I glared at him sideways. “And youdo?”
He made a considering noise. “Never had cause to hire one myself, it’s true. Although I might start rethinking that after getting a closer glimpse into Lorenzo Vozzina’s operation. Let’s just say, assassins who kill people successfully and don’t get caught afterwards can usually afford to pay for rent and groceries.”
“Ididget caught,” I pointed out, ignoring the sour taste at the back of my throat.
Gage rolled onto his side, propping himself on an elbow. “Yeah, you did. And Knox surviving messed up your perfect record of successes, too. Can’t say I’m unhappy about either of those things.”
I closed my eyes, trying not to get distracted by the rollercoaster of emotions coming at me through the bond as Heath and Tony talked.Not my business.
“You can’t just pretend I didn’t try to kill Knox,” I said. “Gage, be serious. There are mistakes you can’t come back from.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Funny. You wereall aboutpretending, that night you and I slept together. Seemed to work out pretty well, as I recall.”
My face burned hotter as I remembered that night, when I’d begged Gage to let me feel what a different life might have been like. “That was differ—”
I cut off with a gasp as sudden lust slammed through the link with Heath.
Gage sat up abruptly. “Kitten? What’s wrong? What is it?”
I couldn’t stop a moan. Heat that had nothing to do with embarrassment roared through my veins, heading southward like it was on a mission from god.
“Jez!” Gage sounded almost panicked.
I shook my head frantically, trying to play it off. “No, sorry, it’s nothing. Heath and Tony, they’re... um...”
Gage leaned down and took a cautious sniff. His eyes widened, presumably at whatever he was smelling in my pheromones.
“Oh,” he said. “Oh.”
“Yeah,” I agreed, the word emerging strangled. “S-sorry.”
“Sweetheart,” he rumbled. “Donotbe sorry.”
I tried to rally. “I guess they got things figured out. That’s good, right?”
“Course it is,” Gage said. “Little awkward for you, though.” He seemed to hesitate. “You want to let off steam? With me, I mean? You an’ me have danced before, and it’d kind of serve Heath right after he blindsided you like that. Only if you want to, obviously.”
Gage’s trousers were wrinkled and creased from sleeping in them all night, but that did nothing to hide the bulge growing beneath them. I drew in a breath, mentally weighing the prospect of riding out Heath and Tony’s hookup with no relief, versus the prospect of riding Gage into the sunset while also reminding Heath that the bond went both ways.
“Fuck it,” I said, and dove for Gage’s fly. “Just... be a little gentle? I’m still kind of sore... down there.”
Honestly, if you’d asked me fifteen minutes ago, I’d have said that the idea of a knot inside me was about as appealing as a fork in the eye. Apparently, all my pussy had needed was a swiftkick of horniness from my temporary mate. Because now it was whispering about how good it would feel to get filled up while it was tender and aching from the aftermath of my disastrous heat.
“I can do gentle, kitten,” Gage promised. “Tell you what; you lead. I’m all yours... as much or as little as you want.”
He gently moved my fumbling fingers away from his trousers and began efficiently pulling off clothing. I turned my efforts to the cocktail dress, not giving the garment nearly the amount of respect it deserved for its price tag. Mind you—I’d already slept in it, so at this point it probably didn’t matter.
Underwear followed, and Gage—now naked as well—rolled onto his back with an appreciative purr as I debated where to start. Remembering the sweet torture of his mouth, I climbed up the length of his body to straddle his head. Strong hands grasped my hips, guiding me down until my pussy brushed his lips.
A shudder of relief rolled through me as Gage began delicately caressing and teasing along my folds, feeling out my response. It was a soft counterpoint to the wild, almost violent feelings crashing through the link, and before long, I was grinding against Gage instead of brushing against him.
He let out a possessive growl, the vibration going straight to my core as his tongue delved deeper, matching me stroke for stroke.
Soreness?Whatsoreness?
Within minutes, a shuddering climax wracked its way through my muscles. The feedback through the bond built impossibly higher, making my mouth water. I needed something to fill it, because my body wasn’t done yet—not even close.
Clambering off Gage only long enough to get turned around, I clamped my knees on either side of his broad shoulders and went back to smothering his face with my slick, squirming around until I could stretch down and get the tip of his cock in my mouth at the same time.
