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Jeff had every right not to do something that made him uncomfortable, but the way he’d shut any sort of sexual exploration down with me still stung. That was part of why him cheating shocked the hell out of me. I thought he just didn’t enjoy sex.

But really, he just didn’t enjoy it with me.

“He said it was weird. That I needed god, but I don’t believe in god. I stopped a long time ago. It was always a problem in our relationship.”

“He didn’t deserve you.”

“Yeah.” My voice was small. “Well, he never made me come, anyway. He’d fuck me and finish and then I’d go touch myself in the shower after and think about…”

“Being fucked the way you want.”

I nodded slowly. “I want to hurt. But I want to feel good.”

“I can give you both.”

His promise made my heart skip a beat.

“I want it,” I whispered. “I want it so badly. I want you. I want whatever you want to do to me. I know my safe word. I know you’ll stop if I need you to.”

“We’ll try to go slow tonight. You’ll need aftercare.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“No,” he said. “It’s non-negotiable, Pepper. If you don’t want aftercare, then we don’t play. I know this is all new to you, but I’ve engaged in kinks like this for years. It’s not something to be flippant about. I was mentored by someone who would literally disown me if I didn’t do this the right way. After we finish, you’ll need something. If you don’t know what it is yet, that’s fine, we’ll figure it out. But I can’t leave you right afterwards, unless you plan to call someone else.”

He was serious about it. I mulled over his words, and then agreed. “Then stay the night. I couldn’t tell you what kind of aftercare I might need. I don’t even really get why it’s needed.”

“When you do things like this, you can have an endorphin drop,” he said. “It can be really intense emotionally. It can bring up a lot.”

“I’ll be fine,” I snorted. “But okay. So long as you leave before the sun rises.”

“Okay.” His nostrils flared and he released my throat, pulling me back to my feet. Before I could protest, he lifted me with an ease that made me yelp, my body now draped over his broad shoulder.

“Where’s your bedroom in this money maze?”

“Down the hall on the right.”

This was crazy. That’s all I could think as he carried me through my apartment, humming as he looked at the walls full of framed records.

He slapped my ass, drawing out a sharp gasp. “I’m no mind reader, but I can feel how fucking tense you get when you’re spiraling.”

“I’m just losing my mind.”

Salt stepped into my bedroom and took me to my bed, tossing me down on the center of the mattress. “You and me both.”

SIX

SALT

Pepper’s dressslid up her thighs, giving me a peek at her panties before she reached down to adjust it. I swatted her hand away with atsk.“No,” I said. “You won’t hide yourself from me.”

Her brown eyes widened, cheeks flaming cherry red.

For many reasons, I agreed with her. We’d lost our minds, thiswasa bad idea, and we weren’t right for each other.

But the chemistry between us was corrosive—eating us alive with every second that passed. Ineededher.

“Lift your skirt up,” I demanded.

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