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She froze in his arms, positive she’d imagined his last words when neither Mateo or Kade reacted. What the hell did that even mean? The hot and cold routine was enough to drive her insane. One minute he was whispering sweet nothings that were enough to leave her panties drenched, and the next he was reminding her he didn’t want to have to protect her. She never knew where she stood with him, not that she should be standing anywhere with him. Because she shouldn’t. She was a means to an end for him, and he was a passing moment for her.
Flora shrugged his arm off her shoulder and shifted in her seat so he was no longer pressed directly against her. Side-eyeing Draven, she answered in full sentences. “They were creatures of the night. They lived in the shadows. Some people said they could come out on a particularly dark day, but that they preferred the light of the moon as it fed them.”
Draven didn’t move closer but he didn’t need to in order to ramp up the heat between them. His hand found her thigh, and he gave her a gentle squeeze. “Is there anything that phases them?”
She sucked in a sharp breath, and her eyes lowered to where his hand was. When she looked back up at him, his gaze dared her to make him move. And make him move she would. If he was truly a passing moment, then she would live for it. She didn’t need his cryptic words or his kindness. She just needed the experience. And she was going to take what she could get.
Channeling her inner badass bitch, she reached down and placed her hand on his. “I don’t remember any weaknesses.” She gripped his hand, digging her nails into his skin and inched it toward where her pussy throbbed in time with her heart. “As I said, it was a children's story.”
If Kade and Mateo had any inkling to the silent battle taking place on their side of the table they didn’t say a damn thing. But when the bartender showed up with their shots, they jumped to grab the tray.
Draven didn’t move away. With one hand, he dug his fingers into her thigh and dragged them upward over her heated core, and the other he tangled in her hair, pulling just enough to make her gasp. “Thank you for your help,” he drawled, and then in one swift motion pinched her clit through her clothes. “Now it’s time to live a little.”
Adrenaline and something she could only describe as pure unadulterated lust shot through her. She clenched her thighs together and tried to get her erratic heartbeat under control. He wanted her to live a little? That was laughable. All she’d done was live since she’d left the castle, and while it was fucking exhilarating, there was no doubt she was in way over her head. Flora might be able to compete in his little games, but Draven dominated them.
She studied him as he downed his shot and laughed with Kade and Mateo like he hadn’t just set fire to her insides. He handed her the shot glass filled with light pink liquid.
“It’s not bubbles, but you’ll like it. Bottoms up.”
Flora eyed the glass and then Draven. His lips curled up into a sexy smile.
Damn him.
She took the glass and threw back the fruity liquid. To her surprise there was little to no burn as she swallowed.
The guys cheered, and even though heat bloomed on her cheeks, it was accompanied by a genuine smile.
“What did you think,flaca?” Mateo asked, but his eyes were glued to the ass of a nearby waitress.
“It was surprisingly good. What’s it called?”
Draven’s sexy smile widened to a wicked grin. “Wet Pussy.”
Flora’s mouth dropped open, struck stupid.
Kade, Mateo, and Draven threw their heads back laughing. They looked as if they didn’t have a care in the world. Like they weren’t on a mission that could change their lives forever. They seemed younger. Lighter. And even though it was at her expense, Flora wished she could bottle the moment and keep it for when things inevitably got worse. Because they always did.
The night flew by one carefree moment after another. The drinks never seemed to empty and the food was delicious.
Who’d have thought she’d like fried pickles?
Draven took a roll of quarters to the jukebox and played all her favorite songs and before long they had the whole bar singing at the top of their lungs toBohemian Rhapsody.
She wasn’t sure what Draven’s angle was. He doted on her, and between lingering touches, and heated emerald stares, he encouraged her to live. Flora wasn’t sure what a night at a bar or even driving a Porsche at top speeds had to do with living, but she was glad she’d have those memories forever. A very long forever.
“Why don’t you go dance with Mateo?” Draven’s eyes were on his friend, but he leaned in so the warmth of his breath teased her bare neck. “He looks like he could use some saving.”
Flora followed his gaze to where the one-eyed bartender was wrapped around Mateo’s muscular frame. Mateo stood with his arms plastered to his side as she swayed him to the beat of the music.
Flora giggled and hopped out of the booth. She was light on her feet as she strode across the dancefloor. The third Wet Pussy shot was most definitely to blame. Or at least that’s what she was telling herself. It most definitely wasn’t the delicious hybrid whose stare she could practically feel as she swayed her ass.
She was ten feet from Mateo when a hand grabbed hers and twirled her until she landed against a solid chest. Flora looked up into the dark eyes of a face she’s seen time and time again in her nightmares, but prayed she’d never see again.
“Hello, sweet girl.”
Panic gripped her spine and she gasped for air as if all the oxygen had been sucked from the room. If Petey knew she was there, so did her father. It wouldn’t be long before she was trapped in the back bedroom with only the birds outside her window to remind her that life went on beyond those four walls.
Flora pressed her hands to Petey’s chest and shoved him back as hard as she could. His hand tightened around the back of her neck, stopping any space she’d tried to put between them.
