“Later, Playboy.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
JADE
“It was a mistake, yet it wasn’t. It was exactly what I wanted.” - Clara Foss, Painted Inferno
Matteo
I’m here.
My stomach rolls with anticipation as I nervously tuck my hair behind my ears. I’m already on the elevator, heading down to the lobby, although I’m not going to tell him that.
I don’t know why I told him eight o’clock earlier. It’s after dinner, yet before bed. It felt like a middle ground at the time and now I’m overthinking it.
Jade
Be down in a minute.
If I was inviting him over for sex, it definitely would have been later than eight at night.
My hair falls in long waves down the center of my back and I collect it, pulling it over my left shoulder as I walk across the foyer. Matteo stands just outside the door, looking as good as healways does. He smiles when he sees me and I push open the door, holding it for him.
His hair is a bit damp and the faint woodsy smell drifts past me as he walks inside. “Hey, Sunny.”
“Hey,” I say softly, pausing to swallow over the nervousness that wells inside of me. “How did your training sessions go?”
“Good, good,” he says, falling into step with me as we head back over to the elevator. “How about you? Did you get a lot of writing done?”
“I did,” I nod as the doors slide open and we slip inside. Matteo moves to the panel on the wall to press the button for my floor.
He turns around to face me. His gaze drops down to my feet, taking in my body before finding his way back to my eyes. The oxygen in the elevator car ceases to exist. My lungs constrict and he takes a step forward, closing a foot of distance between us.
“Did you work through whatever issue you were stuck on?”
I tilt my head to the side. “If I did, do you think I’d still be wanting a creative meeting?”
A ghost of a smile dances across his lips, mischief passing over his hooded gaze. “Yes.”
Heat spreads through me. “Bold assumption.”
“So, you didn’t then?” He takes another step closer. There’s less than a foot separating us now. My back rests against the wall.
“No, I did,” I admit, my voice low, tipping my head back to look up at him.
Matteo closes the remaining distance, caging me in as he plants his hands on the wall on either side of me. His tongue darts out, immediately capturing my attention. I swear I stop breathing.
My cardiologist is going to wonder what the hell happened when he looks at the way my heart’s beating.
“So, why am I here then, sunny?”
My eyes flash back to his. “Because I want you here.”
He groans, low and guttural. His nostrils flare, pupils dilating as his face dips down to mine, his lips a breath away from mine. “What the fuck is it about elevators?”
The bell dings and the car dips as it stops on my floor. Matteo’s still caging me in as the doors slide open. A throat clears behind him. Matteo blinks. Irritation flashes in his eyes and he blows out a breath of frustration as he pushes off the wall.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Harry, my neighbor, says. He meets my eyes. “Oh, hey Jade.” He looks over his shoulder at Matteo, who’s waiting for me in the hall. “Everything okay?”
