She bent forward and kissed him, tasting of chocolate, and right now Cole was the biggest sugar addict on the planet.
“Can we finish the rest of last night now?” she asked against his mouth. “Or do you have to get ready for work?”
“I’ll make time for you whenever you want.” He straightened, scooping her into his arms as he did. She felt right there, and his heart sang as she settled in against his chest.
His house was simple, a two-bedroom bungalow that hadn’t been updated since the mid-seventies. He didn’t care about much other than a clean set of sheets, a stocked fridge and a big-screen television. For a second, he wondered what Sienna thought of it. Clearly, she’d grown up in an affluent community in Chicago, and he guessed most of her previous boyfriends had fast cars and fancy houses.
“I love it here,” she whispered, as if she could read his mind. “There’s no place I’d rather be.”
He walked into his bedroom and set her down, cupping her cheeks between his palms. “I don’t deserve you,” he said, then inwardly cringed. Why the hell did he have to go and admit something like that?
Her eyes clouded, then she gave a small shake of her head. “You’re a good man, Cole. Don’t try to deny it.”
Now that he’d said the words, he couldn’t back down from them. “Jase was smart to warn you off of me. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t.”
The unwavering confidence in her tone did funny things to his insides, loosening parts of him that had been tightly caged for so long. The sensation was both exhilarating and disturbing, like he was a toy top spinning out of control. He held on to Sienna to ground him.
He breathed her in, then kissed her until his doubts had returned to the shadowed recesses where they lurked. She pressed closer, moaning softly when his palm grazed the underside of her breast.
“You’re sure this is what you want?”
She took a few steps away, reaching her hands behind her back. The soft whir of a zipper being undone filled the quiet room. “Can I ask you a question?”
He sucked in a breath and nodded as the fabric of her dress dipped below her shoulders.
“Do you really think I came here for a brownie?” She wiggled a little and the dress pooled at her feet. She wore a black lace bra with matching panties and his knees threatened to give out. He already knew her body was perfection, but somehow this felt different. She was choosing him. Claiming him for her own.
He loved every second of it. Loved everything about this woman, not just her body but who she was on the inside—who he was when they were together. He paused as the implication of the emotions tumbling through him hit home. He couldn’tloveSienna. He wouldn’t let himself fall in love. Cole had seen how love could ruin a person. It had destroyed his mother, and he’d never make himself or anyone else that vulnerable.
He forced the breath in and out of his lungs, willing himself to stay in the present moment. Here with Sienna.
“Should I give you a hint as to the answer?” Color flooded her cheeks as she pulled out the elastic that held back her hair. Blond waves fell over her shoulders, and she tugged on her lower lip.
“I seriously do not deserve you,” he whispered, “but I’m damn glad I’ve got you right now.”
One side of her mouth kicked up. “So what are you going to do with me?”
“Everything,” he answered as he shucked out of his shirt. He reached for her, and they fell to the bed together in a tangle of limbs. He nipped on her earlobe, and she skimmed her fingernails along his back.
He stood for a moment, pushing his boxers and shorts down over his hips.
“You’re still wearing too much,” he told her, arching a brow.
She lifted her back off the bed and unclasped her bra, letting the straps ease down her shoulders the same way the dress had earlier. This impromptu striptease was even sexier, and he reminded himself he was a lucky man to have this woman in his bed. In his life.
She reached for her panties, but he moved forward and brushed her fingers out of the way. “Allow me.”
He tugged them over her hips, then pushed apart her legs, taking in the heavenly view he had of her body from this vantage point.
His hands moved along her thighs until he reached her center, and he almost lost himself when she arched off the bed, moaning as he touched her.
“Cole,” she said, her voice hoarse, “I don’t think—”
“That’s right,” he interrupted, “no thinking right now.”
He couldn’t resist following his fingers with his mouth and was rewarded with a soft cry and the word “Yes.”
She continued to make the most beautiful little noises, finally crying out as he felt a tremor snake through her body. He reached into the nightstand drawer for a condom, then entered her in one swift thrust, unable to hold back any longer.
Sienna wrapped her arms around his neck, and they moved together, pressure building in Cole as she whispered his name. Pleasure burst over him like a shower of stars, brilliant and bright, and Cole never wanted the moment to end.
