She hungrily kissed me back, like a woman starved with a raw, aching need that matched my own. I could devour her right here and now—gods, I wanted to—but I also needed to show some restraint. Prove that I was worthy of her.
It took more willpower than I even knew I possessed, but I finally tore my mouth from hers with a sharp breath and rested my forehead against hers. We stared at each other while our chests heaved like we’d run a marathon.
I wanted more. But she wasn’t ready.
And truthfully, neither was I.
“I should go,” I rasped.
“Or…you could stay,” she whispered. “Then you wouldn’t have to send someone else to watch the place.”
I groaned, because I desperately wanted that. I would love nothing more than to spend the night with her. To fall asleep in that crumbling loft upstairs with her folded in my arms. To pretend, just for tonight, that we were the only two people who existed in this world.
“If I stay…” I began, my voice husky, “and this keeps going the way I want—the way I hope you want…”
I trailed off and Isadora raised her brows.
“You’ve been through a lot. And you’re going through more right now. I don’t want to stop, but you deserve more than someone who’ll jump into bed with you at the first opportunity. I want to earn this. Earn you.”
She said nothing, and her expression didn’t give me any clues.
“I’m not leaving because I don’t want you,” I said. “I’m leaving because I do.” I dropped my hand from her neck and took a step back. It physically hurt to put distance between us. But I didn’t give in to my desires. I would show her that I could be something more. Someone worthy of her.
“Lock the door behind me,” I said, my voice still gruff.
Then I left.
Because that was the right thing to do. And because if I didn’t leave now, I never would.
Fuck, doing the right thing sucked.
Chapter
Sixteen
ISADORA
What the hell?
I hadn’t meant to let Lucien kiss me. But it’d happened.
And I certainly hadn’t intended to invite him to stay the night. Yet that’d happened as well.
Had I lost my mind?
Abso-damn-lutely.
But did I care? That was the real question. And one I didn’t have an answer for yet. My head was still spinning, and right now, I barely knew up from down. Twelve hours ago, back at the café, I never would have imagined Lucien was interested in me. I’d shoved him firmly into the “unholy pain in my ass” category with plans to leave him there until the world came to a catastrophic end. Now?
Now, I didn’t know what box to put him in anymore.
Rival business owner? Check.
Pain in my ass? Double check.
Possible love interest? Erm…jury was still out on that one.
I wanted him—no question. The second his lips had touched mine, woo baby, my whole body had lit up like a Christmas tree. My heart had leaped to new heights and still hadn’t landed. He’d knocked the air right out of my lungs.
