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I resist for a second before I melt into him. He tastes like coffee and bad decisions. Even though I know I should be running for the hills, I find my hands sliding around his back, holding him to me. Before I can lose myself completely, he eases back, placing one last kiss on my lips before tucking me under his chin.
We stand like that in the early morning sunshine until the chill in the air makes me shiver. The moment of peace is broken, the reality of life seeping back in as he pulls back with a sigh.
“Let’s get you some coffee.”
“Okay,” I say softly, accepting his hand when he offers it to me.
He leads me back into the house and through to the kitchen. He places the mug next to the coffee machine before he turns, grabs my hips, and lifts me up onto the island. I gasp in surprise, holding on tight to the knotted sheet so I don’t lose it.
Though I have a feeling my grip would mean nothing if he really wanted it off. And if the look he’s giving right now is anything to go by, he’s seconds away from ripping the sheet from me and spreading me out on the countertop. I feel a throb deep in my core. How is it possible for someone to strip you bare with just a look?
When he turns to make my coffee, I take a relieved breath and give myself a mental shake and a pep talk about stupid boys and their powers of dick-suasion. By the time my coffee is ready, I have myself somewhat under control.
As long as he doesn’t look at me or touch me or generally breathe in my direction, I should be fine.
“You said you had a tattoo, but I don’t remember seeing one.”
“That’s because, compared to yours, it’s tiny.” I look over at him as he dips his head and bends his ear down so I can see a small tattoo of a ghost.
“Oh, that’s so cute.” I grin, taking the mug he hands me and lifting it to my lips. I take a sip and moan.
I take another drink and jolt when it suddenly dawns on me. “You know how I take my coffee.”
“Of course I do. And just to be clear, what you’re drinking is barely classified as coffee. I think it would take a whole scientific team to detect it.”
I chuckle and take another sip of the creamy vanilla goodness.
“So, you’re handsome, rich, and a smartass. I just bet you have a room here filled with panties from the women who have come and gone before me.”
His face turns serious as he crowds me. Both of his hands move to either side of my legs, which I open so I don’t knee him in the chest. Taking advantage, he steps into the cradle of my thighs and slides his warm hands under the edge of the sheet and over my heated skin.
“There is only one woman for me. If you take nothing else from this, know that much is true. We could be in a room full of people, and all I would see is you.”
Damn, the man’s a smooth talker, for sure. He says it with such ease and confidence that it makes me wonder how often he’s used that line.
I sigh and place my mug down. Pointing to my temples, I give him a small smile.
“There is nothing in here for me to draw on. No instinct, no way for me to tell what’s truth and what’s fiction. It’s not that I don’t trust you. It’s that I don’t trust myself.”
He has nothing to say to that, but I can see the frustration on his face.
“I’m sorry.”
“No. You don’t have anything to be sorry for. I’m just an impatient bastard, but that’s my problem, not yours.”
His hands move, and instead of being on the outside of my thighs, they’re making their way up the inside, and soon, I feel his thumbs skim over the lips of my pussy.
“Don’t say no,” he growls.
“It’s reckless. I don’t think?—”
“Then don’t think, just feel.”
I brace my hands on the counter behind me and lean back. My eyes slip closed as he flicks my clit with his finger before pushing me to lean back farther. I give in far too easily, but for someone who’s felt nothing but fear since waking up in the hospital, I’m going to embrace the feeling of euphoria that Valen manages to draw out of me, no matter how fleeting it might be.
Once I’m lying down, he reaches up and tugs the knot holding the sheet together and lets it fall, exposing me completely. I jolt, my hand connecting with the mug and knocking it to the floor, where I hear it shatter.
“Shit.” I move to get up, but Valen presses a hand to my stomach and holds me down.
