She tastes every bit as sweet as I had imagined, like cinnamon and sugar rolled up into one fiery casing. Warmth radiates from every inch of her body, encouraging my touch and welcoming my kiss. The rush of blood pounds in my ear.
A warning.
I’m going too far beyond the realm of our relationship, the new one that dictates I keep my hands to myself. But our past demands otherwise. All the pent-up hunger I’ve felt for her these past few days insists I feed the fire between us. She is so receptive to every stroke of my tongue, every caress of my hands. As if my touch had been made for her.
I am already rock-hard when she brushes her sweet pussy against my erection. A bolt of fire and ice slices through my body, cutting off all remaining rational thoughts from my brain. I groan and tug her tighter against me, wanting to give her everything she desires and more. Her body writhes beneath mine. She’s ready. She wants this as badly as I do, and yet something holds me back.
Like it or not, we will be spending more time together. A time that can’t be spent hoisting her onto my desk and fucking her into oblivion. And I don’t want to make things awkward between us. Not when it could jeopardize her chances at the apprenticeship and everything she’s worked so hard to earn.
Fuck.I stiffen.What am I doing?
I pull away.
My hands fall to my side, instantly regretting the loss of her touch beneath them. She is still clinging to my shirt, her lips swollen and parted as if awaiting the return of my kiss. She is beautiful, eyes bright with arousal and stray strands of red hair tumbling along the curve of her face. Her hands tremble against my chest as she struggles to grasp the last shreds of breath from the dissolving air between us. I’m surprised to find myself winded and shaken. Though not so surprised by the throbbing ache in my cock. A reminder that this feeling is not going to go away on its own.
I groan and run a hand through my hair.
Her hands slide down my chest, the remaining tethers of her touch leaving me for good. She knows what’s coming perhaps. It can’t be any surprise to her that this cannot continue.
Not now, at least.
“I think it’s best we-”
“Stop,” she says hastily. Her hand flies out to silence whatever weak excuse I planned to issue. The same hand shifts and grooms the errant strands of her hair back into place. She regains composure quickly, shrugging off our passion as effortlessly as stepping off of a roller coaster. “It’s fine. I-I don’t know what came over me.”
“This was not you, Aly.”
Hell, it wasn’t her, at all. I’m the idiot who couldn’t stand the thought of her placing any distance between us. What does it matter what she calls me? It doesn’t change who we are. It doesn’t change the shitty hand we’ve been dealt.
Her phone dings. She removes it from her pocket and lifts it up between us. Both our eyes fall to the slim device separating us in more ways than one. She is visibly trembling as her fingers rapidly respond to whatever message she received.
When her soft blue eyes meet mine, the hint of desire lingering within them shoots straight through my chest. God, I want this woman. This incredibly passionate woman inches from my touch and yet so far out of my reach.
“Our next meeting is in one week?” she asks softly. The subtle break in her voice is enough to make me forget every shred of good sense I have left.
Instead, I nod. My body tenses, restraining the urge to yank her back into my arms and finish what we started. But that would lead us nowhere. Only toward more heartache.
“You have my number in the docket I gave you,” I say, no longer recognizing my own voice. “Call me if there is a problem. Or if you have problems resolving the issues I’ve laid out in the notes.”
She straightens, inhaling one long draw of breath before turning on her heel and opening the door. I let her leave this time. I don’t even know what possessed me to stop her in the first place. I just couldn’t bear the thought of her angry with me. Again.
A lot of good that did me.
We can’t carry on like this,I remind myself.No one comes out ahead in the end.
No, it’s easier when I don’t lose sight of reality. Relationships are for business mergers. They are not about passion or love. Isn’t that what my parents taught me?
It’s been a few months since I’ve been with a woman. Perhaps that’s where all this is coming from. I need to get a good fuck out of my system. Anything to get the redhead with soft curves and lips like molten honey out of my mind.
I stare back at my laptop. I don’t have another class until Wednesday afternoon. I can spare time for a quick trip into the city by the bay. How lucky can a man get on a Monday evening?
I guess it’s time to find out.
* * *
Fifteen minutes in San Francisco and already I remember why I’ve stayed away.
Too many people recognize me. A tall brunette approaches me outside the club, looping her arm in mine as if we’ve known each other all our lives. She seems to know me, but I can’t for the life of me remember her. It wouldn’t be the first time. The women in my family’s circle of friends have so many cosmetic surgeries in a season, it’s like meeting a whole new person from one year to the next.