He grabs the blanket and throws it over our laps, cocooning us into an already heated space. Niko leans over to grab his glass of wine. He turns toward me and lifts his glass in the air.
“To you, Sadie.” My heart bottoms out at his sincere tone and the way he says my name.
I hold my breath in anticipation for what comes next.
“Somehow, in no time at all, you’ve made both Sophia and me feel like we can breathe a little easier. That’s no small thing, let me assure you. So here’s to you—for being exactly who we didn’t know we needed.”
We clink glasses and Niko brings his glass to his lips. I’m frozen in place. His eyes never leave mine as he slowly drinks his wine. With a shaky hand I finally raise my own glass to my lips. I barely taste my wine, too caught up in the slow curve of his mouth as Niko sips his. I can’t stop watching him. I can’t stop wondering if he knows what he’s doing to me.
Does he feel this too?
Niko lowers his glass, eyes still locked on mine. He reaches over to put his glass on the table before taking mine and doing the same. He scoots closer to me and it takes everything in me not to climb into his lap.
His hand reaches out and he tucks my hair behind my ear. I inhale a sharp breath at the contact and Niko’s lips tip up at the sides. He drops his hand but it doesn’t go far, resting on my leg just above my knee.
He knowsexactlywhat he’s doing to me. He feels it too.
The confirmation makes me confident. His thumb starts moving in small circles on my thigh and I move my hand to rest on his shoulder that’s leaning against the couch.
The air between us is charged, the thread between us being pulled tighter and tighter. Both our bodies lean into each other’s, closing the space until our faces are inches apart.
Are we really doing this? Should we be doing this?
Niko’s eyes move down to my lips, staying there for a breath. He slowly moves them back up to my eyes. The fire cracks but the real heat is in his stare. His blue eyes are searing. Hunger burning so hot it makes the fire feel weak in comparison.
I don’t know who moves first. All I know is that suddenly our lips collide. Niko’s mouth crashes against mine, urgent and unrestrained. Every ounce of tension we’ve been holding back pours out into one breathless moment.
His hand moves to the back of my head as his tongue claims mine, fierce and unrelenting. I melt into the chaos of heat and desire that runs between us, my doubts disappearing into thin air.
My hand grips his shoulder while my other hand moves to Niko’s head. My fingers run through the hair I’ve been dying to feel and I grip it tight. Niko moans into my mouth and the sound has desire dripping out of me. My body moves on its own accord, and the next thing I know, I’m straddling his lap.I can feel his size below me, pushing against my center. This time we both moan into each other’s mouth. Niko grips my hips like he owns me and I gasp.
“Niko!”
Something inside of me snaps. I want him. All of him. I start grinding against him, the pulsing between my legs intensifying as I move myself over his hard length. Every nerve in my body is screaming for more. Every thought erased except for him.
But…wait. No. Not every thought.
My job. The Bobcats.Sophia. The fear that this won’t last.
Nothing ever lasts. How can we jeopardize everything for something that will inevitably end because I won’t be enough somehow?
I force myself to pull back, hands slipping from his shoulder. My body and mind are at war. My chest heaves and my lips ache from missing his. My brain is telling me to stop but my body lingers, shivering with need.
Niko’s breathing is ragged, his eyes molten with heat. He squeezes my hip. “You okay?”
“We can’t do this.”
Sadie climbs off my lap, the urge to pull her back onto me is strong but her words replay on loop in my head.We can’t do this.
Instead of staying on the couch, Sadie stands and makes her way to the fire. She’s playing with her necklace and looking down at her feet. Something has got her spooked. Hating the distance between us, I stand, grab my crutch, and join her.
“What’s wrong, Sadie? Talk to me.” I reach out to comfort her but she takes a step back to avoid my touch. The move stings and I’m desperate to understand what’s happening here.
Finally, she looks up, but I can’t quite read the look on her face. Her cheeks are flushed, breaths uneven, and pupils blown wide. She closes her eyes for a heartbeat, as if trying to gather strength to speak, and when she opens them there’s a mix of longing and regret.
“Niko, this was a mistake.”
I hate the way my name sounds coming past her lips. It’s polar opposite to the way she gasped it earlier. There’s a finality to her tone. An ending. And I fucking hate it.
