I slipped off my jacket, tossed it on the counter, and turned to face her.
“Ellie.”
“Yeah?”
I leaned against the island. “Get out of your head.”
“I’m not in my head.”
“Yes, you are.”
She rubbed her temples. “Alright, genius. What am I thinking?”
“You're panicking, convincing yourself you didn't mean to kiss me like that. That you don't want to do it again. You think crossing this line is going to screw everything up.”
Her jaw tightened. “I don't know what this is anymore.”
I laced my hands behind my head. “Neither do I. But I like you. Not pretend, not for show, not for a single fucking headline. I like you. And I really like kissing you.”
“Sawyer…” Her voice cracked on my name, and that tiny fracture hit me square in the chest. She looked down. “You can't say things like that.”
“Too late.”
Her eyes fluttered shut. “I don't know if I can do anything real right now.”
There it was.
I could've pushed, could've told her how badly I wanted her to feel something real. But I didn't.
I sat down on the barstool. “That's fine.” I nodded for her to join me, hoping she would. “You set the pace.”
She hesitated. Then, she moved—slow, unsure—but she came to me.
When she stopped in front of me, I slid my hands to her hips.
“Is this fake?” she asked.
I pulled her to me until her stomach pressed against my dick. “Does this feel fake to you?”
She shook her head.
I caught her chin, forced her to look at me. “Good. Because we don't have to be real for you to use me.”
Her lips parted. “What?”
“Use me.” I pushed my knee between her legs and felt her breath catch. “Take whatever you want. Real or not. Pretend or don’t.”
Her hands found my neck, pulling us closer.
“I don't care.” I tilted her chin up, our mouths inches apart. “Use me however you'll have me.”
She was breathing harder, eyes darting between my mouth and my eyes. “And then what? When this ends, we just stop? That simple?”
I leaned in, my mouth brushing her cheek. “It ends when you want it to.” I let my lips trail past her jaw.
Her breath caught. “One night. Just one. We get it out of our system then go back to normal.”
“Whatever you say, baby.”
