Page 64 of Scandalous Lover

Sam

Naomi swings open the door wearing a sexy red lingerie set that leaves very little to the imagination.

I rush into the room, pushing her inside and closing the door quickly. “What are you doing? I could have been anyone.”

She just laughs. “No one else is coming up here.”

“I could have been your brother.”

She huffs and rolls her eyes. “If that asshole was knocking on my door, I would have known it deep in my bones and probably gone to hide somewhere.”

That catches my attention. “Why are you so afraid of him?”

Naomi’s eyes raise until she’s got me pinned in her piercing gaze. “I could ask you the same question.”

I open my mouth to answer but the words stick in my throat. The last thing I want to do right now is admit the truth of my situation. Not when she’s standing there, looking at me like I’m worth something. “What do you mean?” is all I manage to stammer out.

She just waves her hand at me. “Never mind. I don’t want to talk about my brother right now.”

Her gaze falls to the floor, and she turns from me, walking over to the far wall where her suitcase is still splayed open and bursting with colorful articles of clothing. She lifts a pair of tiny pink shorts and bends over to start putting them on.

My reaction is automatic, instinctual.

I walk swiftly across the room, catch one of her wrists in my hand, and stop her before she can get her foot into the shorts. She gasps softly in surprise, almost losing her balance. I step in closer and steady her with my body pressed behind hers.

She straightens until she’s got the full length of her smooth back pressed to my chest.

For a long moment, we just breathe together like that.

I don’t remember telling my hand to slide from her wrist up to her shoulder. Or telling my fingers to trail softly over her skin, leaving a spray of goosebumps in their wake. Her breath catches when I graze my fingertips over her collarbone. I’m sure mine would catch as well—if I was breathing.

She doesn’t stop me, so I continue my silent exploration of her nearly naked body, letting the softness of her curves speak to me in braille as I close my eyes and let myself enjoy the feel of her.

When my hand reaches her hip, I tilt my head down so my lips rest on the top of her shoulder, allowing my tongue to escape just enough to get the taste of her in my mouth. I feel her feel it. Feel her suck in a breath and lean into me just a bit harder. I tighten my grip on her hip to hold her to me.

I can’t do what I want to do, which is throw her on the bed and claim every inch of her body. I can’t take that kind of risk…

But what if all this holding back is the real risk? What if I lose my chance with her forever? Losing her seems like theworst idea, even if breaking it off was my plan not ten minutes ago.

“Sam,” she whispers, and I realize my grip on her hip is steadily tightening until my fingers are digging in, not wanting to let go. I relax my hand and feel her relax in my arms.

“We don’t have to do anything. I know you’re nervous,” she whispers, causing my eyes to drop closed in shame.

She’s not wrong. I’m nervous as hell.

But now that she’s in my arms, I can’t hear my logical thoughts over the sound of her soft breathing.

“Do you know how long I’ve waited to have my hands on your body again?” I ask.

She nods, and I smile. “I guess you do, don’t you.”

“I think about you all the time,” she whispers. “At first, it was like I was obsessed. I watched the video every night and pretended you were there with me.”

Her words hit the deepest parts of me, and I nearly buckle at the knees. If only I could tell her I was feeling the same. That I still am.

But as soon as I say those words aloud, as soon as I tell her how badly I want this, there won’t be any way to hold back. So I try to keep my response surface level. “I’ve never been much of a porn guy.”

“But…” she responds, and I can hear the smile on her lips.

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