Kyle walks through the door, and I close it behind him, flipping the deadbolt. I take a breath and gently tap the flat of my palm against the door twice before I turn around to face him. He watches me carefully, and I can’t help but wonder what’s going through his mind. What does he see when he looks at me? Does he find me lacking? I’m not very girlie. I’m tough, and I work hard to be the best in a man’s world. But there’s something about him that makes me feel a little vulnerable, delicate even.
I roll my bottom lip between my teeth, and Kyle’s face softens. He takes a step toward me and pulls me into his arms.
“What’s on your mind, beautiful?” he asks as he brushes a loose strand of hair from my face. The action is so sweet and tender and I’m so undeserving. I want to cry and that, in and of itself, is weird because I don’t cry. Even in movies when the dog dies, I can hold it all in but there’s something about this man that makes mefeel.
“Nothing,” I answer him quietly. My voice is soft and timid. It’s so unlike me. I don’t like it, so I roll my shoulders back and admit, “Everything.”
“You can trust me.” He gently rubs my back while he holds me in his arms. It’s a comforting gesture and it only makes me feel worse about the lies that I never told. The words I should have spoken grow between us like a living breathing thing, a monster neither of us will be able to vanquish.
Can I, though? He tempts me with his words, a promise that if I give him what he’s asking of me, I can have everything that I’ve ever wanted. I think I can, but it’s also only been two weeks. We really don’t know each other very well, so I’m not sure I should spill all my deep, dark secrets right now. I bury my face in his strong chest and let his masculine smell surround me, providing me the comfort I need.
“You can trust me,” he repeats, and I nuzzle closer and take a deep breath to steady myself. I’m not ready to verbalize just yet the thoughts that are a swirling storm in my head, but I also want him to know I’m taking his caring words to heart. And then Kyle tips my world on its axis all over again. “You can talk to me, MacKenzie, because I already know.”
It’s like someone has poured a bucket of ice water over my head, and as it seeps through my clothes and my skin, it chills me to the bone.
My spine snaps straight and my head pops up. My eyes immediately clash with his. I am wary of what will next come out of his mouth, and I feel on edge. Tension crackles and sparks within me. But his face remains soft as he looks at me. The expression on his handsome face is tender. I feel confused and unsure. He makes me feel unbalanced.
“What?” I whisper.
“You heard me,” he says. His voice is gentle but sure. “I know, and you can trust me with that knowledge. I will never hurt you.” Pretty words but I still can’t be sure. He’s asking me to trust him while telling me that he knows my secrets.
“I don’t know what you know,” I reply and instantly wince, because I know it sounds petty as hell but also childish and ridiculous.
“That your oldest sibling is the president’s aide-de-camp. That you come from a powerful military family and have somehow managed to fly under the radar with all that golden hair instead of the dark looks of the rest of the Black family. I know you’ve worked hard to build your career on your own name and not anyone else's, and I know how important that is to you.”
“You do, do you?” I ask, swallowing back against the bile that’s burning my gut, because Kyle Garrett figured me out so easily when no one else has before. And worse, why would he do so?
“I will protect you and keep you safe,” he says gently, and I bristle at his words. I don’t need him or any other man to keep me safe. I’m strong and powerful all on my own.
“I don’t need you to protect me,” I bite out the caustic words.
“I know that too, but it doesn’t mean I don’t want to keep you from harm,” he says, melting me just a little bit more. “I want to take care of you and keep you safe, but I also know you’re strong and capable and don’t need me to. But there’s also a part of me that wants you to need me like I need you.”
I guess this is it, truth or dare time. So the real question is do I let my fear of being hurt or used overrule my desire to be with this man? Do I give him me, or do I let him walk away? My head is telling me one thing, but my heart and my gut are leading me in the opposite direction, right to this man standing before me, holding me in his arms.
I lift my head to look him in the eyes one more time, and I jump in with both feet. “I want you.”
“Yeah?” he asks with a new light in his eyes that I hadn’t realized was dimmed until now. Kyle Garrett, cocky, badass navy SEAL, was nervous. He was worried I was going to run. I guess I haven’t given him much to instill confidence in me. Maybe I’m not a great bet to take after all.
“Yeah,” I agree, and I do. No one has ever pushed my buttons and flipped all of my switches like Kyle Garrett does.
“You’re mine?” he asks, his voice suddenly more gruff, deeper than before with all of the emotion playing heavily at the surface.
“Now hold on,” I say, holding my hands up in front of us. Kyle narrows his eyes on my movements that I intend to put some space between us. Space he does not let me take. “We have a lot to talk about. It’s not that easy.”
“It’s exactly that easy,” he replies. “Now, I asked you, are you mine? And I’m going to need you to answer me.”
Can it be that easy? Can I just give in and give myself over to this man who turned my world upside down in a little more than two weeks?
What I want to know is how—when he crowds up against me, asking me a question that will change my life completely, asking me to give everything that I have, hopefully in exchange for everything he has to give, with no guarantees—can he have my knees shaking and pussy quivering all at the same time? And once again, Kyle has me locked in his private game of truth or dare, and if I take his dare and tell the truth, we both might walk away winners.
I’ll give in to this powerful man, but I’ll also take everything and anything as well. He wants me and that’s fine because I’ve decided that I want him too. My heart is about to beat out of my chest when I take a shaky breath and answer, “I’m yours, and you’re mine.”
I barely get the words out of my mouth when Kyle slams his lips down on mine in a punishing kiss. I open underneath him, and he doesn’t just kiss me; he owns me. Heat floods my pussy, and I whimper against his lips.
He rips his mouth away from mine, and we both struggle to catch our breath. It doesn’t take long for the passion between us to burn out of control like a wildfire, and I have a feeling it’s the kind that always will. That we will want each other, burn for each other just like this, always.
I let out an undignified “Eep!” when Kyle bends down and hits me in the belly with his shoulder before straightening to his full height and making his way up the first flight of stairs.
