Текст книги "Crazy Beautiful"

Автор книги: Penny Dee

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Chapter Seven HARLOW

“So which side do you sleep on?” Heath asked with a grin.

“I don’t have a side. I sleep in the middle,” I replied, dropping my overnight bag on the black and grey comforter.

“What about when you share? You know, with a guy.”

I shook my head. “I’ve never spent the night with a guy.”

Heath looked like I had just told him the location of Atlantis.

Then he looked confused. “You’re … a virgin…?”

I frowned. He of all people should realize that just because I have never slept over with a guy, didn’t necessarily make me a virgin.

You didn’t date the most sought after guy in five counties and get out of town a virgin.

“I grew up in a strict household, Heath. Not a convent.” I shrugged. “I’m not a virgin. I’ve just never spent the night with a guy.”

“So, I’m your first sleepover buddy?”

I giggled and at down on the bed. “I guess so.”

He sat down next to me. “Me too.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I’m calling bullshit.”

“Why?”

“You’ve slept with a lot of girls.”

He shook his head. “Not in this bed baby. This bed is virginal when it comes to the opposite sex. You’re the first girl to ever sleep in here. Hell, other than Nikki, you’re the only other girl to see the inside of my room.”

It was hard to believe but I didn’t push it.

“So what am I doing here?”

He shrugged like it was no big deal. In the soft light of his bedroom he looked nothing like the showman who oozed sex on stage. He looked adorable.

“You’re my friend. I want to show you that I can be your friend without you worrying that I’m going to try and molest you every chance I get.” He nudged me with his shoulder. “It’s safe to be my friend, H-bomb. I promise.”

What he said made me smile.

“Okay, what side do you want?” I asked.

He lay back. “This is as good a place as any.”

I flopped down beside him and turned my head to look at him. His eyes glittered with blue as he smiled back at me.

“You were really amazing up there tonight,” I said.

“You think? It was just karaoke.”

“Yeah, but you totally had that crowd eating out of your hand.”

He smiled that closed-lipped smile that made his dimples deepen. Then he shifted and put his hands behind his head.

“Especially the blonde who had you cornered outside the restroom. I think she would have eaten you if I hadn’t come along.”

He chuckled. “She was pretty straight forward about what she wanted.”

“I noticed—you know, considering she had her hand all over your crotch.”

“Just another day at the office, babe.”

I yawned. It was late. Well after midnight. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. “We should get some sleep.”

“Do you want to have a shower before or after me? Or we could save water and shower together. You know, because I’m totally down with that environmentally friendly shit.”

“One of these days I might scare the hell out of you Heath and take you up on your absurd invitations.”

He sat up. “I live in hope, H-bomb. I live in hope.”

I nudged him. “Do you have something I can wear to bed?”

“You mean you were serious about not sleeping naked?” Mock disappointment crossed his face.

I grinned. “A woman should keep some mystery about her.”

“Fuck mystery.” He winked at me and climbed off the bed. He crossed the room to his dresser and pulled out a pair of boxers and a t-shirt. “You have a shower and I’ll make us a hot chocolate each.”

Their bathroom was big and full of light. The shower was above a big porcelain tub. There was no shower curtain, which was a bit of a worry, but as soon as I felt the warm spray of water on my skin, I relaxed. The warm water brought out all the aches and pains from our baseball game and I let the warm spray soak into me.

When I came out of the shower, Heath was in the kitchen leaning against the counter. He was shirtless and his legs were crossed at his ankles. I paused a moment, suddenly stalled by the image of him. Engrossed in reading the back of the hot chocolate packet he didn’t notice I was there, staring at him like a stalker. I bit my lip. With his shirt off he was very impressive. Broad shoulders rounded into thick arms that flexed and flinched as he turned the cardboard box in his hand. His expansive chest gently rose and fell with each breath he took. Light and shadow carved deeply sculpted lines where muscle met muscle across a torso rippled with a zillion abdominal muscles, which tapered off and disappeared beneath the waistband of his jeans.

