“Not gonna tell me, huh?”he prods.
What did he ask again?Oh.What happened between Bryan and me.Right.If the lights were on, if I couldn’t pretend I’m alone in this room, talking to my conscience instead of the man consuming my every thought, I might lie.But there’s something about this moment.About the darkness and the heightened senses and the way I can still feel his mouth on mine despite my best intentions of erasing it from my mind in hopes of protecting myself from what I’m starting to feel for him.For a guy who could never and will never be anything but a fuck buddy.Gotta give the man credit.Even when I know all of these things—heck, they’re screaming at me—he’s a hard one to resist.
“Tell me,” he pushes.
“I, uh, I kind of kissed someone else and figured it’d be best to end things.”
“Someone else, huh?”
Despite the darkness, I nod, my tongue too thick in my mouth to actually respond.How do I tell the person I kissed that I actually liked it…and it stuck with me.Stuck with me enough to end things with a guy who, for all intents and purposes, could star in a fairytale as Prince Charming, thus ruining any potential possibility of me actually winding up with a guy I should be with.
“How was it?”Ford asks.
My forehead wrinkles.“The kiss?”
He drags his hand along my arm, causing a shiver beneath the thin cotton of my sleeve.“Yes.”
“It was…” My eyes threaten to roll back in my head before I remember who exactly I’m dealing with.“Wait, did you just mark me?”I ask.
A breath of his amusement kisses my cheeks.It proves exactly how close we’re standing as the lights flicker back on.Gotta give Hawke props on the face paint choice.In this lighting, Ford looks creepy and hot in a way that doesn’t even make sense.I should be absolutely terrified, and yet…
His dark eyes drop to my mouth.“Do you want me to?”he rasps.“Mark you?”
My pulse throbs, and so does my core.I’m going to keep blaming the ambiance.The lighting.The quiet.The adrenaline from running all over the grounds while being chased.It’s a completely normal reaction, all things considered.Isn’t it?
“And how many have you marked tonight, Ford?”I whisper.I shouldn’t.It’s not like I don’t know I’m a dime a dozen to this guy, but I can’t help it.Guess the lack of light has a way of shining on my insecurities, too.
Slowly, Ford lifts his hands, showing me his unpainted palms in the black light.He hasn’t marked anyone tonight.Why is that such a turn-on?Lowering his hands again, he grabs my hips and deliberately moves me backward.I follow his guidance, though I don’t know why.He’s the enemy.At least, from a game standpoint.And that’s why we’re here, isn’t it?To play a game?When my back finally hits the wall behind me, the lights flicker off again, and his hand disappears from my waist before my ears perk at a strange noise.It’s quiet.Almost soundless, but thanks to my sight being taken from me, my hearing is amplified.The subtle scratch of material brushing against itself sounds in the room.He lifts his hand with the same slow, meticulous calculation I’ve come to expect from him when something wet and cold touches the side of my face.Paint.He moved us closer to the wall so he’d have access to the paint.
I open my mouth to protest, but before I have a chance to utter a single syllable, his mouth is on mine.
28
FORD
Ikiss June deeper, lifting her head and pushing my tongue into her waiting mouth while smearing the paint against her silky smooth skin with my hand.The irony isn’t lost on me.The way I’m sullying her.Tainting her.Marking her.Both literally and figuratively.Fuck, it’s only the beginning, and in a way, it was only a matter of time, too.I would feel bad if I wasn’t such an ass.But after all the nights I’ve spent dreaming about this moment, the moment when I could finally kiss the shit out of June Withers while simultaneously giving my brother andFireman Bryantwo middle fingers in the process, is a moment worth relishing.To be honest, it’s a goddamn miracle I waited until Fireman Bryan was out of the picture.Then again, I guess I didn’t wait because this isn’t the first time I’ve tasted June Withers, and I refuse to let it be the last.
I’ve been watching her all night.I know I shouldn’t have.Not when I had no idea she’d broken up with Bryan.Gotta admit, she surprised the hell out of me when she jumped off the balcony earlier.Didn’t think she had it in her.Watching the way she laughed afterward, holding her stomach and wiping the tears from her eyes.It was the prettiest damned thing I’d ever seen.Doesn’t mean I should’ve followed her here, let alone cornered her, though.
Not that I’d take it back.Especially now, when my mouth is finally on hers again.
She sucks on my tongue greedily, a tiny mewl hitting the back of her throat.The combination shoots straight to my cock.I move my unpainted hand to her hip and push her harder against the wall as my restraint threatens to buckle.Trouble is, she’s too damn hard to resist.The things I could do to her.June’s fingers cling to the front of my shirt, and she raises her chin even more, practically begging me to fuck her right here.Right now.
My hand slides from her hip to her ribcage, and she arches her back, pressing her front to mine.Fuck, does she want this as much as I do?Inching higher, I pause, letting her heavy breast rest on top of my hand as I wait for permission.For a chance to take this further.“Tell me you’re gonna let me touch you, June.”I lower my painted palm to the wall beside her head.“Tell me to touch you.”
“Touch me,” she breathes out.
The simple plea is like gasoline on an already lit inferno.I lean in and nip at her bottom lip, then pull away so I can take in her expression in the purple light, since it’s only a matter of time until we’ll be blanketed in darkness again.Holding her gaze, I watch the spark in her pretty blue eyes.Call me a fool, but I think I was right before.I think she wants this as much as I do.Her lips part as my hand wanders higher.Inch.By.Fucking.Inch.When I finally palm her right breast through her shirt, she gasps.It’s quiet.So damn quiet that if we were anywhere else, I’m not sure I would’ve heard it, which would’ve been a travesty.
That sound?That sound is one I know I’ll never forget.One I know will haunt me long after whatever is burning between us has fizzled into nothing but ashes.And already, I know I’ll miss it.
“Do you know how long I’ve been wanting to do this?”I press my groin to hers, letting her feel the swell of my cock against her stomach while I continue caging her in against the wall.
Practically panting against my mouth, she asks, “Do what?”
“Worship you.”Removing my hand from the wall, I dip it in one of the cups beside us.I don’t give a shit what color it is, I’m determined to mark her in as many ways as I can before she realizes she can do better.She’s too distracted to call me out for it, though I don’t think she’d stop me anyway.
Once I’m satisfied the wet liquid envelops my fingers, I trail them down her body, leaving a smear of paint across her top as I kiss her again, sucking her bottom lip into my mouth while searching for bare skin.When I reach the hem of her shirt, I shift my touch an inch higher, grasping her waist while continuing my assault on her right breast with my opposite hand.She really is perfect.Soft.Full.Heavy.The urge to shove her shirt up fully and have my way with her is so strong it takes everything inside of me to slow down, but the last thing I want to do is scare her or pressure her to do something when she isn’t ready.
