With trembling hands,I pull out my phone, nearly dropping it.
Daphne:Leaving for the night. Don’t wait up.
I don’t bother waiting for a response. With my task complete, I shove my phone back into the pocket of the jeans I might as well have painted on my body earlier tonight and take the hand Max extends for me as I stand up from the bar stool.
Hungry eyes run over my body, and my stomach clenches in anticipation of what’s to come.
Hopefully me.
More than once.
He pulls me behind him, blocking me from the crowd with his big body as we move in sync toward the exit. Kingdom is packed tonight, and when the band says they’re taking a break, there’s a mass exodus from the dance floor as everyone rushes toward the bar, jostling us. I grip Max’s hand tighter to stop myself from falling flat on my ass, and he spins around faster than I expected and backs the two of us into a dark corner, hidden by one of the old steel beams left behind when the building was converted from a warehouse to what it is now.
I may never have met Sawyer Kingston before tonight, but Maddie and I spent plenty of our college nights in this bar. And yet, this is my first time hiding in the shadows here with a hot man. His arms cage me in for the second time tonight, and goosebumps break out over my already heated flesh. “Why, Mr. Kingston, you seem to like trapping me in your arms.”
“Trapped implies you don’t want to be here, Daphne.” He leans in, and his lips capture mine in a kiss that sears me to my soul and removes all brain function. One big hand slides along my jaw. His thumb caresses my cheekbone while the other glides down my body and dips under my tank to rest on my lower back.
The heat of his palm brands me.
Melting me as it claims a part of me that makes me shiver.
I wrap both arms around his shoulders and resist the urge to climb him like a jungle gym right here inside Kingdom. I’m sure I wouldn’t be the first person to do that here, but I still have enough composure to know better. Even if it sounds like fun.
He licks the seam of my lips until I open for him.
The taste of beer and bad decisions mix together like a cocktail of pure sin as our tongues clash, leaving me aching for more.
Max pulls back slightly and skims his lips along my cheek up to my ear. “I know you like being trapped by me, Miss Brenner. I can smell how turned on you are.” His tongue runs along the shell of my ear, and I squeeze my thighs together, already desperate for relief. “I bet if I slid my hand inside your pants right here, you’d be soaked for me, Daphne.”
I lick my lips, knowing he’d be right. “Maybe... But you’re going to need to get us out of here to find out.”
In another swift move, he wraps an arm around my shoulders and guides us the hell out of Kingdom before anyone else can get in our way.
Thank God.
Because I’m about two seconds from stripping myself naked and begging Max Kingston to make me come. Common sense is great, but it only goes so far when your brain is short-circuiting from a lust-induced haze.
Once we step outside, the muggy July heat surrounds us like a heavy blanket as Luka ushers us into the back of his gleaming black Range Rover. The cool interior chills my skin, but when I attempt to sit down in one of the two captain’s chairs, the firm squeeze of Max’s hand on my hip warms me right back up.
I glance over my shoulder at him, guessing the tilt of his head means he wants me to move to the third row. I slide my heels off and climb onto the bench seat of the third row, giddy with anticipation.
Considering Luka is driving us, and there isn’t privacy glass in here, I’m guessing we’ll need to stay pretty PG.
What a disappointment.
When Max climbs in next to me, his big body crowds me until I’m tucked further behind a captain’s chair while his long legs are sprawled out in the aisle.
“Where to, sir?” Luka asks from behind the wheel, his eyes watching us through the rearview. And it dawns on me that Max moved me here to keep me hidden from view.
So it’s gonna be like that?
My earlier disappointment in what I assumed was our PG car ride evaporates as excitement starts building in its place.
“The estate. And take your time.” His eyes never leave my face, his big palm resting on my knee, scorching through my jeans as he leans further into my space. “Unless you want to go to your place?”
I shake my head, my hair falling into my face again.
“Words, Daphne.” Strong fingers move my hair away and hold my face. “This only works with words.”