She surged up before I could finish, smashing our lips together like the world was about to end.
And hell, maybe it had. Maybe the clock had struck midnight and this was some alternate . . . multiverse version of us, one that didn’t pull away and ruin a good thing just because we feared how much it might matter. Or maybe I had just watched one too many Marvel superhero movies.
Her lips moved against mine with a feverish kind of urgency. I kissed her back like a starving man, because that was exactly what I was. She tasted like whiskey and winter air, and beneath it all, the same sweetness that had always fucking wrecked me.
I gripped her hips, pulling her flush against me. She gasped when she felt the weight of my cock straining against my sweats, and I took the opportunity to deepen our kiss, sweeping my tongue into her mouth like I owned it.
We both knew that wasn’t the case, though. If anything,sheownedme.
A broken cry fell from her lips, and I swallowed it whole. She pressed closer, tugging at my hoodie like she wanted to tear it off and crawl inside my skin.
Works for me.
“This is a bad idea,” she breathed.
“The worst,” I agreed, trailing kisses down the side of her neck. “Still want you, though.”
Her hands fell away from my body, and for a second, I thought she might give into reason and stop. Thankfully, lust won out over logic. She circled her arms around my neck and hoisted herself up, wrapping her legs around my waist.
“Fuck,” I growled into her mouth. “I’m parked across the street.”
“Don’t stop.”
“Dani—”
My knees nearly buckled when she tugged my lower lip between her teeth and bit down. Just enough pressure to light me up, to make my hands tighten on her ass and hitch her farther up my body.
She released me slowly, lips brushing mine, and gave me a look that told me she knewexactlywhat she was doing.
“I need you, Brooks,” she whispered, hot breath fanning my face.
“Then you’ll get me,” I rasped.
That one little bite had unraveled something in me—something I had spent months desperately trying to keep buried because “it was easier that way,” or so I had told myself.
Fucking idiot.
A burst of laughter spilled from the bar, followed by a high-pitched squeal. It broke through the haze just long enough to remind me we were still in public and I was still the head coach of the reigning World Series champions.
We were too exposed out here. All it would take was one rabid fan, one grainy photo for this—whateverthiswas—to spiral into an endless stream of degrading memes and headlines. And oncethe rumor mill started turning, it didn’t stop. It was a relentless cycle, always hungry, never fair. Especially to women.
Because the truth was the fallout wouldn’t hitmethe hardest. It hardly ever did with men. I would probably get a slap on the wrist, maybe a few sharp questions at a press conference, but Dani was a different story. She would be dragged through the mud, dissected by strangers who’d call her unprofessional, a gold digger, or worse. The world wasn’t kind to women, especially not the ones who dared to want something for themselves or, heaven forbid, their bodies.
She deserved better than to be reduced to a scandal. Which was why we needed to make this party a bit more private.
I tore my mouth from hers. “Hang on.”
Neither of us said another word as I raced across the lot with her in my arms. Her hot pussy rocked against me with every step I took, and the friction nearly undid me.
We rounded the side of the bar in record time, past the glow of the security light and around the far end of the dumpster. Not exactly romantic, but it would have to do.
Besides, this wasn’t about romance; we were scratching an itch, nothing more. And that was the story I was sticking with.
I spun us until her spine met the bricks, probably a little rougher than necessary, but she didn’t seem to mind. She gasped into my mouth, fingers digging into the back of my neck like she needed something to hold onto or she’d fall apart right there. She was all heat and softness and need, and I didn’t even pretend to fight it this time.
“Still good?” I growled against her lips.
She nodded, eyes dark and wild. “Still want you,” she answered, echoing my words.