I sucked in a deep breath aware of a sudden and intense physical longing. It tingled and pulsated through me, hitting the most sensitive parts of me with unrelenting force. I exhaled. Perhaps agreeing to this sleep over had been unwise.

The whistle of the kettle broke the spell and Heath put down the packet of chocolate and set about making our drinks. Aware I was fully aroused, I hurried off to the bedroom determined to fight any physical attraction I felt for this man.

This was bad.

Bad bad.

The type of bad that killed the dinosaurs.

Heath wasn’t far behind me and walked into the bedroom carrying two mugs of hot chocolate. I grinned as if truly excited by the hot chocolate. But the truth was, I was so turned on I could hardly think straight. It was going to be hard to hide it from him.

Inwardly I groaned. Oh God, if he knew … he would die laughing.

While he showered I lay on the bed, desperately trying to not picture him naked in the bathroom. Desperately trying not to picture the warm water hitting his perfectly sculptured body … or the parts of him I’d never seen …

He walked in with the towel slung around his hips. With his broad back to me he rummaged around in the drawer for a pair of boxer shorts. Muscles moved beneath taut, flawless skin. One slip of the towel and I would see everything. I closed my eyes at the thought.

“Why are your eyes closed and your face all screwed up?” he asked.

I opened my eyes. “You’re wearing nothing under your towel.”

“Yeah. I just got out of the shower. That’s what I usually do, you know, shower naked.”

To hide the impact his near-nakedness had on me, I sipped my drink. “I was just giving you some privacy,” I lied. It had nothing to do with privacy and everything to do with the fact I was so attracted to him.

He smiled and it did nothing to dampen what I felt aching at all the sensitive spots.

The fact that he slept shirtless didn’t help. Sure he put boxers on but his glorious chest was one hundred percent naked.

Damn.

It took all my strength to appear totally unfazed by him and keep myself from staring as we talked candidly over our hot chocolates. Meryl Streep had nothing on my acting abilities.

By one o’ clock I was exhausted and we climbed into bed. Heath turned off the light and a July moon burst into the room, casting shadows of the outside world against the wall.

I rolled onto my side with my back to him. Afraid of what I might do if I faced him, knowing there was nothing but a few inches of bed between us. I felt the bed move as he got comfortable. His warmth next to me was comforting. My sleepiness had abandoned me and I stared at the shadows dancing on the wall.

“Heath?”

“Yeah?” He was still lying on his back with his hands behind his head on the pillow.

“What am I doing here?”

There was a long period of silence.

When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet. “That’s exactly what I’m trying to work out, H-bomb.”

I rolled over to look at him. The sheet had slipped down to his waist, exposing that lethal torso. His arms flexed against the pillow.

I rose up on my elbow. “You’re every girl’s dream.”

“Except one,” he whispered.

I paused and bit my lip. He reached over and pushed a stray lock of hair behind my ear.

“Will you tell me something?” he asked.

I shivered beneath his touch. “Anything.”

“Why did you deliberately lose the bet?”

I blinked. His question caught me off guard. “I …”

Fuck! I what…?

I sighed, not ready to admit anything. Because I didn’t know anything yet.

I bit my bottom lip, shook my head and whispered, “I don’t know.”

He rose up and smiled. His bulk was dark against the moonlight. I saw the flick of his tongue across his bottom lip and the white of his teeth as he smiled.

“Then let’s keep things real simple and work it out together.” He leaned in and his fingers were warm on the nape of my neck. He pulled me to him and pressed his lips to my forehead where they lingered. I was engulfed in his warmth and the subtle scent of soap. “We don’t have to work it all out tonight. But we will work it out.”

I nodded and he released me. As I sank into my pillow, I stared up at the ceiling. But within seconds his big arms drew me against his chest where they held me close to his warm body. I didn’t fight it and relaxed into him. Within minutes his breathing slowed and I knew he was asleep.

