“How did you get that picture?”Keep talking. Talking is safe.
“I took it.”
“Sebastian.”
His mouth quirked. “What can I say? I had a camera and great timing.”
“But you held on to it for years without telling me. Why…” My mouth went dry when he released the necklace and rested his hand lightly on my waist. “Why did you give it to me now?”
The heat from his palm seared through my dress. I was burning all over, like my bones had liquified and I was seconds away from collapsing.
“I wanted you to have it.” Sebastian spoke so softly I almost didn’t hear him. His smile was gone. “It was supposed to be your birthday gift.”
My heart pulsed at his admission. Iknewhe wouldn’t havegotten me something as generic as a gift card. “Why did you change your mind?”
“I had three months to think.”
“And?” The drumbeat in my ears pounded harder.
Sebastian’s silence spoke louder than words.
Another shiver rippled through me when he slid his palm up the curve of my waist with tender, agonizing slowness. The thin layer of cashmere separating his skin from mine might as well not exist.
The faint thump of music and laughter seeped through the door and down the stairs, but it was nothing more than background noise.
I was dizzy with want, my body flushed and aching as Sebastian’s hand skimmed over my shoulder.
My lids grew heavy with desire, my breaths shallowing.
He pressed his forehead against mine, and I couldfeelthe tension vibrating off him. It was in his slow, controlled exhales, in the restraint of his touch and the banked heat simmering between us.
With each breath, our lips brushed each other—barely. It wasn’t so much a kiss as it was the suggestion of one, but it made my head spin.
A soft moan slipped out when he curled his hand around my nape.
Hand against neck.
Skin against skin.
It wasn’t overtly sexual, but every muscle in my body tightened in response. My nipples hardened, and a flame pulsed to life between my legs. I was so lost in the sensation that I barely heard Sebastian’s low groan.
I instinctively arched my hips against his, seeking more friction. His arousal pressed against my core, and my moan turned into a whimper.
He cursed, his grip tightening around my neck.
“What changed?” His harsh tone pierced through my daze.
The abrupt shift jarred my eyes open. He stared at me, his own eyes tortured and dark with frustration.
“What do you mean?” My voice was husky, my body still thrumming even as my brain scrambled to catch up with what was happening.
“This.” He gestured between us. “What changed?”
Confusion doused the remaining embers of heat. I went cold all over. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
A muscle worked in his jaw. He opened his mouth right as the door banged open, and footsteps clattered down the stairs.
“Oh, shit.” A guy in a black bartender’s uniform flinched when he noticed Sebastian. “I’m so sorry, boss. Just, uh, pretend I’m not here.”
