Chapter 13
Garrett
I lead Ali to my office, towards what I know without a doubt, is a bad decision. I’ve tried my damndest to erect and maintain an emotional wall between us. The last thing I need is to fall for Hank Carter’s daughter, so this has to be all business.
We make it past the door, which I slam shut behind us, not that it will afford us much privacy. The walls are all windows from the chair rail up, so I can see the entire shop.
Ali looks at me with a face betraying her longing, but there’s also a look of unmistakable fear. Part of me is ashamed that I’ve scared her, but I did it for her own good. I’m not good at casual sex, and if I allow myself to fall too hard for her, I’m just gonna make this more difficult for the both of us.
“You sure you want this?” I say gruffly as I undo my belt.
Her chest rises and falls rapidly as she looks at me with eager eyes.
I take a step closer to her, and she swallows. I love the way her body responds to seduction. The way she quivers, biting her lip.
Put up a wall. Don’t let yourself fall, not for this one.
Her flowery scent entices me, and it takes considerable restraint to stop myself from tearing her sundress into tatters. Ali has me savage with want, and if I’m not careful, this could go sideways. I have to be cold without being too rough. Respect her without showing warmth.
In other words, get that wall up.
She smiles, toying playfully with the hem of her dress.
“Just say the word, and you can leave now. No harm done.” I point towards the door. “But if you stay, just know that you are mine to do whatever I want with while that door remains closed.”
I issue the threat with half a hope that she’ll just leave because I’m scared of what happens next.
“Whatever you want with?” she says, looking up at me with big, blue eyes.
“You bring out something in me, Ali. Once I get a taste of you, I’m not gonna wanna stop. So if this is some kind of game, you best leave now.”
It’s a half-truth. Ali’s like a drug to me, and I already know I’m gonna want more, but I’d never hurt her, and I certainly would never continue if she told me to stop.
You’re trying to sabotage a good thing. Scare her away. Would it be so bad to let something good into your life? A light in the darkness?
Ali steps forward, placing a hand on my bare chest. “Garrett Flint, I’ve wanted you since I was twelve years old and wouldn’t have known what to do with you if I had you. Take me any way you want.”
I’m as startled as I am eager. While I seek desperately to put up walls, Ali successfully tears them down with calm and gentle words. I’ve never wanted a woman so badly before, and I don’t think I can pass up this little slice of heaven.
“Sit your ass down on my desk,” I command with no gentleness to my tone.
She nods over to a cot I have in the corner, which is where I slept before Hank took me in. “So, the bed’s out of the question?”
“Sweetheart, that bed can barely support my weight, let alone ours combined, now sit your ass down on the desk like I told you to.”
She complies, taking a seat, kicking off her sandals, and placing a foot on the desk near her ass, her white dress cascading down her thigh. She casts me a brazen stare that lets me know she’s ready for me. Too bad, I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready for her.
I close the distance between us, my face betraying none of my inner turmoil as I make my features hard and uncaring. I bring a hand behind her neck, lean down, and lose myself to her.
Our lips lock, her greedy tongue dancing with mine. Whatever fear she has of me only fuels her passion. With one hand, I lock her into place, the other, I use to caress her soft cheek. Her arms circle my neck like she’s holding onto me for dear life.
I pull back, looking deeply into her eyes. “You sure you want this?”
Her head nods slightly, enough to give me the green light.
My cock is painfully hard, demanding to feel the heat of her loins. I kiss her again, and as I pull back, she nibbles my lower lip, tugging it gently between her teeth. It’s been so long since I’ve had a woman in my arms, and even longer since I’ve had one so eager for me.
“Let’s get you out of these clothes.” I grab the flowered edge of her dress and pull it upward. Her arms raise, allowing me to slip it off and gaze at her beautiful body.