But it took a little longer for sleep to claim me.

* * * * *

HEATH

It was bliss. Being trapped in that space between sleep and wakefulness where you float free of your body, your mind is lulled by the beauty of sleep but somehow aware of the reality of being awake. It was there that I walked through the murky shadows of sleepiness, aware of the weight next to me on the bed and the sweet, sweet sensation of her warm skin on mine.

I felt the warmth of her breath first. Then the gentleness of her his lips along the curve of my throat. Her body slid across mine to lay against me, her strong thighs either side of my hips as she pressed down against me. I moaned at the pleasure of her mouth on my skin. Her lips were smooth and soft and I sighed beneath their touch, and licked my bottom lip at the rising sensation. I could feel her against me. Her most intimate parts. And they were exquisite as they rubbed against mine with a slow, intoxicating rhythm. I wouldn’t last. It was too good. Too much. She was so warm. Infinitely warm. But she trembled at my touch as my hands swept along the subtle curve of her thighs and pulled her tighter against me. One move and I’d be inside her.

“Heath—!”

I woke with a start and realized Harlow was shaking me.

For a moment I just stared at her. Then reality sank in, and so did the disappointment. It had been a dream. A goddamn dream. And probably a wet one too if it had gone any further.

Fuck. How old was I? Twelve?

“You okay? You sounded like you were having a nightmare.”

No, the nightmare was waking up and finding out I wasn’t having sex with her. Now I had a raging hard on which was going to be a bitch to get rid of without some kind of release.

Hell, I needed to get laid.

I frowned. “I don’t know, I can’t remember.”

She smiled down at me and I realized I was going to have to take a shower. A longer shower than usual.

“You sure you’re okay?” Her hair fell in messy waves around her face and over her shoulders. Damn, why did she have to look so hot first thing in the morning? It was doing nothing to kill my hard on.

“I’m good.” I sighed and rubbed my eyes with my palms. “Did you sleep okay?”

“Like a baby. What about you?”

Like a porn star. “Yeah, good.”

“Let’s go for breakfast. My shout.” She said.

I was going to have to get her out of the room before I could get up.

“Sure. You go and get changed and do all that scary girl stuff that you girls do, and I’ll throw on some jeans.”

I wasn’t going to get a chance to do anything about my … arousal. Thankfully, by the time Harlow emerged from the bathroom, things had settled down. Five minutes in the bathroom and she came out looking like a goddess.

We rode to Cherry Doll, a bakery along the boardwalk with a view of the Pier. We sat inside at a window booth and Harlow ordered a stack of pancakes. Which was cool because I couldn’t stand it when girls ordered salads. Or water. Or nothing. Apparently she liked food. A lot of food. God knows where she put it all. I joined her with a stack of buttermilk pancakes with lots of maple syrup and cream.

“How do you eat all of that and stay so fit?” she asked, forking up a blueberry and popping it into her mouth.

I grinned. “Is that your way of saying I’ve got a hot body?”

She rolled her eyes as if it was the last thing she would think. But the flush to her cheeks let me know otherwise. I couldn’t help but smile.

“I train every day. Weights. Cardio. My dad got me into boxing as a kid and it helps me keep in shape.” I shrugged. “Helps me when I’m on stage too.”

“And you’ve never smoked?”

I shook my head. “I grew up with parents who were always active. You know, running or playing sports. They encouraged all of us kids to play sports and I knew smoking would get in the way of how I performed, so I never bothered trying.”

She scooped up a mouthful of pancake and berry sauce.

“I notice you don’t drink alcohol, either.” She said.

“I’ve done a lot dumb things on alcohol. I used to drink every time I got on stage – you know, to calm the nerves. But sometimes I did things I regretted. So I stopped.”

I wasn’t going to tell her about the time I’d gotten so rotten drunk I had slept with a good friend’s wife. When he found out it had destroyed our friendship, not to mention his marriage. It was the crux that made me decide to stop drinking and something I would go to my grave regretting. Alcohol made me do stupid shit, so I stayed away from it as much as possible.

