Page 130 of Melted by a Man

I raised my eyebrows as I pulled back to rake my gaze over her little outfit.

“I don’t think it was enough, actually,” I leaned down to kiss her neck, still feeling the rush of finally,finallybeing able to hold her and kiss her whenever I wanted, “We should go home and have you redo your dance, though.”

Jacqueline’s brows pinched together as her beautiful frown pulled at her lips, “Oh. Was it bad? Marco helped me practice it for hours yesterday—”

I placed a finger over her delicious lips and shook my head, smirking at the sight of her hopelessly confused eyes staring up at me.

My Jacqueline, who thrived on direct communication, widened her eyes when I leaned down to whisper, “I want you to give me a private dance, love.” Her breath picked up when I slid my hand up her arm, over her shoulder, to tangle in the soft strands of her dark hair, “Do you have any idea how hard it is to conceal what you’re doing to me, in front of everyone here?”

Her dark eyes glanced down between us, and I used my hand that wasn’t in her hair to subtly adjust my shorts so it wasn’t painfully obvious how I felt about Jacqueline dressing up as one of my old celebrity crushes.

“Oh,” Jacqueline blushed, raising a hand to cover her smile as she looked at me with a sparkle in her eyes, “Yeah. Let’s go.”

“Do you understand what I’m saying?” I asked as we started to follow our friends off the pitch. My hands didn’t let her step too far away from me, though. One was busy cupping her arse.

“I think I got it,” Jacqueline laughed as she reached around to pinch mine in retaliation.

“Are you positive? I could be clearer if I need to.” I offered as she laced my fingers with hers.

“I think you’re being crystal clear,” she giggled before snuggling against my chest, “You should shower, though.”

I chuckled as I led us off the grass, leaning down close to her ear, “I will. Then I want to watch you dance while slowly peeling those clothes off,” I pinched the fabric of her tube top, grinning like the Cheshire cat when I both felt and watched her shiver against me, “I want to kiss every inch of your skin, before sinking into you—officially—as your boyfriend.”

Jacqueline smirked, turning to face me, our lips centimeters apart, “Why does referring to you as my ‘boyfriend’ feel so childish?”

I pecked her lips with a quick kiss as she led us toward my bike, our coworkers were all gathered near Zaid’s car as they chatted without us.

“Probably because we’re much more than that, love.” I smiled down at her, “We’re partners. Lovers. I’m yours, and you’re mine. There’s nothing casual about it, right?”

Jacqueline’s lips slowly pulled back into a wide smile, before tucking her lips between her teeth in that nervous tell I adored, “Right.”

ChapterTwenty-Nine

JACQUELINE

I closedthe door behind me gently, not wanting to wake up anyone else on this floor. I was surprised I could walk straight, considering everything he put me through last night. And technically this morning. I turned, ready to walk to the elevator, when I hesitated.

Should I leave him my number?

The impulsive thought made butterflies erupt in my stomach, but no, that wasn’t the deal. He was leaving later today, anyway.

So I forced one foot in front of the other until I could ignore the invisible tether in my chest that tried to tug me back. The ache that built every step that took me away from him.

This chapter was closing for the handsome stranger and me, but I was determined to believe that somewhere out there, the universe was starting another.

* * *

Much to Leo’s disappointment,before he got into the shower, I ripped that silly outfit off of my body as fast as possible. When we arrived at his apartment, we weren’t kissing and stumbling into each other. We weren’t frantic with our need to taste and feel one another. I wondered if it was because we had some comfort now. Security in the fact that we would satiate the other’s needs like this.

“Did I not make myself clear earlier?” Leo’s hands came up from behind me, halting my movements before I could bend down and slide out of this skirt, “I wanted a proper strip tease.”

“I—” I hesitated, “What if I did that another time? In a different outfit?” This skirt felt awful. Something about the fabric was horrible against my skin.

“Fine, join me in the shower, then,” Leo chuckled, as he headed toward the bathroom. He gave me one last smile as he pulled his sweaty jersey over his head and stepped out of view. The sound of water running echoed in the space.

I stepped out of my itchy skirt and tube top, stripping out of my thong and bra just as he instructed. His room was warm, allowing me to stand there freely to tie my hair up in a bun and soak in the joy of this moment, before following after him.

Leo was already under the stream, his face tipped back as he already lathered his shampoo, and used the same lather to scrub his face.

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