Page 81 of Collision

She moans and I amgone.

I’m giddy with anticipation, holding her beneath me, my body pressed against hers with the knowledge we can’t go further, desperately seeking friction against her.

She twists her wrists in my hold as I pin her with one hand, the other travelling down her body and gripping her waist as her back arches into my touch. Every panting breath that leaves her lips spurs me further. Every touch is frantic, like teenagers in the dark, and my entire body feels like it’s surging with electricity. My fingers slip beneath her shirt again, skimming over that scar I’ve seen once before and her breathing falters.

“Stop,” she whispers. The urgency in her voice is like a knife in my gut, and I pull away, releasing her hands and pushing up so that I’m kneeling before her.

“I’m sorry.” The words leave my lips in a rush and she shakes her head.

“No.” She closes her eyes as she lies there, her hands coming down to rest on her heaving chest. “I’m sorry. It’s just - it’s just if we carry on I don’t know if I’ll stop.”

I push out a tight chuckle and she smiles slightly.

“Okay.” I move away from her and her eyes open as she pushes up on her elbows.

“So.” She blinks a few times, as if trying to banish whatever thoughts are darkening those emerald greens. “We have an early day tomorrow. We should sleep.”

“Oh yeah. My eight o’clock.” I raise a brow at her.

“Oops?” She grins as she moves to her feet, pulling down her shirt and walking away from me.

“You know I’m going to have to make up a client now.”

She pauses at the stairs up to her bed. “No, we’ll pick someone from this weeks scheduled meetings and tell Jamie they rescheduled. Simple.”

I shake my head with a sigh.

“You coming up here or?” She slips out of her jeans, pulling a strained groan from my lips.

“Put on something that covers you up and I’ll be there once I’ve successfully pictured anything other than this image right here.” I gesture to her in all of her glory and she grins, moving back to me quickly and grabbing hold of my hand.

“Sorry, Ben.” She pulls me gently and I get to my feet. “I’ll be sleeping like this tonight. You’re just going to have to deal with it.”

Whatever noise just left my lips was alarmingly close to a whimper and I breathe deeply, following the tiny tornado of a woman who has so easily pulled me in.

Does she not realise thatdealing with itis exactly what rule number one prohibits?

I strip down quickly as she climbs beneath the sheets and reaches for the bedside lamp, plunging us into darkness. Crawling in beside her, I can feel every vein in my body thrum with desire, forcing me to take a breath as she wraps her arm around me and nestles her face against my chest.

“I’ll have to leave here by six to get home and changed before work,” I whisper. “You can either come with me or I can come back and drive you in?”

Mik laughs against my chest and I feel her push her feet against my calf, the chill of her skin jolting against me slightly.

“I’m not getting up before six, Ben. And I can get to the office myself.”

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