So I keep my mouth shut and enjoy the rest of our evening together.

He kisses me as we stand in my doorway, but he doesn’t come in. Though his eyes burn with the memory of what we did earlier in the day, he doesn’t press me, even when I kind of wanted him to.

I shake my head, dispelling the thoughts of yesterday. Today is a new day and a huge one at that. It’s the last day of the congress, with the closing panels and the announcement of the contest winners. I stare at myself in the mirror, surprisingly calm. My heart doesn’t race, and I’m not sweating with nerves. Even if I don’t make first place, I know I’ve learned a lot and getting to know Christopher might be worth anything else.

After brushing my hair, and applying some lipstick to look the best I can, I run my hands down my clothes and make my way to the door. For the first time, I can’t wait to see what lies ahead of me.

Down the elevator, and toward the main hall I go. The announcement of the winners will only happen in the afternoon, with the closing ceremony, so I don’t even worry about it now. My focus is on finding Christopher. Maybe we can sit together during the morning panels. The thought of being seen with him makes my stomach churn with expectation.

I’m so pumped at seeing him and having him hold my hand in public, I miss the first people whispering while they look at me. The farther I get into the congress area, the harder to ignore them.

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