Page 73 of Legacy

“I don’t know.” She pulled away, and I took a step back, not wanting to completely cage her when she needed that space. I was a bad man, but I wasn’t a monster.

“What do you want, Felicity? What do you need, little flower?” I asked, my voice soft.

“I have no idea what I want. And that’s the problem. You heard the Ls at the Flicked Bean.”

“I don’t want to talk about the Ls.”

“Well, you heard them. I had a crush on you all of college. I was a full-fledged adult, crushing on an older guy.”

“And now?”

“I still want you.”

“I’ve wanted you since I saw you dancing on the dance floor at Summit Grill on your birthday. Your hands were up, your breasts bouncing with each move. You had that little sliver of skin showing between the top of your jeans and the bottom of your shirt. I wanted to lick that skin. Taste your salt. Taste everything. And it took all within me to walk away.”

“But why?”

“Why do you think? I’m an old man.”

“You aren’t. You’re in your thirties. I’m in my twenties. I’m an adult. Making my own decisions.”

“But you’re also their little sister.”

“So? Why is that such a big deal?”

“You know why.”

She ran her hands over her face. “Okay, that was stupid. Because yes, I know why. But still. Shouldn’t I be a factor on my own merit?”

“And what do you want?”

“I want you to kiss me. I want you to touch me. I just want.”

“If I do all that, is that it, then?”

“We both know that we’d hurt each other if it were anything less. Or if it was anything more.”

I leaned forward so she would look at me again. I needed to see those eyes.

“Baby, little flower, I’ll hurt you. It’s what I do.”

“You keep saying that, but I’ve never seen any evidence of the people you hurt.”

“That’s because people are good at hiding what breaks them the most. And you haven’t met the ones I’ve broken.”

And she never would.

“If you kiss me again, I don’t want it to be the last time.”

“If I kiss you again, it won’t be the last.”

“You won’t hurt me, Callum.”

“I will, baby. It’s what I do best.”

“I think you don’t give yourself enough credit.”

“I think you don’t ask for enough.”