Cross’s jaw flexes, and suddenly, he’s lifting up and pulling himself free from his pants. He grips himself, already hard and ready. I settle over his lap and sit slowly, the feeling of him widening me euphoric.
The delicious tug on my hair as his fingers grip onto the strands sends my head flying backward with a moan. Cross peppers my neck with hot kisses, pulling me further away from thinking this thing between us is totally and irrevocably wrong.
I move above him, refusing to let him do anything that could hurt him more, and work my body in ways it’s never been worked before. My hips curve, and I grind over him, his fingers digging into my torso to send me into a frenzy.
“So good,” I whisper through a moan.
“The best.” His voice is strained, and just the sound of it has me picking up the pace.
An orgasm takes me by surprise. I dig my nails into Cross’s shoulders as he takes my face in his hands and kisses me with blinding passion. I fall over the edge of pleasure, every single nerve ending tingling as Cross flexes his hips upward, stretching me even wider as he stills.
A hot groan vibrates out of his chest as I collapse onto him. My sweaty forehead lands on his shoulder, our chests both heaving for oxygen, or maybe just a grip on reality.
Minutes pass, or maybe hours, before I scramble off of his lap at the sound of the door opening.
“I’m back–” Tyler shouts, bags of ice crinkling as he walks down the hallway.
Cross’s deep voice travels throughout the house. “Stop where you are.”
The rubbing noise of plastic stops abruptly.
I quickly tug my panties and jeans back on, hopping on one foot until they’re righted on my hips and buttoned back up, as if we’d done nothing out of sorts while his best friend was gone.
“No use in hiding it.” Cross slowly pushes himself up from the chair. Even hunching over in pain, he towers above me. His warm hand grips my chin, the pad of his thumb rubbing against my swollen bottom lip. “Tyler sees the way I look at you.”
Tyler, from somewhere down the hall, interrupts the rare, soft moment between us. “Everyone sees the way you look at her…” He comes around the corner and shakes his head.
“And it’s becoming dangerous.”
[ 30 ]
CROSS
“Hey.”I kiss Scarlett’s cheek. “Wake up.”
She groans and rolls into me, tucking her face in the crook of my neck.
I suppress my chuckle and run my finger down her jaw. “I’ve got to go run an errand. Tyler is coming over to, uh…hang out while I’m gone.”
“Babysitting duty?” she murmurs.
I smile. “Yeah. Sorry.”
“Be careful.”
“Of course.” I extract myself from her embrace and slip out of bed. I go to my room and get dressed then meet Tyler at the front door.
He eyes me, taking stock of my injuries. My face is bruised and swollen, and every muscle screamed when I slid out of bed. I’m sure I look like shit, but I open the door wider and let him into the foyer.
“Don’t,” I warn.
“Who, me?” Tyler raises his hands. “The day after you get the snot kicked out of you–again–I would never tell you what a fucking dumbass you are.”
I sigh. “Yeah. Thanks.”
“I’dneversay that you’re the biggest moron I’ve ever met. And no wonder you’ve been getting beat up more than usual lately. You’ve been warring with yourself over whether or not tolosethese fights.” He sets his phone down on the table and crosses his arms. “You lunatic.”
“Jeez, thanks.” I roll my eyes. “It was supposed to be easy. But then my opponent started talking about Scarlett. He–” I shake my head in disgust. “He’s going to get what’s coming to him after the hell he put her through.”
