Page 18 of One More Night
“I actually have it black.” His words cage me in to the room, his presence intimidating in the low light that spills from the open refrigerator.
“You got here just in time then.” I lean across and put the creamer back, flicking the door shut after.
Darkness envelops us both as he crosses the room. I set both hands on the edge of the counter, unable to continue when I can feel his heat at my back.
I want this man, more than anything. But what truly holds me back is the thought he doesn’t really want me. If I cross this line, if I play this game, I just know I’ll fall hard and fast.
Where does that leave me when he decides he’s had enough fun and wants to move on?
“I know why you make me chase you.” He leans close, breath tickling my ear. “Because you want to make it hard for me. And we both know how you like it hard.”
I’m down. I’m out for the count and he hasn’t laid a single finger on me. “Maybe I’m not interested in what you have to offer?”
“And what would that be?” He takes my earlobe between his teeth, giving it a little pinch as he cages me between his arms. “Pleasure, pain, and a little bit of both at once when the mood strikes?”
Jordan’s fingers rest atop mine on the counter, his stance deliberate, I’m sure.
I feel trapped and totally at his mercy.
And I love it.
“Short-term,” I answer. “You promise something that won’t last.”
“And that’s not what you want?”
I shiver when his tongue makes contact with the shell of my ear. My skin prickles with goose flesh. “No. It’s not.”
He reaches his right arm across my body to take my left in his hold, and then effortlessly spins me to face him. I set my hands on his chest to save my balance, his proximity to me forcing my back to arch over the edge of the counter.
“You want long-term?” he asks as though confused. “With me?”
“Maybe with you. Maybe not. I don’t know for sure, I just know that I want to enter into a relationship with the possibility, that’s all.”
His eyes search mine; his nostrils flare while he appears to search for what to say next. I reach between us and set my palm against his strong jaw to run the pad of my thumb across his cheekbone. He seems so … troubled … and for some odd reason I want nothing more than to ease that pain for him.
Oh God. I am the one who can ease that pain, aren’t I?
He exhales heavily out his nose, and then places his hand to my collarbone, his fingertips brushing my throat in a strangely revenant way.
“If I promise you that possibility …”
“Then what?” I whisper, frantic for the rest.
“Then you’ll give me a second chance?”
I shouldn’t. I should back out of this room and run. I should heed my brother’s warning and stay far away from a man who has done nothing but confuse me so far.
“Corinne.” My names seeps desperation as it falls from his lips on a whisper, his hips pressing harder against my own.
The thickness of his arousal between us is undeniable, as is the beat of my heart as he leans in close.
“Say yes.” He doesn’t give me time to answer before his lips meet mine.
I devour the man, plain and simple, relishing his taste, his warmth, and his apparent need as he tilts his head and deepens our connection. Jordan’s hands find my face, his hold punishing as he pulls me toward him while grinding his hips against me at the same time.
I couldn’t care less about where we are right now. All I know is I can’t deny that I’ve thought about this moment numerous times over the years, wondered what it would feel like to have Jordan tell me he wants me as his.
“Yes,” I breathe when he breaks away. “I’ll give you a second chance.”