"I know you will." My lips still pressed to her ear, I whisper, "But you're going to do that anyway."
"Please," she whines, stretching the word out.
I chuckle, enjoying this far too much.
"Beg all you want," I say. "It's not happening."
The look of devastation on her face is so beautiful, so exquisite, that it almost makes me want to give in.
Almost.
But not quite.
I still have more to teach her.
This is where she belongs. On the edge. Waiting for me. Needy for my command.
Her lips press together in a pout, and I find it incredibly sexy.
"I thought this was a welcome back," she says, her voice a little sullen.
"Oh, it is," I purr. "I'm welcoming you back to being mine. Andminedoes what I say, when I say it."
She glares at me.
It’s a good effort, but it’s a little undermined by the fact that she’s still on my lap, her legs spread, my fingers still between them.
Her body betrays her.
I lean in and kiss her, a deep, possessive kiss that’s designed to remind her of exactly who’s in charge.
She melts against me, still needy but softer now. The fight goes out of her. The compliance that I crave returns.
I pull back and remove my fingers from her. Looking her in the eyes, I bring my slick fingers to my lips and lick them clean.
She watches, her breath hitching, her cheeks flushed.
I see the hunger in her eyes, the raw, primal need that matches my own.
She wants this.
She wants me.
And I am going to give her exactly what she wants.
Eventually.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Erica
As I sit on his lap, in the circle of his arms, still needy but losing hope, I’m reminded of how I used to view men like Nico Conti: as a threat to my sanity, a walking, talking, breathing complication I didn’t have the bandwidth for.
They were like a beautiful, wild animal you might admire from a distance but would never, ever try to pet.
I was so sure I knew what I wanted.
I was so sure I knew who I was.