She finished all her pancakes and I was impressed. But our breakfast date was drawing to a close and I felt the onset of disappointment in my stomach. Every time it came time to saying goodbye to her, I felt the same hollowness in my belly.

As we drained our cups of coffee, she picked up the spoon from her plate. Absentmindedly, she sucked the syrup from her spoon and I felt every slippery slide of her tongue on my skin.

“Jesus Christ!” I couldn’t help but moan, my eyes fixed on her lips. “You’d better stop doing that or we’re gonna have to wait a while before I can get up and leave.”

With a burst of mischievousness she put the entire spoon in her mouth, then slowly dragged it from between her lips. Her tongue slid along the cold silver metal and I went as hard as a missile.

With a wink she smiled and dropped the spoon to her plate. “Okay let’s go.”

My hand closed over hers. “We’re gonna have to wait a bit.”

Her eyes dropped to my crotch and the bulge beneath the denim. She rolled her eyes. Obviously she hadn’t expected that.

Trying to distract myself from my … situation … I brought up her afternoon plans with Dean. Because God knows, just the thought of her spending the afternoon with that weasel was enough to kill my hard on. But in the end I just managed to irritate her, which wasn’t my plan.

“Does Dean know today isn’t a date?”

Harlow gave me one of her are-you-kidding-me? looks. I couldn’t blame her. She had explained it to me enough times. She stood up and grabbed her handbag.

“What’s it going to take for me to get it through to you that I only see Dean as a friend?”

“Not go out with him,” I said lightly.

It was a joke but at the same time I meant it.

It made me sound like a bit of a possessive douche. But I would bet my life savings that the jerk was playing the friendship card to worm his way into her panties. I knew he could be very persuasive as I’d seen him in action a few times at the Pizza Palace and a couple of other venues we had played at.

Worse, he was more Harlow’s type than me. So my paranoia had me second guessing her ability to turn him down when faced with the full assault of his charms.

Harlow didn’t bother saying anymore. She just fixed me with those piercing green eyes that said it all, and headed towards the door.

I rode her home on my bike so she could get ready for work. Again I took my time through the early morning streets, not keen to end my time with her. Having her on the back of my bike with her arms wound tight around my waist seemed like the most natural thing in the world.

“You’re still coming tonight, right?”

“Sure. I’ll catch a cab from the gallery.” She gave me a kiss on the cheek. “Thanks for the ride home. I’ll see you tonight.”

* * * * *

I was in a bad mood. Why the fuck wasn’t she here? It was almost eleven o’clock. She said she was coming.

Moodily, I stared into the almost full glass of coke. If she wasn’t here, then she was still out with him. And what the fuck was so fucking great about the date that she’d still be out with him?

We were due to go back on stage for our last set, but I didn’t want to. For the first time in my fucking life, I didn’t want to go back on that stage. What I wanted was to find out where my girl was.

Whoa! What?

She’s not your girl, asshole.

I pushed my coke away and ran frustrated fingers down my face. God, this was doing my head in. I knew I should do her a favor and stay away from her. She was way too good for me and when she worked it out I’d be in too deep and it would hurt like a bitch.

But goddamn it, there was a part of me—a big part—that just couldn’t let her go. It was turning me into a psycho.

My cell vibrated in my pocket and I grabbed it.

Harlow: How you doing mr rock star? Having a good gig? I’m not going to make it but I will catch you tomorrow, ok? Lunch?

What. The. Fuck?

What did that mean? Why wasn’t she going to make it?

Before I had the sense to stop them, my fingers started texting.

Me: You said you would come.

Almost immediately my phone pinged with her response.

Harlow: In bed ;-)

Was that a winking smiley face?

Seriously, I think I saw red. Blood fucking red.

She was in bed? What, with that douche?

I wanted to punch something.

