Page 69 of An Uphill Battle

I scrunch my nose. “People actually enjoy thatshit?”

She laughs, again. “No, not really. It’s more outta necessity, or tradition, orsomething.”

“Gotcha. Well, if it’s something you and Myla Rose both want, us menfolk canendure.”

“Really?” She bats her Amazon eyes at me, and I suck in a sharp breath through myteeth.

“Don’t you know I’d do anything foryou?”

“Aren’t you a smooth talker, Mr. Collins.” She’s only joking, but I like that she thinks I’m smooth. Maybe one day, I’ll be smooth enough to landher.

“So, which games youwant?”

“My favorite is the belly measure. It’s fun to see how crazy some people’s guessesare.”

Her enthusiasm is so refreshing. Azalea just has this thirst for life, and a take no prisoners approach to quenching that thirst. Fucking love it…fucking loveher.

“So, how’s this game played?” I ask, even though it’s fairly obvious. For real, I just want her arms around me, and if that makes me a dog… then,woof.

“Hang on and I’ll show you,” Azalea says, before darting to the hall bathroom. She returns with a roll of toilet paper and after eyeing me for a few minutes, she tears off a length. “So, you have to guess how much toilet paper it’ll take to wrap around the mama-to-be’s babybump.”

Azalea steps into me, wrapping the tissue around my midsection. “Like this.” Her voice comes out all hoarse and throaty, andfuck.

I draw her closer to me, until we’re flush, toe-to-toe. She blinks up at me from under her long lashes. “What’re we doin’?Drake?”

I know what she’s asking. We’ve been tiptoeing around this our attraction to each other for years now, and aside from a kiss in our teens, we’ve never acted on it. But, God, it’s more than just the physical with Azalea. It’salwaysbeen more. “Anything.” I press my lips to hers in a chaste kiss. “Everything,” I murmur before diving back in, pulling her bottom lip into my mouth. She sighs, long and low, and I greedily swallow thesound.

“This doesn’t mean anything,” Azalea moans, as she pulls my shirt up and over myhead.

“No, this meanseverything,” I counter before sliding my fingers into the space between the buttons of her shirt and tugging, sending the buttons flying, revealing the pale pink lace bra she’s wearing beneath. “Goddamn,girl.”

My lips drop to her collar bone—so delicate and dainty. Making my way from one shoulder to the other, I pepper the tops of her breasts with hot, open mouthed kisses. Every drag of my lips across her skin sends me flying… so soft andsupple.

I work my way up to that space where her neck and shoulder meets and nip at the skin there, savoring the peaches and cream taste of her. I skim my fingers up and down her waist, my touch feather light. Leaning farther into my touch, Azalea hisses out a soft, low moan.If I could bottle thatsound…

Before I even have a chance to free her breasts from the pink lace concealing them, she’s flicking open the button to my jeans. “Slow down, Bit. There’s no rush.” My voice sounds like gravel, hard and rough with want andneed.

“No, Drake.” Her voice is soft, but just as full of want as mine. “I need you.Now,” she tells me before pushing me back. My range of motion’s restricted by the denim pooling at my ankles, and I go down hard, landing with my ass on the floor and my back pushed up against thecouch.

Azalea doesn’t give me any time to complain. No, my girl climbs right into my lap, primed and ready, and fuck if it isn’t the best feeling in the entireworld.

With my jeans around my ankles and her skirt bunched around her waist, Azalea lowers herself down onto me, her hips rocking and rolling. Her every movement blowing mymind.

Being inside Azalea Barnes is as close to Heaven as I’ll be, and she feels so,sogood. With every sound, every movement, she’s erasing the memory of every woman that was here before her. Which is just fucking fine, because in my mind, they were all placeholders for her, and certainly not a single one could a hold a candle to this wild, blondebeauty.

Jolts of awareness run through me when she tips her head back, causing her long locks to tickle the skin of my thighs, and I know I’m close. Fisting that pretty hair, I give her all that I got, because, damnit, if I’m going over the edge, she’s going withme.

Sated and spent, Azalea collapses against my chest. “Thatwas…”

“A mistake. Oh, my Jesus. A huge mistake.” She tries to scramble off my lap, but I hold her closer, gently rubbing herback.

“Not a damn thing about tonight was a mistake. This was a long time coming, Bit, and I wouldn’t change athing.”

“No, we shouldn’t have done that. No, no, no.” She’s mumbling and muttering to herself, and I’m just not havingit.

“Azalea,listen—”

“NO! You listen! You just fucked me, without a condom and you wanna act like there’s nothingwrong?”

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