Page 88 of Fool Me

“This is incredible,” he says, walking over to the row of barrels running down the center of the space and setting down our champagne on the racks.

I join him, leaning against the barrel. “We used to sneak in here all the time—Leo would get so mad. This one time, when we were thirteen, Luca caught us having a seance down here after watchingThe Craft. Instead of ratting us out to Leo, he got Levi, and they snuck through the back and scared the shit out of us.”

“It must have been a great place to hide out.”

“That was pretty much the end of it. Leo caught wind of it and added security cameras to the exterior. Ruined all our fun.”

“Just to the outside?” he asks, his tone shifting.

“Yeah . . . I think so.” I glance around the room. It’s not well lit, but I don’t see anything.

Atlas grips my hips, lifting me and setting me on the barrel. He plants a hand on either side of me, leaning into my space. “Good, I’m sick of sharing you.”

“Lucky for you, it would seem we’re all alone at the moment.”

His lips brush mine, not giving me nearly enough. “These lips . . . I haven’t gotten to kiss them as much as I’d like today.”

I sigh because,yes. That is a feeling I can relate to. I’ve wanted his kisses for weeks, and these are so different from the first one in Tips Up. Each one connects us on a deeper level. That first one just scratched the surface.

“Somehow, this all feels new and old at the same time.”

He kisses the corner of my mouth again. One thing that hasn’t changed with our new status as a real couple: he always savors the journey to kiss me.

Since last night, his touches come frequently and freely. If we’re together, he’s touching me, and not just a hand on my hipor back. I woke up with his hand under my shirt, thumb stroking my ribs and his face buried in my neck.

Before brunch, he pushed me against the door and kissed me until my lips were swollen and I was sure it would be obvious why I was running late. After the ceremony, he came up behind me and wrapped me up in his arms, refusing to let me go until the photographer announced she needed me for pictures.

Before, I don’t think I’d ever really been touched, not like this. With Atlas, I’ll never wonder how he feels. He doesn’t hold his affection back or act like it’s an inconvenience to give me attention. He lavishes it on me because it seems to soothe him. He needs it as much as I want it.

Emotionally, he’s always given me those pieces of himself, but now I get all of him, and the chemistry between us seems to have doubled, not just physically. There’s a new certainty in him.

Every kiss saysstay. Every look saysmine. Every touch is finallyreal.

“This dress is going to be my undoing.” He pinches the fabric at my hip between his fingers rubbing it together. “I can’t stop thinking about how delicate it is. It’s elegant, while hiding nothing. So sexy.”

Heat curls low in my belly as he steps closer. I shift my legs apart so he can fit himself between them. It forces me back on the barrel until the wood slats dig into my elbows.

“Watching it glide across your skin all night has been torture. You’ve got no idea what you’ve done to me in this. I’d be that damn dress if it meant I got to feel you the way it does.”

“This dress only gets me tonight. You can touch me anytime you want.”

“Anytime I want?” He wastes no time as his hands find my knees and his lips drop to my collarbone. “That’s a dangerous statement to make.”

“Uh-huh,” I say absently, my mind racing as my dress inches higher with his hands.

“So, you’d have been okay with waking up to my hand between your legs this morning?”

“Uh-huh,” I say again, too far gone to come up with something more intelligent with his thick length heavy against my lace-covered clit.

“And if I wanted to bend you over this barrel right now and slide deep into this tight pussy?”

“Anything.”

“Fuck, Clover. You really are my lucky charm, aren’t you? So open and willing, ready to take anything I’ll give you.”

I whimper as his fingers trace the edge of the lace between my legs.

“But you know what I can’t stop thinking about—what I can’t stop regretting?”

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