Page 82 of Indulge
“Is it because of the panties?” I whisper.
A low growl erupts from his chest, and there's a twinkle in his eye.
“You’re not my keeper,” I tell him.
He backs away, never taking his dark eyes from mine.
He pauses halfway up the stairs, glancing back over his shoulder.
“No,” he says softly. “But I might be the only one who knows how to keep you from burning the whole world down.”
And just like that, he’s gone.
The silence that follows hums with tension. Rowan’s still on the couch, studying me with that infuriating half-smile.
“You really know how to wind him up,” he says.
“He started it.”
“Yeah,” he grins, “but you always finish it.”
I sink down beside him, trying to play it cool. “Are you jealous?”
“Jealous?” He laughs softly. “No. Terrified? Maybe. You could make a saint sin just by walking past.”
I roll my eyes, but my pulse is already racing.
He tilts his head, gaze softening. “You’re beautiful, you know that?”
The words land like a touch. Real. Too real.
“Don’t,” I whisper.
“Don’t what?”
“Say things like that.”
He leans in, voice low. “Why not? It’s true. And are you forgetting I had my tongue in your sweet pussy, precious?”
My throat tightens, and the air shifts. He stands and reaches out to tuck a curl behind my ear. His fingers trace down to my jaw, feather-light.
He helps me up to my feet, and I swear I forget where I am and what I’m meant to be feeling.
Our eyes meet.
My heart trips.
He’s close enough that I can feel his breath, his restraint.
“Rowan…”
“Bella…”
He leans in and I close my eyes.
“This isn’t the end of us, sweetness,” he whispers against my cheek.
And then he presses a delicate kiss there. One that will linger for the rest of the night.
