Page 113 of Ruin Me Gently

Phone. Where was my—right.In my bag. Behind the counter. Along with my common sense, apparently.

I shifted back, slipping deeper into the shelves. The glow from the streetlights barely reached this far, leaving most of the store wrapped in dim shadows.

Shit.

The floor creaked with slow, unhurried footsteps.

I swallowed hard, my heartbeat climbing straight into my throat.

Another step. Closer. Was I being circled?

I backed up, further, further—

Straight into a wall.

No. Not a wall.

Heat seeped through my clothes as solid hands found my waist, caging me in without force. My pulse jackknifed, body betraying me as I felt every inch of him behind me.

Sage and sea salt.

His voice fanned against my ear. “Close your eyes, Lilith.”

My lids fluttered shut, and a slow, shuddering breath left me.

Fabric brushed against my cheek, slipping into place, plunging me into darkness. His fingers skimmed my skin, tying the knot at the back of my neck.

“We can’t,” I whispered. “Not here.”

His breath fanned across the back of my neck. “Why?”

“The cameras.”

“Hmm. Good job I know how to wipe the feed isn’t it.”

“Oh, of course you—”

He spun me, body crowding mine, pressing me back until my spine hit the bookshelf with a soft thud.

And then he was kissing me. Red-hot, searing, devouring.

A sharp gasp was swallowed between our lips as my fingers twisted in his hoodie, yanking him closer.

Fuck,the way he kissed—like he needed it as much as he needed oxygen.

He gripped my hips, fingers flexing, a low growl rumbling in his chest as his teeth scraped my bottom lip, dragging a shudder straight through me.

My head tipped back against the shelf as his mouth dragged slow, open-mouthed kisses against my jaw and throat, grip tightening at my waist.

I sucked in a breath, thighs pressing together, desperate for friction, for relief, formore.

He kept going. Lower. His lips dragged along the curve of my shoulder before tracing a path down my arm. Goosebumps followed in his wake as his mouth skimmed the inside of my wrist, pressing a lingering kiss there before continuing down, across my palm, all the way to my fingertips.

Oh my God. He wassinking.

I grabbedfor something, anything, fingers fumbling as I gripped onto the edge of the shelf.

His hands slid down my legs, fingers squeezing into my thighs before his fingers reached the hem of my skirt, pushing it higher, higher—

---