Page 92 of Off Limits Mogul

I approach her and cup her beautiful face in my hands. “I won’t rush you.”

I want her so much it hurts, but I’m willing to take it slow.

“Okay,” she says.

“Are you a virgin?”

She shakes her head.

She’s no longer saving herself for me.

“No, but compared to youruncomplicatedhookups––”

“Don’t,” I say. “This night is about you.”

She responds with a shy nod.

“Can I ask how many guys you’ve been with?”

She averts her gaze.

“I asked you a question, Keira.”

“Can I ask you the same question?” she says, meeting my gaze.

“I’ve been with a number of women, but I’ve always used protection and I get tested regularly.” There’s no point in lying to her. “That said, I haven’t been with anyone in a long time.”

“Really?” Her eyes grow as wide as quarters.

“Really. I wasn’t joking when I told you to take it easy on me.”

She giggles. “To answer your question, I’ve only been with one guy,” she says. “He was a neighbor I trusted. He was my age and neither of us wanted to turn twenty and still be a virgin.”

My eyebrows hit my forehead.

“You’re surprised?” She picks up on my reaction.

You bet I am. Shocked, even.

The music industry after parties are notorious for debauched sex, easily accessible drugs, and free-flowing booze. The fact she was able to weather those vices says a lot about the woman she is. God knows she’s a hell of a lot stronger than I ever was.

Then, it hits me.

“That was four years ago. No one since?”

She shakes her head. “I’ve been on dates, but I never let it go far. It’s a turn off for most guys, but I don’t care.” She pauses. “I always promised myself I’d never be like my mom and sleep around with men to fill a void. It’s the same desperate and destructive cycle I witnessed Chelle fall prey to in her quest tobe accepted by guys who didn’t deserve her…” She sighs. “That’s why I kept my legs closed.”

I nod.

Keira’s mom died in a car accident when Noah was sixteen. Keira was eight. Their mom’s then-guy-of-the-week was at the wheel, drunk. Since her mom was living at Keira’s grandmother’s place, Noah and Keira weren’t uprooted. Their grandmother became their guardian. Before she died, she told them the truth––Noah was conceived in a boy’s locker room when their mom was fifteen by one of the football team’s star athletes, and Keira is the result of a bathroom bang in a bar Eva worked at. The guy was in LA for business. Eva never saw him again. Noah’s dad never wanted anything to do with him.

Until the shocking revelation, they didn’t know they were half siblings. They thought Noah took after their dad. Keira’s unwillingness to fuck around is justified.

“I hope I won’t disappoint you––”

I press two fingers to her lips to silence her. “That’ll never happen, Keira.”

My gaze bores into hers for a short beat.