Page 65 of Property of Stone
She couldn’t afford any more bad decisions. They had already cost her enough.
When he deepened the kiss and continued to plunder her mouth, her body whispered,“What’s one more mistake?”and melted against him.
While his hands were fisted in the hair on both sides of her head, keeping her right where he wanted her, it wasn’t necessary. She wasn’t going anywhere. It would be impossible even if she tried, since she had not one functional bone left in her body. Not freaking one. They had all disintegrated into liquid.Hewas what was holding her up.
His strong hands, his hard chest, his hard…everything.
His words whispered across her lips. “Wanna make another deal with you.”
“I know where this is going.” She needed to resist.
“Want my bed back.”
Oh, was that it? No deal needed. “I can take the couch.”
“With you in it.”
Her brain glitched, causing her to blink up at him while rubbing her face where his thick beard had tickled and scratched her skin. Maybe she imagined that last part. Maybe it was wishful thinking on her part.
Wait. No. That wasnotwhat she wanted!
“Did I…did you…”
It would be stupid to get involved with him—sexually or otherwise—beyond their initial deal.
He dipped his head down and locked gazes with her. “You heard what I said. Gonna assume by your reaction to that kiss, you ain’t totally against that deal.”
Any euphoria still lingering from that toe-curling kiss was now completely gone and her spine had returned. “And you’d be wrong. That wouldn’t be smart on my part. I need to do better for Wren. Sharing a bed with you just down the hall from our kids wouldn’t be showing them a good example.”
She needed to pull away, put space between him, but his grip on her hair kept her close.
Stone snorted. “Think Sunny don’t know about sex?”
“You explained the birds and the bees to her already?” She was only ten!
His eyebrows pinched together. “Birds and bees? Fuck no. Her whole life she’s been around people with no problem showin’ their whole ass. Includin’ her mother.”
“You, too?”
“And me. She knows sex is a part of life. Don’t mean she’s allowed to have it ’til she’s thirty, but she ain’t dumb about it. No reason to keep her in the dark ‘bout somethin’ that’s parta human nature.”
She pushed a hand against his chest. “Can you release me?”
“I can, but we ain’t fuckin’ done here.” His dark eyes traced every line of her face before dropping to her chest.
When one side of his mouth pulled up, she knew exactly why.
Once again, her body betrayed her. It tried to convince her that giving him what he wanted wouldn’t be a bad thing. Her brain was screaming otherwise.
Her ex-husband not only broke her heart but tried to break her.
She had no doubt the man offering himself up to her was far,farmoredangerous than Vic.
Taking care of his daughter was one thing. “Taking care” of Sunny’s father was quite another.
“Ain’t gotta be a big thing. Could simply be a mutual scratchin’ of itches.”
“If you have an itch, I’d suggest going to a doctor. It could be a contagious rash and you wouldn’t want it to spread.”
