Page 53 of Catching the Mistletoe

“Okay then, as in....”

“As in, I’ll fuck you.”

Holy shit. My knees went weak at the thought, and I had to swallow before I could speak. “Right. If you’re sure.” My voice was hesitant, tremulous, and I cursed under my breath. He was finally giving me what I wanted and here I was, checking if he really meant it.

His eyes glittered as he leaned down to brush a light kiss against my lips. “I’m sure.”

“Okay. Good. That’s good.” This was really happening. Oh, my god.

“But we do this my way.”

My eyes narrowed. “If your way is tying me to the bed and railing me until I see stars, then I’m totally here for it.”

He huffed out a laugh. “Jesus Christ, Arabella.”

I giggled, feeling so light and free, suddenly. “Seriously, though, what is your way?”

“We’re going to take our time, get to know each other properly, before we jump into bed.”

I frowned at that and there was a good chance I looked like a petulant child. Which, you know, made me frown some more. Smiling gently, Mack reached up and ran his finger between my brows. “Don’t you trust me?”

He had me there. “I do.”

“Then trust me to do this right.”

“I mean, I do...it’s just...” How did I say I was so horny and desperate, I wasn’t sure how long I could wait.

As though he could read my mind, he cupped my cheek and brushed his thumb over my lower lip. “The waiting will be fun.”

That had my heart skipping a few beats. “So it’s like, we’ll practice, or something?”

“Something like that.”

I wasn’t entirely sold on this idea, but Mack was smiling down at me and my body was still humming from his kisses and, yeah, I was good. “Okay.”

“Now, let’s go back to the party before Evelyn sends out a search party.”

“Kiss me one more time, before we go.”

The low banked heat in his eyes flared and I expected him to kiss me, hard and fast, like before. But he didn’t. Instead, he pulled me gently into his arms, cradled my face, and lowered his mouth to mine. It was slow and sweet and filled with so much promise, it left me breathless.God, Mack, what are you doing to me?

When he raised his head, I had to blink a few times to focus, and he laughed softly, before taking my hand and leading me back out to the ballroom. As we took our seats, I felt so light and happy, with Mack’s arm resting on the back of my chair and the promise of...something on the horizon.

CHAPTER21

Mack

Arabella was like a different person when we took our seats back at the table. She was relaxed and glowing, her eyes sparkling, her lips curved in a soft smile. Sexy as fuck.

“Everything okay?” Evelyn asked her, eyeing us both with a knowing look.

“Sure is.” Arabella blushed a little with her reply. Also sexy as fuck.

Connor took one look at us, swiped his beer glass from the table, pushed his chair back, and walked off. Yeah, that felt good. Not gonna lie. The idea of these fuckers laying hands on Arabella had my blood boiling. Even though that wasn’t what had made me change my mind, it was a very pleasant side benefit. No, it wasn’t jealousy. It was the pain in her eyes when she’d spun away from me that was burned into my brain. At that moment, I knew I couldn’t deny her anymore. I wasn’t strong enough. Was it a mistake? Yeah, most likely. Was I going to be cut to pieces when this was all done? No doubt. But I was committed now. I’d deal with the consequences later.

Feeling her eyes on me, I turned to look at her, my eyes narrowing at the wicked glint I saw there. I was about to ask her what she was thinking when I felt her hand sliding up my thigh under the table.Fuck, Arabella, don’t do this to me. Not here. Arching a brow, I covered her hand before it got high enough to embarrass me. “You good?”

“I’m great.” She gave my leg a squeeze before pulling her hand away. “Just enjoying the night.”

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