Page 15 of My Guarded Valentine

“It depends on where this goes. I’m not fully anchored here. Though I would probably visit often because I’m pretty much Hope’s godfather, I wouldn’t mind conquering the world with you.”

My mouth fell open as I struggled to figure out what to say next. This man had the most talented way to make me so discombobulated that for once in my life, I was speechless. He turned around with a bug and passed it to me. “Do you want hot chocolate? Do you want marshmallows or whipped cream?”

“Maybe we should save the whipped cream for something else.”

Buck smiled. “Now I like the sound of that.”

Chapter 12

Buck

“Let me pass you the marshmallows then,” I said, as I turned around and picked up the bag of marshmallows to pass to her. Her skin darkened, a lovely shade as I peppered her hot chocolate with marshmallows. She nodded her bangs and walked back to the living room and sat on the couch.

“Thank you, Buck,” she said.

“No problem. I’d love to serve you.” As I sat beside her, her thighs tightened and she took a quick sip of her hot chocolate. My eyes followed the curve of her breast in her lovely new shirt.

“Were you planning to interview people at O’Brien industries wearing that shirt?” I was pretty sure most people that work there were mostly okay, but there was a primitive part of me that wanted to hide her from anyone. I want Mitzi to be mine.

“No. I thought maybe I could go out on the town while I was there. But now, I'm here and obviously not going anywhere.” She laughed and easily, which I know she did when she was uncomfortable and may be turned on. “I didn’t plan to wear this right now. It’s just the first thing that I grabbed from a suitcase. It was a blind decision.” Her cheeks darkened even more. I was pretty sure this was a lie. She did the shirt for me.

“Sure.”

She laughed again as she patted my thigh, and my breathing picked up. Even a light touch from her wasn’t like magic and lit my insides anew. “You didn’t answer my question earlier.”

“Oh.”

“I’m being serious.” I turned toward her and grabbed her empty hand. “I don’t want you and I to have intimate relations, and then you regret it. I don’t want you to feel forced, of course.” I also didn’t want to tell her because the tabloids would say ferocious things about me if she went to them. I’d always been clear when I was younger that everything had to be consensual and safe, but after all these years, Mitzi was my biggest temptation.

“Okay.”

“What do you mean by okay? Is that a yes or no? I need clear and concise agreement.”

“No, that’s not what I was actually saying. I was actually saying okay. I need a moment to gather my thoughts. My current thoughts are…Are you into some really, really weird kinky sex?” she asked.

I laughed. “That is very forward of you.”

“Didn’t you say safe, sane and consensual? I just don’t want to get into anything…” She paused as she seemed to realize something. Her gaze shifted towards mine and blinked a few times like she was calculating something in her head. “Are you into weird ass sex? Like not good sex but bad weird ass sex?”

“Well, that is a loaded question. I can have vanilla sex. But when I saw the way you stopped, I can see there is a little something inside you that wants more than vanilla. Is that true?”

Her breathing picked up and her gaze shifted towards her mug. “So embarrassing.”

I reached forward and grabbed the bottom of her chin and lifted it up. “Do you need pain?” I whispered.

Underneath my fingers, I could feel her swallowing once more. She struggled to wretch out of my hold, but I held firmly on the bottom chin. She licked her lips as her eyes fluttered her closed for a few seconds. I tighten my grasp on her cheek before rubbing my thumb on her bottom lip. “Are you going to be a good girl or a bad girl?”

She sharply inhaled. I licked my lips. “Are you going to answer me?” I asked.

“I like pain. I like my hair pulled. I like a bit of praise and degradation. Just depends on the mood.”

I smiled. “Can I kiss you again?”

She swallowed and nodded. I leaned in closer and our lips connected. This time, I took my time kissing her. I could taste the faint leftovers of the hot chocolate. First, I started softly before sliding my tongue against her’s. She gasped and our tongues twisted together. I reached over and hit the mug. Mitzi pulled away, laughing. “Sorry. I still have my mug.”

She leaned over and placed it on the coffee table. Once her mug was on it, she turned back towards me. “Ready.”

“Are you ready for more?” I asked.

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