Okay, I had no proof that she was with him. But my imagination was making me her bitch with some pretty fucked up mental images.

See? A fucking psycho…!!

“Hey dude, what’s up?” Jesse slid onto the barstool next to me.

“Harlow can’t make it.”

He shrugged like it was no big deal. “So?”

“So asshole, she said she would.”

His eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Whoa, what’s with the name calling dude?”

When he picked up my glass and sniffed the contents, I wanted to yell at him. He was checking for alcohol because basically I was an asshole on alcohol.

No. I was just an asshole full stop and Harlow knew that, that was why she was with Dean and not with me.

“Sorry,” I said, frustrated. This morning I’d woken up with her in my arms and for the first time in my life I had felt an overwhelming contentment. Life was good, because she was in it.

How could everything turn around so quickly?

Jesse shrugged. “Why don’t you ring her?”

Although I wanted to, I was afraid of what I might find out if I did. I didn’t know how I’d cope if I heard him in the background.

Shaking my head I put my phone back in my back pocket. “Come on, we’re due to go back on.”

I climbed off the barstool. But when I turned, I walked straight into a douche bag from Fat Tony’s who had run into Harlow and Dean earlier.

And what he had to say to me was the final straw.

Chapter Eight HARLOW

My phone rang just after midnight. The screen told me it was Piper.

“Hey, is everything okay?”

“No. The big dummy went and got himself into another fight.”

“Who? Jesse?” I asked, surprised.

“No. Heath. The big jerk.” She paused. “Listen, I know you might be, you know … busy. But can you come down to the hospital? I think seeing you might … it’s just …” She sighed. “I think he needs to see you.”

She gave me the address for the hospital and I took Bridget’s car. When I arrived twenty minutes later Piper and Jesse were out the front.

“Is he okay?” I asked.

“He’s alright,” Jesse replied sagely, his tone indicative of someone who’d been there many times before. He drew on his cigarette, his brows drawn in. “He’s getting stitched up now.”

“He needs stitches? What happened?”

Jesse and Piper looked at one another and Jesse shrugged in a you-tell-her gesture.

“He got in a scrap with Danny Woods at the show. He was pissed you didn’t turn up. Then Danny said he saw you with Dean—that you guys were looking pretty cozy together and it was no wonder you hadn’t shown. And that he was pretty sure where you two had ended up.” She bit her lip and looked down. “It was too much for Heath. He warned him to shut up.”

Jesse continued to explain. “But Danny was out to push Heath’s buttons. He knows you are Heath’s Achilles heel. He said if Dean was smart he’d be seven inches deep into you by now.”

I blushed. “The jerk!”

“Heath didn’t hold back then. He broke Danny’s nose and a couple of teeth,” Jesse continued. “It took three bouncers to get him off. I’ve known Heath a long time Harlow, and I’ve seen him fight. But I’ve never seen him like this.”

“This is bad,” I whispered.

“Yes,” Piper agreed. “He’s already on probation. If Danny presses charges, then he’s gonna be in some serious shit.”

“That douche bag won’t press charges,” Jesse said blowing out a funnel of cigarette smoke. “The guy’s got so many warrants out for him, he won’t be going anywhere near a police station.”

I exhaled deeply. It was almost one am. “If you guys want to go, I can make sure he gets home.”

“Are you sure?” Jesse asked. “I mean, if you have somewhere you need to be …”

He and Piper looked at me weirdly and I twigged. They were wondering if Danny Woods was right. They were wondering if I had come here from Dean’s bed. Seriously, what sort of girl did these people think I was? Was it a stretch to think I was just hanging out with Dean as a friend?

“You guys go. I’ll make sure he gets home safe. Thanks for calling me.” I started to walk away and then swung around. “And guys … when you called, I was in my bed asleep. Alone. Dean is just a friend. No more. And just in case it matters, if I were to date anyone, it wouldn’t be him.”

Because they both looked so relieved, I shook my head as I walked away and entered the hospital.

