Page 53 of here

His fingers dig into my skin, making my pulse jump. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what? Don’t go find someone who actually wants me?”

“Fuck.” He leans in, his breath hot against my ear. “I just said that I want you. I want to bend you over, spank that cute ass, and fuck you until you scream my name, and there’s no mistaking who you belong to.”

Heat pools low in my belly. “Then why don’t you?”

“I told you, not like this.” His other hand comes up, brushing a strand of hair from my face with a tenderness that makes my chest ache. “When I fuck you, and trust me cupcake, it’s a when, not an if, it’s not going to be some quick, dirty bathroom hookup.”

My mouth is suddenly dry. “No?”

“No.” The pad of his thumb skims my lower lip, and my pulse stutters as I fight the need to flick my tongue over it to taste him. “When I fuck you, it’s going to be in a bed. With silk sheets and candlelight and all that romantic shit you pretend not to care about.”

As if. “You think you know me so well.”

“I do.”

“Please.”

He turns his head, his lips hovering inches from mine, and my heart goes crazy against my ribs like it’s trying to force me forward and close the distance.

Wait!

I press my palm against his chest. “No kissing.”

“What?”

“You heard me.” My fingers curl into his shirt. I haven’t had any mint yet, and I need to brush my teeth. “No kissing.”

“Funny rule for someone who was just begging me to fuck her.”

“I don’t beg.”

A devilish smile spreads on his lips.

I turn my face away. “I mean it. No kissing.”

“Why?” His fingers trail down my neck. “Afraid you might like it too much?”

What if I do? It’s a line I can’t uncross. “No.”

“Liar.” His lips skim my ear, light as a whisper. “You’re scared shitless, aren’t you, cupcake?”

I shove at his chest. “Don’t psychoanalyze me.”

“Then don’t lie to me.” His hand roams my thigh. “Tell me the real reason.”

“Because—” My breath catches as his fingers slip under my dress. “Because kissing makes it real.”

“And this isn’t real?” His touch burns on my skin. “What we’re doing right now?”

“This is just… this is nothing.”

“Keep telling yourself that.”

“Fuck you.”

“We’ve established that’s the plan.” His fingers trace patterns. “Just no kissing.”

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