Page 36 of Trustfall

“Oh shit. That girl can cook.”

“It’s how she lures you in.”

“Interesting.”

“You’re scared of her, aren’t you?”

“Fucking terrified.” He shakes his head and shudders. “She made me the best sandwich I’ve ever had in my life and threatened to cut off my dick in the span of five minutes today.”

I smirk before his words sink in. Why did Allie make him a sandwich? Was he here all day? A pang of jealousy creeps up my spine, and an accusing tone slips out of my mouth.

“She made you a sandwich?”

“Oh, right. That’s the second surprise. There was some damage to the flooring from the leak, so I was here all day replacing a few of the floorboards,” he explains. “Allie took pity on me and made me lunch. Before she threatened bodily harm if I ever hurt you,” he adds.

My shoulders sag in instant relief. He was here to fix the floor, not because of Allie. Then it hits me—he fixed my floors. He spent the whole day here. Did he take the day off work? And on top of that, he even helped make dinner for me.

It feels like it's a million degrees in here. I wonder if Allie left the heat on. Sweat beads on the back of my neck, and I realize I've been silent for a while.

“Are you okay?” Luke asks. “You look a little pale.”

“Yes—yeah. I’m great,” I reply.

He doesn’t seem convinced, but he lets it go. He attempts to make small talk for a few minutes before I unceremoniously blurt out everything that has been running through my mind since I walked through the door.

“What are we doing here? Is this a date? Or are we just hanging out? Because I thought maybe we were just doing things. Like under-the-pants things. Or was that just the one time? Anyway, I come home, and you’re here, and there’s dinner, which seems like a date. And that’s fine, except that I don’t date. I haven’t in a while, that is. Honestly, I’m not sure I want to. But I really liked what happened last night and wouldn’t mind if it happened again.”

Luke eyes me up and down and then exhales a long breath as if he has been holding it the entire time I was speaking.

“Sorry, that was a lot. Can you please say something?”

“Emory.” He looks straight at me.

“Yeah?”

“This can be whatever you want it to be. I don’t usually date, and I wasn’t planning on labeling this, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't meant to be a date. I just wanted to show you how I feel.” He pushes his plate aside and sets his napkin on the table. “God, Emory, you drive me crazy. Believe me, I wish I weren't interested in you. I wish I didn't flinch every time my phone buzzes, thinking Nate found out about us. But I've given up trying to fight the hold you have on me.” He stands up, towering over me, his eyes darkening. He places his palms flat on the table in front of me and bends down, his face inches from mine. “And I liked last night. I want more of it. I want everything—under-the-pants, no-pants, all of it. If I had my way, you'd never wear pants again. Does that clear things up for you?”

“Yes,” I breathe out.

“Yes?”

“Yeah, this was great.” I gesture around me. “Amazing, actually. But—”Just be honest with him,my inner voice shouts. “My last relationship was messy. I’m not ready for anything serious yet.”

There's a fire in his eyes as if I've upset him. This is exactly what I was worried about—getting into another relationship based on fear and manipulation. But his expression softens quickly, and he's back to himself again within seconds.

“I told you,” he says. “It can be whatever we want it to be.”

I sigh. “Also, it's probably best if Nate doesn't know about this. I want to make sure we're on the same page. It's not that he gets to decide what I do with my life, but you know how he can blow things out of proportion. Let's keep it quiet for now, except for Allie.”

He nods in agreement, but then his eyes hood, and he grabs the edge of my chair, shifting it so I’m more accessible. “Just so we're clear,” he says, his hand gliding up my leg. “We're not going to tell him you can't stay quiet when I touch you.”

I shake my head.

“And we’re not going to tell him what a good girl you can be when you want something—real bad.” He pushes my legs apart, and I shake my head again. “And we’re definitely not going to tell him what you sound like when you come apart for me.” He cups my core over my scrub pants, my pussy throbbing almost to the point of pain.

“Luke.”

“I know, baby. I know what you need, and I’m gonna make you come so good.”

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