Inside, I told the triage nurse I was there to pick up Heath and she buzzed me in. I found him in a cubicle in the ER receiving stitches to a small gash in his left eyebrow.

I leaned against the doorway. “So I miss one gig and this is what you get up to?”

It was a feeble attempt to lighten a dark moment and it didn’t work. Heath’s face was pure thunder. He was pissed at me. So pissed I doubted the pain from the needle was even registering.

Just like Jesse and Piper he thought I’d come from Dean’s bed.

Not that it should matter. How many groupies did he have for dinner tonight?

But he wouldn’t look at me, instead he studied his fingers. “What are you doing here?”

“I’ve come to take you home.”

“Don’t bother. I’ll hitch with Jesse and Piper.”

“I sent them home.”

He looked up, his face still thunder. “Why did you do that? Don’t you have somewhere you need to be?”

“I am where I need to be.”

“Aren’t you on a date or something?”

How many times did I have to tell him it wasn’t a date? I gritted my teeth and was going to snap something at him but the nurse dropped the suture into a stainless steel bowl with a clang.

“All done,” she said. I watched as she stuck medical tape over the cut. “You just need to sign out at reception and you’re right to go.”

“Thanks babe.” He winked at her and I couldn’t help but feel it was for my benefit.

We walked in silence to the reception where I watched him sign insurance papers, observing his drawn in brows and the anger simmering just beneath the surface. He still wouldn’t look at me. Wouldn’t talk to me. I wasn’t stupid. He was angry at me for not showing up at his show and was now determined to make me pay.

I sighed. “You’re pissed at me. I get it.” I unlocked Bridget’s car. “I’m sorry I didn’t show up tonight.”

Heath said nothing as he climbed in the car and slammed the door.

Inside I turned to him. “Heath, I’m sorry I didn’t make it tonight. I didn’t realize it was such a big deal. I did send you a text message.”

He snickered. Actually, it was more like a scoff. “Yeah. Nothing like a bit of salt in the wound.”

I shook my head. “I don’t get you. Why are you so upset with me?”

He didn’t say a word but just glared ahead, his big arms folded across his broad chest.

“Now you’re just acting like a child.” I inserted the key in the ignition but looked at him before turning the key. “Jesse and Piper told me what happened.”

He turned away from me to look out the window and I could see the thick beat of his pulse against his throat.

“The guy is a jerk,” he said.

Nodding, I said, “Yes. And he was wrong.” I sighed and asked quietly, “Can you answer me one question?”

He turned to look at me, his brows drawn in, his lips full, his chin dimple deep in the shadows of the car.

“Did you hit Danny because he said those things about me? Or because I went out with Dean?”

His eyes held mine and then slowly he turned his head to look out the window again.

“Like I said, the guy is a jerk. He has trouble keeping his mouth closed, so I helped him shut it.”

I shook my head and started the car. We drove the few blocks to his home in silence.

When we pulled into his driveway he ripped open the door and stormed up to the house. Something inside of me ignited.

“Oh no you don’t!” I snapped, jumping out of the car and following him up the front path to the porch. “You don’t get to treat me like that and then just walk away,” I yelled at him.

Ignoring me he slammed the key into the front door. He pushed the door open and disappeared inside.

Angrily I followed him in, determined to put an end to this ridiculous tantrum.

Inside, a single couch-side lamp barely made a dent in the shadows. The house was quiet. Leigh was at work and Nikki was out of town on a modeling assignment. I let the door bang closed behind me. Heath stood across the room with his back to me, his broad shoulders stiff. The distance between us was tense and I didn’t need to see his face to know how angry he was.

“Heath!” I was ready to fight but stopped when he turned to face me.

His eyes reached out for me from across the room. A look of anguish on his face.

Within seconds he had crossed the distance between us and slammed his lips to mine, knocking the wind out of me. Powerful hands cupped my face as his strong tongue filled my mouth in a kiss that left me dizzy and turned my world upside down.

