Page 77 of Big & Bossy

Chapter 36

Mandy

Itried convincing myself that I was truly done. But nothing was ever done with Jackson.

“Please,” he begged, crossing the room and caging me in again. I could have stepped out the door. I could have backed away, but my body was screaming at me to stay, to hear him out. I hated myself for it. “Please, Mandy. Give me a day. Twenty-four hours. Don’t tell them yet.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not ready for it to be over,” he breathed, one hand lifting to cup my cheek, his thumb swiping at the stray tear that broke free. Every part of him vibrated with worry, with fear, and although I didn’t show it on the outside, it was eating me up on the inside. It was tempting me, leaving me in a paralyzing situation where I didn’t know which way I wanted to go. “I waited ten years for you. Can you please at least give me one more day? One more night?”

“I can’t handle one more day,” I whispered, my voice breaking as I tried to turn my head away. “This hurts. You’re hurting me every second that you’re making me stay in this with you.”

“I know, princess,” he sighed. His forehead fell to mine, his breath warming the air between us. “I’m so sorry for that. But please. At least… at least give me tonight. An hour. Anything. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry, for everything. I’ve ruined it, I know, but just… please.”

He knew exactly what he was doing. He knew he was breaking me down, slithering his way inside and patching up old wounds, daring to stop the bleeding while giving me new ones. It hurt just the same. “Jack…” I breathed, barely able to justify letting him keep me in here, let alone what he was asking for.

“Let’s just… pretend,” he said. His lips pressed against my cheek, my jaw. One strong hand snaked around my waist, fingers digging into satin-covered skin, pulling my body toward him and away from the door. I wasn’t sure I had the will to fight him anymore, but part of me felt like he’d masterminded that. “Can you do that for me, princess? Pretend, like you did before?”

“Like I did before?” I scoffed, pushing gently against his chest as he dipped lower, lips meeting my neck, my collarbone. That wasn’t pretend. I wanted to scream it, but the words wouldn’t form.

“Like you did before,” he repeated, his body shuddering as his hips pressed against mine. “Let me have you.”

Shit. Why did it feel so good to hear him say that?

His hand roamed lower, over the curve of my ass and cupped the back of my thigh as his mouth followed suit, down between my breasts where fabric met flesh. “Let me taste you.”

I couldn’t stop my hands from burying themselves in his hair, couldn’t keep my body from reacting to his touch. “Okay,” I whispered, wishing I’d kept that one word to myself, wishing I had more control over my own heart. “Okay.”

His mouth left my breasts as he cupped both of my thighs, lifting me in a heartbeat. He buried his face in the crook of my neck, teeth and tongue nipping and licking at the soft skin there as he turned us both around. Two steps and my rear hit the edge of the desk, his hips slotting so easily between them, the sensations from his mouth dragging little whimpers and moans from me.

I nearly lost my mind when he dropped to his knees.

Fingers grazed across my thighs, pushing the satin fabric up. He hooked onto the sides of my panties at the same time he planted a kiss on the inside of my leg. “Lift up, princess.”

I lifted my ass, relishing in the feeling of him pulling the frilly lace down my skin. Every inch was maddening as the butterflies and warmth spread in my gut, that depraved, traitorous part of me reacting to his touch alone. His tongue dragged along my inner thigh, growing ever closer to the spot I wanted him to touch most.

“Tell me what you want,” he mumbled. His teeth sunk into my flesh, hard enough to make me squeal.

“You,” I said, the word feeling too much like the truth. I knew damn well there would always be a part of me that genuinely felt that in my bones, a part of me that would fold to him too easily. I’d meant it when I said I could move away. Just knowing he was in the same city as me was too tempting if I found him again. I needed to get away. “I want you.”

“Where?” He chuckled, his breath tickling the little bits of peach fuzz around the apex of my thighs. “Be specific, princess.”

I groaned in frustration and grabbed a handful of his hair. “You know where.” I tried to pull his mouth closer, tried to get him to go where I needed him, but he resisted.

“Say it and I’ll give it to you,” he purred.

I narrowed my eyes at him and shifted my ass on the desk, pushing myself into him. “Give it to me anyway.”

He gave a muffled chuckle as his lips parted, his tongue reaching out and gliding across my folds almost too gently. His strong hands wrapped around my thighs, lifting them up onto his shoulders, and with myself laid bare from the waist down before him, he dug into his feast.

Wet warmth lapped against my most sensitive part. I leaned back on my elbows, releasing the strands of his hair, and watched as he lost himself in me. The little whimpers I made were involuntary, too easily slipping past my lips without a second thought.

Through the two undone buttons at the top of his dress shirt, I could see a hint of the panda on the left side of his chest. My breath caught in my throat, and I tucked my legs in a little tighter around his head to block the view. It’s not your fault he got that tattoo. This is for the best.

My head began to swim as I tipped it back, the pleasure building in my gut. I’d never been eaten out like this, never had such a visceral reaction to it. I forced myself to breathe through it, to not let the way his mouth formed the words ‘I love you’ against me sway me any further. I could just have sex with him. Just sex, and then be done.

My body squirmed as his fingers slid inside, curling up at just the right spot. Arms shaking, I lowered myself further, laying down fully on the desk and letting him have his way. At least then I wouldn’t have to look, wouldn’t have to resist the temptation he embodied?—

---