“It wasn’t too much, was it?”
“No,” she says quickly, scooting over to rest her head over my heart. “I’ve never... no one’s ever...”
At a loss for words, all I’m able to do in the moment is trace my fingers up and downher arm.
She’s quiet for a while and when she finally speaks, her voice comes out soft and determined. “Ryder, I think we should sleep in separate beds tonight.”
I go still. “What?”
She sits up, not quite meeting my eyes. “It’s just... this is all happening so fast. I mean, a week ago you didn’t even exist in my world, and now we’re...” She gestures between us.
“Now we’re what?” I ask, voice hard. “Having incredible sex? Getting to know each other? Living out our story?”
“That’s just it.” She runs a hand through her tangled hair. “I feel like we’re rushing through chapters that need time to develop. We’re skipping integral parts of the story.”
Propping myself up on my elbow, I study her face. “What’s this really about?”
She sighs. “It’s about me needing to catch my breath. To process what’s happening between us without getting lost in... this.”
The rejection stings, taking me by surprise. “This being what, exactly?”
“The physical part.” Her cheeks flush. “Don’t get me wrong—it’s amazing. But I write romance novels for a living, Ryder. I know that the most meaningful relationships build slowly. In my stories the characters need to develop trust and understanding before jumping into bed.”
“We’ve already jumped, kitten. Multiple times.”
She shoots me a look. “You know what I mean.”
I sit up fully with a sigh and drag a hand down my face. “So, what are you saying? You want to take a step back?”
“No. I’m saying I think we should slow down. Not have sex for a while.”
“You said you’d let me take you out of your comfort zone.”
“You definitely have,” she nods. “But you also said we were going to do other things to help build inspiration. Ican’t just have inspiration based on sex, no matter how good it is.”
“Okay. I see your point.” I get out of bed and tug on my jeans. “If you want slow-burn, I’ll give you slow-burn.”
My eyes travel slowly over her naked body. She’s still sprawled across the sheets, skin flushed, hair wild, looking thoroughly fucked and absolutely perfect.
“But just so we’re clear,” I say, dropping my voice into that low register I know makes her shiver. “This whole ‘slow-burn’ thing? It can go both ways.”
She gets under the covers. “Explain.”
I stand at the end of the bed, looking down at her with a smirk. “I can give you the bad boy, too. Give me a few days and you’ll bebeggingme to fuck you again.”
Her eyes widen, pupils dilating even as she scoffs. “If anyone is going to beg, it’s gonna be you.”
“Trust me, kitten.” I lean forward, bracing my hands on the mattress. “It will be you.”
She swallows hard. “Then I guess we’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we?”
“Yeah, we will.” I straighten up and head for the door. “Sweet dreams, Noia.”
“Ryder?”
I stop in the doorway and glance over my shoulder. “Yeah?”
“Why do you call me kitten?”