Instead of pushing him away like I knew I should I grabbed his t-shirt with two fists and pulled him closer.

He walked me backwards until my back was against the wall, moaning as he held his body firm against mine. My world toppled. I could see nothing. Only what was happening in my mind’s eye as he awakened things in me with the slow, powerful rhythm of his mouth.

A guttural groan escaped from deep within him and I could feel all of him. Every muscle. Every thud of his pounding pulse. Every deliciously hard part of his body against me.

I knew I should stop. I knew this was overstepping the line of our friendship but I was too intoxicated by the tempo of his tongue in my mouth and the sweet serenity of his luscious warm lips against mine to see sense. And suddenly it wasn’t enough.

I wanted him.

Every single delicious inch of him.

I felt breathless as he stopped our kiss and pulled his face back. But only slightly, so we were almost touching.

His eyes were dark and they dropped to my lips. “Did you fuck him?” he breathed heavily.

“Heath—”

He stopped me by nudging my head with his.

“Tell me,” he demanded.

His breath was a warm caress against my neck and I could feel the heat radiating from his body as it trapped me against the wall.

Excitement mingled with anxiety. I was mortified by his question, yet aroused by his display of emotion. He wasn’t supposed to care this much. Yet pinned beneath him I could feel his desperation. He nuzzled his face to my neck and I could feel his lips against my throat as he spoke.

“Tell me.”

“No.” I swallowed hard, more aroused than I had ever been in my entire life. “No, I didn’t.”

His body relaxed slightly, as if he was relieved.

“Did you want to?”

“No,” I whispered.

He leaned deeper into me, so I felt just how much he wanted me. “Do you want to fuck me?”

Oh. God. Yes.

“Yes,” I breathed.

His lips and tongue caressed my neck, whispering slowly across my jaw until they found mine and he kissed me fiercely.

“Tell me you’re mine.” His lips glided across mine as he spoke. But I was too distracted by the sheer pleasure of his body pressing against mine in all the right places to respond. He took my jaw in his hand. “Tell me you’re mine.”

I blinked up at him.

“Are you all mine?” I asked breathlessly.

He pulled back just enough for me to look into his eyes. They were alight with dark fire. His jaw clenched. “You are everything,” he breathed huskily.

It wasn’t something I ever expect to hear him say and my own words failed me.

He closed his eyes, frowning as he breathed in deeply and I could feel the rapid thud of his heartbeat between us.

“Damn it H-bomb,” he whispered as his forehead fell to mine. “You’re going to have to stop this before it goes too far, because I can’t. I’ve tried. I’ve tried so hard. ” He looked pained, his brows drawn, grimacing as he fought the war between pleasure and pain. “But you make me weak,” he whispered. “What I feel for you … it’s too strong … you need to stop me.”

I looked at him, dazed. Stop? Was he kidding?

It was easy to forget all the reasons I couldn’t be with him when his delicious body had me pinned against the wall.

“What if I don’t want to stop?” I whispered, feeling reckless.

He groaned and squeezed his eyes shut. “You have to stop me,” he begged. He leaned in to kiss me again but stopped short of my mouth. “I want you H-bomb. I want you so fucking bad it makes me crazy. But I’m no good for you so you need to stop me before I go too far and ruin us.”

His body was a wall of muscle against me, and I could feel the full, hard length of him through his jeans.

And in that crazy moment all I wanted was what I could feel pressed into me. I didn’t care about right or wrong. This felt too good to be wrong.

“I’m not going to stop,” I said, sounding more confident than I felt.

He growled. “If you don’t then I am going to fuck things up. Do you understand me? I’m going to take you into my bedroom and spend the night exploring every delicious inch of your body with every inch of mine. And then I’ll do something to ruin this. To ruin us.”

I didn’t care. I had made up my mind.

Taking his chin in my fingers I turned his beautiful face so he had no choice but to look at me. His face was tortured, his eyes glazed with a desire he seemed desperate to fight.