Page 97 of The Most Perfect Wrong

But I can’t get lost in her—not yet. No matter how sad she is or how desperately I want her, it’s not right. My body screams at me to keep going, every part of me aching to feel her, to give her whatever she needs from me. I want to. God, I want to. To bury myself inside her. To feel every inch of her.

“Shit,” I mutter, pulling back, forcing my hands to obey. My fingers grip her waist, holding her steady as I fight for composure. I press closer into her, my resolve wavering.This is torture—pure fucking torture. My grip tightens, my jaw clenched. My desire’s evident, pressed against her where I know it feels good—for both of us.

“Ryan,” she whispers, her voice a ragged breath. Her eyes meet mine, raw and intense. “I need you.”

I squeeze my eyes shut, unable to look at the pain in hers. The last bit of strength I have pulls me back. “Coop,” I murmur, my voice thick with restraint. “You know how bad I want you. But not like this. You’ve got to talk to him first, make it official. We have to wait… just a little longer.”

“There’s nothing to wait for,” she says bitterly, shaking her head. “It’s over… God, it’s been over for so long.”

“I know. But it’s still wrong. You still live there…”

Her big brown eyes lock onto mine. “That’s never stopped him.”

True.

She steps closer. “If it’s so wrong, why does it feel like the only thing in my life that’s actually right? Why does this feel like the one thing that makes sense when everything else is falling apart?”

She’s not wrong. It does feel right. It always has.

Her hands slide down my chest, wrapping around my waist, her touch scorching every vein. “Huh? Why has everything aligned so perfectly for us? Every bad moment, every mistake led to this—us, right here, right now.” Her gaze intensifies, her grip tightening. “If this is so wrong, it’sthe most perfect wrongI’ve ever known.”

My eyes meet hers. “I know.” I swallow hard. “But two wrongs have never made a right.” Gently, I release her grip on me and step back, lowering myself onto the bed. I take a deep, steadying breath, my chest tightening as my eyes drink her in. Jesus, she’s something. And I’m half-shocked I’m denying myself the chance to have her.

She tips her head back against the wall, a single tear slipping down her cheek. Fuck. It feels like a kick to the balls seeing her like this—hurt, vulnerable. And now I’ve just added to her pain with rejection.

“Brad and I are done,” she whispers, her voice trembling but sure. She looks at me with a determination in her eyes. “You want to know how done we are?”

She walks to where her purse is on the floor, pulling out her phone with shaky hands. “You want to know how much he doesn’t care about me? Listen to this message he sent me last night.”

She swipes her screen and starts reading, her voice wavering. “Maybe this is just who you are, right, baby?” She glances up at me before continuing. “The whore who’s been passed around by assholes and now can’t even be a real partner because she’s too busy running from her own shit. Look at yourself. Every time things get tough, you bail. You’re too selfish and broken to handle a real relationship, and it’s pathetic. You don’t even have the decency to respond. You’ll be sorry, soon enough.”

I suck in a breath. I cannot fathom calling any woman a whore, let alone threatening her.I swear to God…

“We’re over, Ryan. He doesn’t even deserve to know.” She tosses me her phone. “Here. Read the latest one I woke up to this morning.”

I hold the phone in my hand, not wanting to read it. “Go on,” she urges me.

“Coop, I don’t want to.”

“Ryan.” She meets my gaze, her eyes glassy. “Read it.”

I take a deep breath, my stomach knotting as I glance down at the screen. “Let’s be real, Cooper—you’re just used up and washed out at this point… Hell, I got bored of you, had to go looking somewhere else. That’s what you’re good for, right? I mean, you think Ryan wants you for anything other than your—” I stop, my throat closing up, unable to say the rest out loud. Anger surges through me as I clench the phone in my hand.

Cooper walks over to me, grabbing the phone. Her voice shakes as she continues reading. “For anything other than yourbig tits and tight little pussy? He’s like every other guy—you’re just a good fuck, maybe a halfway decent blow job, if that. Get it through your head, Coop: no one’s ever gonna want you for more than that. If you’re with him, don’t even bother coming home. You’re damaged goods at this point.” She tosses her phone to the ground.

I’ll kill him.

“You see?” The hurt in her eyes is so deep, it cuts me just looking at her. “I never want to see him again. We’re done. We’re fucking done.”

Her hand flies to her ring, tugging it off her finger with frantic determination. She chucks it across the room, the sharp sound of metal hitting the wall echoes through the room—evidence of its finality. “He doesn’t deserve…”

I’m on my feet before she can finish, crossing the space between us in seconds. My mouth crashes into hers, cutting her off, completely submitting myself to her. Fuck Brad. Fuck his bullshit. He’s going to tell her not to come home? Yeah, he’s dead to me.

I kiss her with a new kind of urgency, a desire that’s been building for ten goddamn months. Our mouths meet again and again as my hands explore her body. I slide my palms up her back, fumbling with her bra until the clasp gives way. The straps slip over her shoulders, and I toss it aside. Breaking our kiss, my gaze drops to her bare tits, and I soak in every detail, my heart racing as I take her in.

I glide my hand up, sweeping my thumb across her plush skin, her nipple hardening beneath my touch. I circle it lightly before rolling it between my fingers, pinching just enough to make her gasp as her nails dig into my shoulders. The sound sends a shudder of electricity through me.

I skim my lips across hers, building a heat between us that’s sure to explode. Her hand cups the back of my neck, pulling mecloser as she presses her lips firmly to mine. Our tongues tangle as I kiss her harder, deeper, with a desperation that fuels us both. She moans into my mouth, the sound whipping through me like wildfire.

---