Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 110360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 441(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110360 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 552(@200wpm)___ 441(@250wpm)___ 368(@300wpm)
If I had any chance of salvaging my future, I had to lock this down before I crossed a line I couldn’t come back from.
Closing my eyes, desperate for a beat of silence from my spiraling mind, I inhaled, holding it until it physically hurt, then slowly released it, wishing it could take the ache in my chest with it.
My eyes flicked open when a soft creak came from the bathroom. I pushed up on one arm just as it opened.
And then time stopped.
Light spilled into the room around her.
Lofton.
She was wearing one of my button-downs, open in the front, the curve of her naked breasts peeking out.
My mouth dried as my gaze made a slow perusal down her body.
Sheer white panties, almost as useless as my resolve, followed by long legs and a pair of black stilettos.
Absolutely fucking stunning.
And she just stood there. Watching me. Wanting me.
My heart hammered in my chest, my brain scrambling to recapture even an ounce of logic.
I couldn’t do this.
I shouldn’t do this.
I pushed off the bed anyway.
Her teeth dragged over her bottom lip, her gaze dipping to the hard-on straining against my sweatpants.
A slow, satisfied smile curved her mouth.
Predatory.
Certain.
Like she already knew how this ended.
And just like that, any rule I had left didn’t just crack—it shattered.
I dragged in a breath that did nothing to quell the storm brewing inside me as I stared at the woman who I had no doubt was going to ruin me.
“Jesus Christ,” I breathed.
It wasn’t a prayer.
But it was definitely a surrender.
19
LOFTON
The room was dark, so I left the door open on purpose as I prowled toward him. My heels clicked against the old wooden floor, but under his hungry gaze, it felt like a runway meant for the only man who mattered.
He didn’t come to me, but the tension in his body gave him away. Every line of him was coiled and barely contained.
“Devon,” I whispered, pulling his focus back to my face. “I was starting to think you were running from me today.”
A rough sound rumbled low in his chest. “I should be running from you now.”
Hooking my thumb over my shoulder, I tipped my head. “You want me to go?”
He scoffed. “Don’t act like you didn’t know exactly how much I wanted you before you ever opened the damn door.”
Relief washed over me. I wasn’t new to the charged looks, the unspoken pull, the way a body betrayed desire long before words ever did. Devon had been fighting it for days.
But there was always a risk when it came to putting yourself out there.
“Then why run?” I stepped closer. Arching my back, I shifted my shoulders until the white button-down I’d stolen from his closet slid down my arms and pooled at my feet.
His gaze dropped to my breasts, need flashing before he could hide it. He dragged his tongue across his lower lip as if he were already imagining the taste of my skin.
God, it was sexy to have a man like him unraveling right before my eyes.
“Because this isn’t right,” he said, lacking all conviction.
“I don’t know. Feels pretty right to me.” I lifted my hand, whisking it over the front of his sweats, grazing his erection.
He sucked in a sharp breath. “You’re vulnerable.”
“I’m horny, Devon. They aren’t the same.”
He shook his head, still trying to hold the line. “You’ve been through a lot.”
“This isn’t about that.” I closed the last inch between us. In my heels, I was at eye level with his lips. The warmth of his breath sent a chill down my spine, leaving me desperate for another taste of him.
My hands slid up his chest, over the firm muscles beneath his shirt, until they looped around his neck. “This is about you and me,” I murmured, my mouth brushing the corner of his. “And everything we’ve been denying.”
His hands stayed fisted at his sides, but his control was cracking.
His jaw ticked at the hinges. “I’d be taking advantage of you.”
That stopped me.
I swayed back just enough to really look at him. He wore the conflict and fading restraint of a man who would rather break himself than risk even the possibility of hurting me. And maybe it was silly, but that was the most romantic thing anyone had ever not said to me.
“Devon,” I said softly, the edge gone from my voice. “I came to you. In a shirt I stole from your closet, half naked, begging for you to get me completely naked.” I brushed my nose against his. “If anything, I’m the one taking advantage of you.” I took his hands, prying his fingers open and lacing them with mine. “You did something extraordinary for me today. But this isn’t payback. I want you, and not because I’m vulnerable. I want you because you are an insanely sexy man who has never missed an opportunity to take care of me. Maybe you just let me take care of you tonight?”