“We need to slow down a little.”
“Okay,” she said against his throat. Then, she nipped it with her teeth.
“Christ!” he yelped. A shudder ran through his body.
He tightened his grip on her hips and moved her back a scant inch. For such a little thing, she was extremely strong because he was having difficulty putting space between them. Or maybe it was because he didn’t truly want space between them.
Her tongue flicked his earlobe, eliciting another shudder, just before her teeth closed over the flesh.
“Nova, please stop,” he muttered. “I meant what I said.”
She sighed against his neck before she straightened, which put most of her weight directly over his dick, this time in an awkward position.
“Ow!” he yelped again before he lifted her off his lap and nearly tossed her to the side.
Nova struggled to sit up and shove her wild hair out of her eyes. “You okay? Did I hurt you?”
Torin cupped a hand over his rapidly waning erection. “Sex accident. I’m fine.”
She laughed before she clapped her hand over her mouth. “I’m sorry,” she said, her words muffled by her palm. “It’s not funny. I’m sorry I hurt you.”
Torin winced as he sat up straight. “It wasn’t intentional.”
“You want some ice or a cool pack?” she asked. “Frozen peas?”
“I’ll be okay,” he answered.
Nova pulled herself into the corner of the couch, brought her knees to her chest, and wrapped her arms around them. “See why this was a bad idea? Someone already got hurt. Little Torin.”
He rolled her eyes at him. “What do you mean little?”
Her eyes lit up right before she laughed again, this time without her hand over her mouth. “You know what I mean.”
“Other than the possibility of someone getting hurt, give me one other good reason we shouldn’t explore what’s between us?” he said.
Nova’s face grew serious as she stared back at him. But she remained silent.
“That’s what I thought,” he said. Gingerly, Torin leaned forward and put his elbows to his knees, keeping his head turned toward her. “Look, as an adult, I am responsible for my own feelings. My own emotions. If yours don’t match mine, or if we get deeper and you don’t feel for me what I feel for you, I will handle it because it’s mine to deal with. Just like your emotions are yours to deal with. If you fall in love with me but I don’t feel the same, are you going to stick around and make my life hell?”
As usual, Nova surprised him. “Oh, definitely. I’m going to destroy you. When I’m done, there will be nothing left but your frail, wasted body. Not even your psyche will survive.”
Torin’s lips twitched. “You’re still trying to convince me you don’t want to get involved, aren’t you?”
“Yep.”
“It’s not working.”
“Damn.”
Torin grinned at her and winked. “There’s one facet of my personality that you haven’t experienced yet. I’m stubborn as hell. That’s why I’m a chef and not a doctor or lawyer like my parents wanted me to be. It’s also why my restaurant is in the black five years down the road rather than shut down like everyone thought it would be. It’s also why I have one cookbook published and another in the works. You should just give in. It’ll be easier on both of us.”
It was Nova’s turn to roll her eyes. “You forgot another facet of your personality that will be certain to keep us apart.”
“And that is?”
“Your arrogance.”
Torin leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “You like that about me,” he said with complete confidence.
