“It’s not worth it,” I whisper into his ear.
Bryce scrambles to his feet and spits on the ground in front of him. “This isn’t over, Mackay,” he mumbles as he glares at me and disappears around the corner.
We stand there in silence until Niall turns and gently touches my cheek with fire in his eyes. “Did he touch you?”
“It’s fine, I—”
His jaw tightens with every word. “Did. He. Touch. You?”
“No,” I admit as we stare at each other, the sexual electricity between us almost too much to take. His stare is heated, and if I hold it too long, I’ll get lost in it forever. “Well, thanks for tonight, Niall, I—”
An impending storm of rage flashes through his eyes as he roughly grabs my cheek and, before I can protest, claims my mouth in a heated kiss. I’ve wanted him to kiss me again for so long, but for some reason, the guilt of everything is eating at me. I push the nagging remorse down and for half a heartbeat, we stand there, tongues clashing and fingers tugging at each other’s hair before I finally come to my senses and pull away.
“I need to…this is…I need to go home, Niall.”
A half smile plays on his lips as he caresses my cheek and leaves one last lingering kiss on the corner of my mouth. “I’ll walk you.”
***
The whole way back to my apartment, the sexual chemistry is blinding. Niall is affectionate and attentive, and I battle back and forth between giving in and ending the lie right now.
The minute we reach the door to my apartment, Niall braces a hand on each side of the doorframe and boxes me in. “Sophie is at a sleepover with a neighbor tonight.”
I smile and eye him curiously. “Are you flirting with me, Mackay?”
His face flushes, but I know the minute his eyes darken, it’s not embarrassment that’s staining the skin above his beard. “No. I was flirting with you back at the bar. Now, I’m propositioning you.”
He looks so sure of himself that it unnerves me a little. “Well. That’s blunt.”
His voice rumbles as he crowds me against the door. “Aye. When there’s something right in front of me I know that I want, I see no reason to mince words.” Taking a step closer, he presses his body against me and every nerve ending blazes with electricity. “What do you want, Laken?”
There’s a right answer and a wrong answer here. One that’s responsible and one that serves my own selfish, horny needs. “You,” I whisper on a breathy exhale.
With my back pressed up against my door, Niall smiles a devilish grin that causes that adorable dimple to sink deep into his cheek, and I can almost believe our lie is real—that there is emotion behind the heat in his eyes and he feels something for me. I bite my lip, realizing I’m in over my head. The line between fake fiancée and reality has blurred so much that I can’t see this for what it really is—just simple drunken lust.
Then he kisses me again and I lose all concept of right and wrong. I can’t think, I can barely breathe. Niall Mackay’s kisses are as hypnotizing as his accent, and combined, they both flip my world inside out and upside down. The roughness of his assault and the way he commands control of my lips drowns me. I’m losing every objection I can think of to inviting him inside.
Finally breaking the kiss, Niall pulls back and cups my cheek. “Is Preston coming home tonight?”
Who?
Preston. Preston. Preston. Oh fuck! Panic squeezes my heart, so I say the first thing that comes to my mind. “Preston’s spending the night at a friend’s house too.”
Okay, technically it’s not a lie. Technically, Lollie is a friend, and technically, she lives at the Hammerles where Preston also technically lives.
Also? I’m technically full of shit.
“I’m not an exhibitionist, Laken, but if you don’t open the door, your neighbors are going to get to know a whole new side of you.” Although he laughs, there’s a serious darkness in his stare that has my palms pressing flat against the wood and my fingers twitching with restraint.
And this is where I break my neck trying to open the door.
Digging blindly in my purse for my keys, I close my hand around the bundle of metal clanging together. Finally finding the right key, I jab it into the lock a few times before it finally fits, sighing with relief when it turns. I can hear Niall breathing heavily behind me and the only thing on my mind is what he’s going to sound like on top of me. Even the thought has my palms sweating as I hurry to push the door open.
Then it hits me. I’m supposed to be a single mom. There’s supposed to be a kid living here with toys and shit a six-year-old boy would like. Not the last six issues ofVogueand the complete box set collection ofSex In The Cityon DVD.
“I don’t think—”
“That’s the problem,” Niall says, his accent growing heavy with desire. “You think too much. Way too feckin’ much.” Before I can object, he snakes a hand around me and turns the doorknob.
