Page 46 of Knockout (Whiskey Dolls 2)

I lifted a hand in a pitiful wave, my skin feeling like it was burning a deep, dark scarlet. “Uh...hi.”

“Are you two kissin’ or tryin’ to kill each other?” Tom asked. “Just wanna know what I’ll need to tell the cops if one of you show up dead.”

“Um, well. . .”

Jude stepped in to answer when it became obvious that words had failed me. “We’ll have to let you know. You guys have a good night.”

With that, he turned, still holding on to me for dear life, and moved down the hall to his apartment.

20

Layla

“Ican walk, you know,” I said as Jude jostled me around in the mad dash toward his apartment.

He froze mid-step and looked down at me with an expression on his face I could only describe as leery. I understood that look when he spoke next. “If I put you down, are you going to freak out and take off running?”

Okay, so I had to give the man credit, he was alotmore intuitive than I’d expected. To say I was shaken from what had just gone down between us would have been a serious understatement. I hadn’t thought him punching Bax in the face could have possibly led to...that. It was as if the buildup I’d felt in the laundry room last week had finally come to a head, and when it did, it had exploded into something neither one of us had been able to control. I couldn’t say I hadn’t wanted that kiss. I couldn’t say I regretted it either, because I absolutely didn’t. But it had knocked my world off balance, and my head was spinning, trying to right everything once more.

While there’d been a part of me that considered doing just that, an even bigger part of me was intent on staying to see how this was going to play out. “No. I won’t take off running,” I answered on a whisper.

I could feel the hesitation in the way he held his body taut before finally releasing me, but he slid me down the front of him so that every inch of me brushed against every inch of him, reigniting the fire inside of me that had been reduced to a low smolder.

Without a word, he took my hand in his, locking his fingers securely around my palm, and led me the rest of the way to his apartment. I had to admit, I’d been more than mildly curious what his place looked like, but if I thought this was my chance to finally scope it out, I would have been wrong, because the moment we cleared the door, Jude slammed it closed and threw the lock, then he was on me once more, picking up right where we left off after the interruption. Only this time, I didn’t freeze in shock at the first graze of his lips across mine. No,thistime, I was an active participant from the very start.

Before I knew it, my back was against another wall, only this time instead of scooping me up into his arms, his hands slid across my body possessively, traveling down my ribs, his fingers skimming the sides of my breasts before settling on my waist and fisting the material of my shirt as the passionate kiss turned into a fight for dominance. I lifted my arms over my head in an invitation for him to remove my camisole, and he didn’t hesitate to rip it off.

“Fuck me,” he grunted as he pulled back and dragged his gaze down my chest to the lacy pale pink push-up bra I’d been wearing. “Knew you’d be perfect.”

Lightning bolted through my blood, filling my veins and bursting from the tips of my toes and fingers—even the ends of my hair—when he ripped the cup of my bra down and bent, sucking the turgid peak deep into his mouth on a strong pull.

“Oh God,” I groaned, throwing my head back and reaching up to fist his hair. “Jude.” What he was doing felt better than anything any other man had ever done for me, but I neededmore. Releasing his hair, I raked my nails across his shoulders and down his back before tearing at his shirt, desperate to feel his skin against mine. “Off,” I ordered, feeling needier than I ever had. “Take this off.”

Keeping me in place with his hips, he pulled away from my swollen, throbbing nipple and looked down at me with the most deliciously wicked smile. “Ah, ah, ah, princess. Is that how you ask for what you want?”

Oh shit. He was in the mood to tease and torture. I could see it written all over his face. The battle for control wasn’t going to stop at our kiss. He was going to do everything he could to bend me to his will. I could see it written all over his face. And I couldn’t remember ever being so turned on.

Quickly getting into the mood he’d just set, I narrowed my eyes into a glare and jerked at the soft fabric so hard it was a wonder the material didn’t rip at the seams. “Get naked, Jude. Now.”

That smirk stretched even farther as he shackled my wrists with his long fingers and lifted them over my head, pinning them to the wall in a grip I had no chance of freeing myself from. “If you’re not going to use your manners, I’m just going to have to teach you a lesson.”

Clasping both my wrists in one large hand, he slid the pads of his other fingers slowly across my jaw and down my neck. He traced my collarbone before dipping in the valley of my cleavage. He stopped long enough to rub circles around the nipple he’d just been sucking on, sending a zing through the invisible line that connected my nipples to my clit, making me whimper.

I struggled to free my hands, but his fingers were like manacles, his grip unforgiving.

His touch slipped down farther, sending goosebumps and shivers across my flesh. He continued on his slow trek, over my belly to the waistband of my jeans. “Tell me something, princess. How wet are you right now?”

“Jesus,” I panted, arching my back away from the wall in an attempt to get him to touch me where I most needed it. I felt like I was going to explode, like every cell in me, every neuron, was a live wire, arcing and shooting sparks, just looking for something to grab hold of to ground me. “Jude,” I hissed through clenched teeth, “stop teasing me.”

“Ah, but baby, you make it so fucking fun to tease you.”

I was going to kill this evil bastard. Once he finally,finallygot me off, he was dead.

I nearly cried for joy when he undid my jeans and shoved his hand into my panties, homing in right between my thighs, and when he brushed at my slick folds with those talented fingers, a sob of relief burst from my throat.

“Mmm,” he hummed appreciatively. “Fucking drenched. Did I do that to you, Layla?” He whispered feather-light touches against my pussy, not giving me nearly enough.

I strained, trying to get closer to him, trying to get my lips to his, but the jerk wouldn’t cooperate. “Jude,please! I need—”Control. That was what I needed. If there was one thing I’d learned from the men in my past, it was that if I wanted to come, I usually had to take the reins and guide the man I was with to the precise spot I needed him to be. It had actually gotten so bad that I’d started to worry there was something wrong withme. That I couldn’t climax unless I remained in the driver’s seat the whole time. But Jude wasn’t going to let that happen. That much was clear.

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