Grasping his chin, I turn his head so that he has no choice but to look at me. “Sometimes the devil is who you need. Guardian angels aren’t worth the cloth they wear, not when it comes to the real danger in the world.”
“Until last night, the only dangerous thing I had to worry about was slipping in the shower.”
My thumb presses against his pulse point. His heart is racing. “Does that happen often?”
“Not like a lot, but enough that I guess you could maybe consider it a lot. It’s like that whole ‘if I had a nickel for X, I would have Y nickels,’ which isn’t a lot of nickels, but it’s weird that it happened Y times. You know?”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
“Oh, and locking myself out of the house—I have a spare key, but I use it, and then I don’t put it back, so then all the keys are lost, and it’s a never-ending dilemma. And kids biting at school. It’s a paperwork nightmare, honestly.”
“A dangerous life you lead.”
He licks his lips in a nervous gesture. “I would have said yes, b-before.”
He glances down at my lips, and I know exactly what he’s thinking. I know because I’m thinking about it too. Will he taste as sweet as he is? A man who is in the arms of a predator and stays even though he’s clearly afraid. Who stood up against someone who could kill him in the blink of an eye. For me, someone he doesn’t know, someone who frightens him.
An interesting juxtaposition. One I find myself wanting to explore.
“Before what?” I whisper. It doesn’t take much to coax him to come closer, positioning himself far more snugly between my legs. His breath hitches, hand clutching my side.
“Before…” The anticipation rises every inch I get closer. “I can’t remember,” he breathes out. He freezes at the first touchof my lips against his, eyes wide open and staring. Amazed. Shocked.Wanting.
Beautiful. “Close your eyes, duckling.”
As soon as he does, I capture his lips properly, applying pressure and dragging my tongue across the seam. He opens, and I sweep inside. His movements are tentative, an exquisite tease I doubt he’s doing deliberately. A hand clasps my shoulder, the other curling around my lapel. He sways, leaning in. I swallow every sound he makes, keeping him secure against me. I don’t think I’ve ever kissed someone as innocent as this man. Or one so unaware of his own appeal.
There’s something sinful in it, of sullying someone this pure. If I were a better man, I would never have allowed this. I’m not, and I won’t be stopping at just one taste. Where’s the indulgence in that?
He shifts in my arms, his outer thigh rubbing my inner. Squirming. Eager. Unsure in a way that’s like a lighthouse beacon on a stormy night at sea. Miles is a virgin, and he still had more confidence than this when he was turning Hunter inside out.
By the time I lift my head, he’s plastered against me, grip so tight he’s pulling at my jacket, clinging. His eyes are glazed over, and it takes him a little time to come down from his high, to focus.
“I—” His lips tremble, red and swollen. “We probably shouldn’t have done that.”
“No?” Doing things I shouldn’t is a personal mantra of mine. Nothing is hidden from me, and if I want it, I take it. Anyone standing in my way will learn to regret it.
My gaze slides down to the obvious bulge in his pants. “Are you sure?”
“I think so. Yes. I don’t know. Why did you do that?”
“For the same reason I do anything. I wanted to.” Outside of Hunter and Miles, it feels like it’s been a lifetime since I’ve wanted to touch another person. Matthew intrigues me. A baby duck with hidden teeth. What else is hidden under that fluff?
Matthew takes a shaky step back when I stand, towering over him. Cupping his cheek, I smooth my thick ring over his skin, back and forth. His lips part with a light sigh, and his blue eyes darken, eyelids fluttering under my touch.
What a delightful creature. I drag my thumb over his bottom lip and dip inside his warm mouth. “Would you like to do it again?”
He tenses, searching my eyes. Looking for a trick, perhaps? There’s no trick here. One taste isn’t anywhere near enough. Knowing that I’ve experienced it before Hunter brings with it an extra layer of deliciousness. What will he think, knowing I’ve plucked the very fruit he’s been admiring?
There’s no resistance as I drag him closer and take his mouth for my own once more.
Hunter
TherearesomebattlesI don’t bother fighting, and who gets to drive is one of them. Besides, having Miles drive means that I can look at him. He sits with perfect posture and drives the same way he does everything else: with intense focus and concentration. Black leather gloved hands wrap around the steering wheel at ten and two, exactly like we’re taught when learning.
For someone who works for a man like Xavier, he’s very exact.
“What?” he asks without looking at me.
