A swath of black moves past my peripheral seconds before the door slams. I drop my arms to look. Jace stands with his back against the time-worn wood. My heart skips a beat. I’m not sureif it's excitement to see him or unease as to what he is up to. "To what may I owe this marvelous encounter?"
His gaze scans up my legs and over my breasts before rising to meet my eyes. It smolders like the hot iron in my hand. He shrugs and continues eyeing me like a meal. "Nothing, really."
“Then tell me what you want and go. I don’t have time for your bullshit right now.”
“What you said outside yesterday. Was that true?”
I set the iron on the dresser and turn back toward the mirror to hide my trembling lips. “That I’m leaving? Yes. I already worked it out with Dusty. I’m going to stay with him until I leave for New York.”
“No.” He moves as if he’s about to step toward me but doesn’t. “Not that. The other thing.”
I drop my palms on the dresser and stare at my reflection. A thick layer of tension swims through the room. I breathe in through my nose and let it dribble from my glossy lips. I should lie and let him off the hook. Tell him I didn’t mean it and watch him walk out of my life forever, but the words sit in my throat, lodged under the rock that’s beginning to form.
Warmth fills the space behind me, his masculine scent filling my nostrils. My chest rises as our eyes lock inside the mirror. He’s seen me naked, flicked his tongue over every inch of my body, but his eyes don’t have the same savage gleam I’m used to seeing. A hint of something else flashes in those cobalt orbs. Emotion. It moves through his gaze like water crashing on the sand. “You look really beautiful.”
“No thanks to you.”
“That pink princess dress didn’t suit you anyway. But this?” Calloused fingertips graze over the skinny shoulder strap, down my back, then across the elastic band on my arm. An army of goose bumps arises in his wake. “This is all you.”
“Is that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?”
He winces as if he’s hurt. “It’s a compliment. You walk around pretendin’ you’re all sweet and wholesome, but I know the truth. You’re fuckin’ feral.”
“Maybe that’s because you drive me to the brink of insanity.”
“Bitch, please. You’ve had the keys the whole time.”
I swallow hard. “Well, this is my stop, and I’m getting out.”
“Don’t play. You got at least one more ride in ya.” He wraps his hands around my waist and yanks me against him. Through the thin panels of satin and tulle, the hard ridge of his erection pushes against my ass.
“We’re not doing this again,” I snap, but the words slip off my tongue too breathy and wanton for my own good.
He slides the hair away from my neck and sinks his teeth into my flesh. Arousal floods my core as he bites down hard. “You know what I think? I think you like it. The fightin’, the cussin’ … the more it hurts, the hotter it is.” I hate him more for being right. His roving hand finds its way under my skirts. When he dips beneath the string of my thong, the cheap material snaps.
I gasp. “What are you doing?”
“Takin’ what’s mine.”
Beads of sweat dapple the dresser between my palms. “I don’t remember you staking claim.”
A gravelly chuckle rattles his chest as he drops his pants. “Then you haven’t been paying attention.”
Bending me over, he drives into my slick heat. A quiet rasp puffs from my lungs. Cindy’s just on the other side of the door. Dusty will be here any minute, followed by Troy.
But Jace’s husky whisper clings to my mind. There’s a jagged edge to his voice. An ache that’s on the outskirts of something, yet he’s afraid to cross over. It’s not just about sex, not this time. He’s testing the waters. Gauging my reaction to his unspoken confession. He tortures me with his stillness. I arch into him,trying to build the friction between us, but he holds me steady, filling me to the hilt.
“Tell me you want me.”
“I want you.” It flows off my lips like a sacrament. I can’t deny it, nor do I want to.
He rocks his pelvis one time, making me whimper. “What do you want me to do?”
“Make me yours.”
“Watch,” he growls. Reaching around my throat, he forces my head up. I meet his fervent stare in the reflection before me. “I want you to watch me own this tight little pussy.”
“You already do,” I simper. I press my hand to the mirror, holding myself taut as he slams into me again. Long, powerful strokes ride me into oblivion.