“You can get my number from Max,” I said breathily, throwing his words from the night at the restaurant back at him.
Cane spun me around quickly and pressed my back against the wall. He leaned in, his face almost touching mine. I willed myself not to moan, not to give him any inclination that my willpower was melting away.
“Oh, Jada,” he whispered, the warmth of his breath adding to the riot inside me. “Why do you fight this so hard?”
“Cane …” I tried to formulate a response, but words were not accessible.
He smirked, knowing what he was doing to me. “Yes?”
“I … I need to go.”
“You need to. But do you want to?” He searched my eyes with his own. “I know what you want and what you need, baby. Why won’t you trust me?”
My eyes widened, my pulse pounding. He was so close, and I wanted more than anything to reach out and pull him up against me.
But I can’t.
He smiled before leaning in, his lips grazing my ear as he whispered, “Why do you fight this? Just give me one night to get you out of my system.”
I turned my head to respond, to explain that was exactly what he wasn’t getting, and our eyes locked. The air between us, so hot and rife with energy, boiled over.
He captured my lips with his own, tentatively at first. I resisted for a split second before succumbing to his charge. His lips moved over mine, a soft juxtaposition to his hard exterior. The heat of theexchange, of him finally touching me, melted me from the inside out.
I opened my mouth, giving him entry, and he took it without hesitation. He lazily explored my mouth with his own, the softness of his tongue making my knees buckle.
I tried to focus and commit everything to memory because it would only happen once. That would be the first and last time I allowed Cane Alexander to obliterate my defenses.
The sound of blood roaring past my ears and the feel of his body, hot and hard against me, made it impossible to concentrate on anything for long. I hesitantly placed my hands on his back, feeling his muscles ripple beneath them.
The sensations were overwhelming, and I was on the cusp of bursting at the seams.
Cane pulled back slowly and kissed me lightly on the lips before retreating to look into my eyes. A hundred emotions were playing across his gorgeous face, his eyes a dozen colors of blue.
I looked away, trying to catch my breath.Why on earth did I allow that? And why did I enjoy it so much?
“One night.” He lifted my chin so that my eyes met his. His tongue flicked across his lips.
He only wants one night …
My wits were scattered, but I gathered as many of them as I could before responding. “I need to go.”
A look flashed across his face that I couldn’t read. He raised his eyebrows. “That’s all you’re going to say?”
“I don’t know what else you want me to say.” I sidestepped him and made my way to the door. I looked over my shoulder one last time and he changed before my eyes.
The confused, vulnerable look gave way to an impassive, cool veneer. He placed his hands on top of his head and turned away, heading toward the office.
Seeing everything I needed to see, more than enough to convince myself I was doing the right thing, I pushed through the door and didn’t look back.
SEVEN
Cane
I turned around as soonas the door closed. I watched her walk to her car and drive away, no sign of the Avalanche Simon had been driving in sight. Satisfied that he wasn’t following her, I flipped the lock on the door, retreated to the back office, and called Max.
Max answered quickly, the sound of hammering loud in the background. “What’s up, Alexander?”
“Quite a bit, actually. You’ll never guess who just looked at Solomon Place.”
