I bark out an incredulous laugh. “Fuck, no, sweetheart.”
When she continues to look up at me, endearingly worried and self-conscious, I run a finger along the side of her flawless cheek. “You’re perfect,” I tell her honestly. “Why would you think you did anything wrong?”
Her cheeks color, “Because I’ve never…” she trails off, her eyes glancing away from me.
Fuck, I’d already figured out she was a virgin but to hear the confirmation from her own lips…
I try to set her mind at ease. “You have nothing to worry about, Hadley. I would never take advantage of you.”
She chews on her bottom lip for a moment before she whispers, “What if I want you to?”
I make a strangled sound, every muscle in my goddamn body tensing. The beast inside me is snarling to come out. She’s unknowingly baiting him and working him into a frenzy.
“You can’t say things like that to me, Hadley,” I croak out, pulling her closer to me against my good sense. It’s dangerous to hold her like this when my control is so close to snapping, but god, she feels good. So good.
“Why not?” her question is little more than a whisper.
“Because if I lose control with you, that’s it. I’ll never be able to stop, sweetheart.” My eyes blaze down into hers, trying to communicate with her just how serious I am. If I fuck her now, she’s mine. There will be no going back. Ever.
I don’t know what the fuck is wrong with me, why I’m holding back. This is everything I want. Hadley is basically offering herself to me.
Maybe it’s because I’m afraid she’s offering me one night out of the curiosity of a virgin who needs comforting, and I know that will never be enough for me. She’s already under my skin, but once I get inside her, it’ll be game over. She’ll be mine whether she likes it or not.
She reaches out and skims shaky fingers over my chest, causing all my muscles to bunch and ripple.
I grab her hand, capturing it in my own, and she looks up at me with a gasp. “You’re playing with fire, little girl,” I warn her.
She continues to gaze up at me with those fuck-me eyes, and I feel like I can’t breathe. I’m surrounded by her scent, painfully aware of the heat where our bodies touch, and I’m trying to remind myself of why I’m so careful around her. She’s my angel, and I’d never do anything to hurt her or scare her. I need to keep her safe from everything—including me.
But what she says next shreds the tattered remains of my reasoning.
“Then burn me.”
And I lose it.
I fucking lose it.
Game on.