“Of course,”I muttered hesitantly when he waved at the space next to me on the couch.
Sitting as close to me as possible, his thighs pressed against mine, and a slight tremble started in my fingers. Inhaling a calming breath, I was hit by the scent of his cologne; a woodsy aroma mixed with a hint of cinnamon.
A delicious shiver traveled down the length of my spine, hitting me in my core. Still, guilt warred with the building excitement, and a loud warning bell rang in my head, telling methatI was playing with fire, but the noise was drowned out by the sparks zapping through me.
No one had looked at me the way this man was for averylong time.
Like he wanted to rip my clothes off and take his time exploring every inch of my body.
“I’m Gavin,”he said, holding out his hand for me to take.
“Emma,”I replied, his large hand engulfing my small one.
Donna had told methatthe majority of people at these types of parties never gave anyreal information about themselves, including their names. I was only too happy to keep my details to myself if it meant Alec never found out what I’d been up to.
Besides, for one night, I wanted to be someone different. Someone who wasn’t trapped inthe life I was.
“So, what brings you here tonight, beautiful?”Gavin said, his emerald green eyes boring into mine, our hands still clasped together.
Perhaps it was the alcohol swimming through my veins, or maybe it was because he called me beautiful. Either way, a surge of confidence powered through me. Allowing a flirtatious smile to tug at my lips, I leaned into him, internally telling myselfthatI could do this.
“The same reason you and everyone else is here,”I purred.
His eyes darkened as his mouth pulled into a devious grin. Releasing my hand, he placed his soft palm on my knee, slowly skating it up higher, and disappearing under the material of my skirt.“Wellthen, let’s not beat about the bush.”
Excitement burst through me like a display of fireworks, and when his fingers drew asmall circle on the inside of my thigh, my pulse quickened. Without thinking, my teeth sank into my bottom lip, drawing Gavin’s attention to my mouth.
He reached up and pulled my lip free.“Mmm, I’d like to nibble onthatlip. I can think ofa few other places I’d like to nibble, too.”
His voice held unspoken promises, and when I didn’t respond, he edged closer, moving his mouth to mine. I froze in my seat, my eyes fluttering closed as he pressed his lips gently against mine. My heart was now racing faster than a speeding train, and when our mouths opened together and our tongues twirled, my core clenched.
Gavin groaned as our tongues circled each other, and the fingersthathad been dancing over my thigh gripped the flesh harshly. A bolt of panic flashed through me; I couldn’t have any marks for Alec to discover, but my panic was washedaway when, with his other hand, Gavin laced his fingers into my hair, tugging my head back to deepen the kiss.
A pulse beat between my legs as I clutched Gavin’s shirt, not wanting the passionate kiss to end, and wanting more.
“Shall we go find somewhere more private?”Gavin asked, breaking the kiss, his eyes blazing with heat.
I was about to tell himjusthow much I wanted to go somewhere private when a strange feeling rushed through me, dousing the raging fire burning under my skin.
The feeling of being watched.
Jolting back from Gavin, a flush covered my cheeks as my head whipped in the direction the scorching gaze was coming from.
The blood in my veins turned to ice.
A figure leaned against the doorway across the room. A figure I knewoh so well.
There’d been a time when I wanted to spend every waking minute with him, but in the last ten years, I’d gone out of my way to avoid him, thankfully, only crossing paths with him on rare occasions.
His handsome face was contorted with fury, and in one hand, he clutched his phone, holding it as if he hadjusttaken a picture of me.
The tremblethathad started in my fingers quickly worked its way through my body, but it wasn’t because I’djustkissed a stranger. It was because I was in trouble.
Big fucking trouble.
Chapter 2
Jackson
