“Do you want to come in?” she asks, biting her lip.
“Hell yeah,I want to.” I chuckle, tipping my forehead against hers. “But I shouldn’t.”
She trails a seductive finger down my chest, giving me a look that goes straight to my dick. “What if I want you to?” Her hand traipses lower, and she giggles when I press into her with an undeniable bulge. One firm graze of her hand, and I fucking moan like I’ve never been touched before.God, this woman.
I grip her waist and tug her closer. “You’re trouble.”
“So, punish me…”
Pinning her against the door, my kiss swallows her gasp. I pour out every ounce of lust and longing coursing through me, my mind and body screaming at me to take her up on her offer. She sighs and clutches my hips, conveying her desire for me to stay with each caress of her tongue. Thoroughly satisfied with the effect I’ve had, I pull away slowly. “The things I want to do to you are off the table until I don’t have to share you,” I whisper. “You’ll be mine, sooner or later.”
“There’s that ego,” she teases. “I was wondering when your cocky side would show back up.”
“I thinkconfidentis the word you’re looking for.”
“Naw, I’d definitely say it’s cocky…”
“I’d show youcocky”—I cant my hips, wiggling my eyebrows playfully—“but that’s off the table right now too.”
“Boy, quit!” She laughs, swatting my shoulder. “I’m going inside now.” When she turns, I whip her back around, stealing another kiss. The soft moan she sighs makes me want to live in this moment forever.
“I’ll see you Wednesday?” I ask, keeping my arms around her.
She nods, teeth sinking into her lower lip as redness flushes her rounded cheeks.
Fuck,I don’t want this night to end. I’m tempted to march her straight to the bedroom and convince her to call off this painfully chaste bet. But she’s still worried about my dedication to this, to her. Scared even. She won’t admit it, but I can see it in her eyes when she thinks she’s hiding it. And after dates like tonight, I feel so close to winning her over that I don’t want to do anything to ruin it. The lengths I’m willing to go just for a chance with this woman are growing longer by the minute. So I say goodnight, wait for the lock to click in place, and take a deep breath as I walk away from her door.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
HUNTER
“Your place or mine?” I ask, pulling out of the drive-through. We’re trying a new café for our Saturday coffee dates since Cosmic Brews is dead to me now. The best brown sugar espresso I’ve ever had isn’t worth baristas upsetting the woman of my dreams.
“Yours.” A mischievous glint in her eyes adds a charge behind the word, and my head spins.
Mine.
Hell fucking yes, please. I know she’s into me. She wouldn’t have agreed to any of this if she wasn’t. The way she keeps coming back for more, it’s easy to believe she’ll actually give us a chance after the wedding. Trevor’s still an issue, but since we don’t talk about that aspect of her dating life, I have no idea how it’s going. My choice. I don’t want the details; I’d rather pretend he isn’t a factor.
Ashlie’s hand inches up my thigh as we drive back to my apartment. I barely have time to close the front door and set down our drinks before she drags me to my leather sofa. She falls to the cushion, pulling me on top of her and pinning me with a leg wrapped around my waist. Our lips feverishly work in tandem, the swirl of her tongue sending us both into hyperdrive as it darts around the tip of mine. She tastes like pumpkin spiced passion, and I can’t get enough. The sound that slips out of me when she rolls her hips is salacious. I’m fucking drowning, and she’s the torrent filling my lungs.
I desperately want to rip everything off her, manhandle her all the way to the bedroom, and burn this down in a blaze of glory. Putting myself on ice is a task, but any kind of sex would make our arrangement that much more complicated. Getting this right is important to me. She’s worth the wait. I can power through for two more months.
She traps my lower lip between her teeth and giggles when I moan into the nonexistent space between us. I’m gonna nut in my pants if we don’t stop.
“Ash.” I pull away breathlessly. “We need… Let’s take a breather.”
“I don’t want a breather.” She teases my lips with hers, lying back with an irresistible gaze. “I want you.”
“Fuck,” I whisper, dropping my head to kiss her neck. “This wasnotthe deal, honey bear…”
“We made up the deal. We can change the conditions.” Reaching a hand under my shirt, she trails her fingertips down my side.
My brain threatens to go offline. She’s saying she wants this right now, and I damn sure want it too. But it was only a couple of weeks ago when she tried to pick a fight over some baristas. Giving in when things are trending upward won’t work out in my favor. I went years controlling this instinct to run my hands all over her. I can go two more months…unless she keeps looking at me like that.
Pulling her hand from my shirt, I drop a kiss on her forehead and sit up. She props herself on her elbows and pins me with the sexiest stare.
“Stop looking at me like that.” I chuckle, shaking my head. “I know what you’re doing…”
