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“I’m not a good man, Jacob.”
Lifting a shoulder, I shrugged. “I don’t see it. I think you act like an asshole so no one will get close to you.” His stare was piercing, and I couldn’t look away, trying to find the words to communicate with him when my mouth was dry at the way he devoured me with his gaze. “We can take it slow,” I offered, lifting a hand as though to touch him but dropping it back to my side before making contact. Mike followed the movement with his eyes. “I think maybe you need someone in your life, even if it’s not me long term. If I can help you get past whatever is holding you back, I’ll be happy.”
Mike looked to be in pain, his face on the border of screwing up, his lip lifted almost into a snarl. “You can’t help.”
“Won’t know until we try. What do we have to lose?”
He simply watched me again, and I wanted to know what he wasn’t saying because it certainly felt like hewasn’tsaying much more than he was.
“I’m going to regret this,” Mike mumbled, and I was about to ask what when his lips met mine. There was no sweet lead-up, no teasing of lips on lips, and enjoying the taste of each other. The kiss was fueled by desperation, passion, and maybe a touch of anger as if to sayis this what you wanted?
God, yes.
Mike dominated the kiss as he closed the space between us, backing me against the wall until all I could feel was the heat from his body pressed against mine. I tried to return the passion, but Mike took over, running his fingers through my hair before grabbing a handful and yanking my head back, licking up my neck and throat as I groaned.
It was back, the magnetic pull between us—two opposites unable to stay apart—and when he would pull away slightly, I would grab his arms and tug him straight back next to me, needing more of him. The kiss was a reflection of us, and it was driven by power, passion, and an inkling of hesitation that crept through in the way his fingers danced up my arm, a gentle touch compared to his grip on my hair.
“Fuck, Mike…” I moaned as he grabbed my cock through my pants, finding the outline of my length with his fingers and grippinghard.When I whimpered as his grip increased, he chuckled, dark and full of promises. I reached up, running my hands down his chest.
Mike hissed in pain and recoiled from my touch.
Fuck, not again.
No, this was different.
Mike was trying to protect his chest from touch without touching it himself, hunched over, his lips, slightly swollen from our making out, were pressed together, and his eyes squeezed shut.
“Oh shit. I’m sorry, are you hurt?”
“It’s nothing,”
“Doesn’t seem like nothing,” I said, and as I reached an arm up to touch him, he snatched at my wrist lightning fast and with an intense glare. My brows pulled together in a frown. “Are we going to go backward this soon?”
Mike sighed, patting over his chest tenderly and straightening his back. He watched me again for a moment, spending more time in his head deciding what he wanted to do. I was about to say something when he started undoing his cufflink on his left wrist, and I tried not to gasp out loud as he rolled the sleeve up to expose his arm.
The scars I had seen glimpses of on his wrist wound all the way up his arm, angry and red, weaving and passing around his limb and, I’m guessing, continuing over his shoulder.
“When my ex and I split up…” Mike whispered, rolling down the sleeve quickly, “… he left me with these.”
“Mike…”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Youdon’t want to hurtme?Fuck, Mike, I would’ve thought you’d be more afraid of me hurtingyouafter going through…” I trailed off, reaching out to touch his arm over his shirt, unable to feel the scars through the fabric, “… going through whatever caused this.”
Mike simply shook his head, and I watched as he bent down to retrieve the cardboard roll, discarded and forgotten, from the floor. He slapped his hand against the control panel again, and the lift whirred into life, continuing its journey upward.
I huffed out a breath. “You’ve been through hell, and all you’re worried about is hurting me.” The pieces of this man were starting to come together, and the more he wanted to protect me from himself, the more I wanted to protect him from the world. “You must be an angel or something.”
Mike’s responding scoff was only half-filled with humor. “Something like that.”
As the elevator voice announced our arrival, I grabbed Mike’s hand, letting go when he turned back to face me. “Does this mean we’re going on another date?”
He searched my face, pausing long enough to make me uncomfortable in my skin. “Yes.”
“Good.” I smiled, lowering my voice. “This time, you can suckmycock before you leave.”
A growl emanated from low in Mike’s throat, and I swallowed heavily. “Be careful there, Jacob…” he whispered, leaning into me under the pretense of brushing imaginary fluff from my shoulder, “… I might be more than you can handle in that department.”
