Page 98 of Live for Me

“Who’s Em, baby?” he asked quietly. “Why did my nose deserve to get busted open twice in the same week?”

“I’m sorry,” I said again. “I didn’t realize it was you. I was—I wasn’t really awake.”

“Your sister?” He asked.

“You’re really not letting that go, huh?”

He sighed and inched closer until he could kiss my forehead. “Whatever it is that you keep trapped behind that wall with you, it wouldn’t feel so heavy if you let someone else help you carry it.”

“Is it tiring to care this much about everyone else all the time?” I asked. “Seems like it’s probably exhausting.”

“Only when the other side does everything within her power to try to convince menotto care that much all the time,” he said and moved closer until he was holding himself right above me.

“I tried to tell you that I don’t know how to do this, Utah. You had fair warning that you shouldn’t want any part of this.”

He grabbed both my wrists and forced my hands over my head before he dropped down on me so suddenly that he crushed all the air out of my body.

“You know, Memphis, I can’t wait for the day that you feel safe with me.”

“I do feel sa?—”

“Safeenough,” he interrupted, “that I can do whatever I want to fuck the sass out of you. I have no doubt that you’re going to be the kind of woman who’s way easier to get along with in those precious few moments after you’ve been put in your place.”

“My place,” I repeated. “My place isalwaysgoing to be bossing you around. Before, after, during. The timing of sex isn’t really a factor in that.”

“During,” he said right back to me. He shifted until his whole body was on mine, let go of my wrists to slide a hand around the back of my thigh so he could push my leg up around his back, and he rolled us both until I was sitting up on top of him.

“I think I would fucking love to have you boss me aroundduringsex, angel.”

His hands started on my knees and started a painfully slow journey toward my hips while his dick hardened underneath me. Even in a room that was still mostly dark, he was a sight. So much of his body was covered in scars, and he was still flawless. A small part of me wanted to ask about every single one of them while I ran my hand down the center of his chest, but a larger, more cowardly part of me was very much afraid of those stories.

I felt my cheeks heat up when I remembered that he was still waiting for me to do something. I wondered how well he could see my face because I was certain it was getting redder by the second. I had no idea what the fuck he was expecting me to do. Sure, I was a bossy disaster in our regular daily lives. Bossy during sex? Not exactly an option I was ever offered before.

“Utah, I —,” I started to say and stopped myself in sheer debilitating embarrassment.

“What feels best when I do it, angel?” He asked quietly.

“Mmm. I don’t —.”

“Don’t think about it, Memphis,” he interrupted. “It’s not difficult. It’s not complicated or embarrassing. When I touch you somewhere, it sets you on fire. Your body knows without any help from your brain. Let it tell you what it wants from me. And then tell me.”

His thumb ventured up and down the crease in my skin where my thigh met my hip the entire time that he talked just to further scramble my brain and its ability to function.

“Uh, guys,” Indy called through the door again with another set of knocks. “Listen, I don’t mean to interrupt morning sexy time, but Salem is in the chat right now.”

I was off that man as quickly as I could move to search for my underwear while Utah groaned.

“You were right,” he mumbled. “I should’ve shot Nevada when you told me to.”

I ignored him while I pulled my underwear on and considered myself good enough for Indy’s eyes with Utah’s shirt covering me from neck to knees before I rushed toward the door. Utah’s arm dropped down around the front of my body to stop me before I had the door open.

“To be continued, angel.”

He kissed the top of my head before he let go of me so I could get the door open and rush by Indy to find my computer.

CHAPTER FORTY

utah

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