He tipped his chin down at me. "I'm taking you home. I'm spending the night with you, and I'm not going to give you a single reason to regret any of it in the morning," he said. "Then I'm taking another night. And another. I'm taking it all, Aly. Everything you'llgiveme."
"You don't deserve another chance," Iseethed.
"But I do and so do you," he said. "I remember how your nipples felt on my tongue. The taste of you. The way you looked when I'd fucked the words right out of you. Let me give that to youagain."
Squeezing my eyes shut and shaking my head, I snapped, "Shutup."
"I haven't been able to think about anything but you this week," he said. "Your body—you,Honeybee, you—did somethingtome."
"It sounds like you're upset about that," I replied, an eyebrow arched. "Is that because you're so fucking busy pining for your collegegirlfriend?"
He held up a hand in protest, shook his head. "I'm not pining for—nevermind. It's not what you think. You let me worryaboutthat."
"I don't recall giving you permission to dictate what I should worry about,"Isaid.
Not waiting for a response, I turned on my heel and stormed out. I was certain that my colleagues were watching and whispering, and filing away nuggets of gossip that would evolve into Riley-sized boulders by Monday, but I couldn't stop or slow down. I made my way through the ballroom and adjoining reception areas, dodging gala attendees and fast-moving waiters. I was blind to it all, even the car-hailing protocol at the sidewalk taxistand.
"Ma'am.Ma'am," the attendee called from over my shoulder. "We'll do that for you." A young man dressed in the hotel's uniform motioned for me to lower my raised arm. "Step out of the driveway and we'll get a car for you. Where are youheaded?"
"Beacon Hill,"Isaid.
"Just one moment," he said, pointing at the curb. "Stay here,please."
I tapped my shoe against the pavement as I waited, needing any outlet for the furious energy building inside me. If only he'd dismissed the issues with his ex-girlfriend—more thanlet me worry about that—I would've been melting like butter right now. I didn't need extensive explanations or anything complicated, but I did need to believe that the ghosts of girlfriends past weren't in bedalongsideus.
"Goddamn it, Alex," Riley yelled, breathless and harried when he burst through the doors behind me. He wrapped his hand around my elbow and pulled me to his side. "We're notfinished."
"We're definitely finished," I replied. "You have other prioritiesrightnow."
"Ma'am," the attendant called, holding a taxidooropen.
"Finished," I repeated, shaking out ofhisgrip.
I slipped into the backseat and wrapped my arms around my torso as the chill of the night air prickled my skin. I turned my attention away from Riley and the hotel, opting instead for the ribbons of brake lights on BoylstonStreet.
From the corner of my eye I saw movement, and then the doorslammedshut.
"I've already told you that I'm not fucking around," Riley said, "and how this night is goingtoend."
He leaned forward and spoke to the driver, rattling off my address and mentioning something about construction on one street and delays on another. The driver accepted these suggestions and shot out of the hotel's driveway, seemingly unconcerned with pedestrians or oncomingtraffic.
"I don't know what you think you're doing," I started, "but I'm not playing along. You're not spending the night. You're not even coming up to myapartment."
"Hmm," Riley murmured, cocking his head to the side for a second. "As I recall, you did a much better job of following directions lastweekend."
My breath caught in my throat and I squeezed my eyes shut. My thighs, too. His deep voice thrummed along my spine and sent a quiver through my shoulders. And those words, they called up the ones that had been swishing around my mindallweek.
Hands on the headboard. Don't you daremovethem.
Ass up,Honeybee.
You come when I let you. Youunderstandme?
Take it, Aly. Fuckingtakeit.
"Ah," Riley purred, the sound nothing more than a vibration against my ear. "Thereitis."
"This isn't real," I said through gritted teeth. "It's an arrangement because neither of us can deal with dating other people right now." I turned, meeting his gaze. "Can we forget about everything that happened in Rhode Island?Please?"
