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Avel brushed the chocolates off his body and stood, painfully aware of his enormous erection bobbing against his stomach. There was nothing he could do about it. Holly had seen him in all his naked glory, and she’d caused this reaction.

If she wasn’t so damn sexy, teasing him with the chocolate, he wouldn’t have to walk strangely as they headed out into the lounge.

Holly tugged him to the table. “I love your cake.”

“Do you want to try some?” Avel asked.

Holly chuckled. “Absolutely not. It’s adorable that you made such an effort, but you might have had the oven temperature too high.” She stuck a finger in the middle of the cake and withdrew it. It was covered in uncooked cake mixture.

“I don’t know what temperature I had it at,” Avel said. “It’s hard to be a stealth baker.”

“Wait! Did you break into the kitchen to make this?”

“I wouldn’t exactly say I broke in. I just found a door that was easy to unlock.”

Holly blinked at him. “I wondered why there was a mess this morning when I arrived.”

“That wasn’t me. I tidied everything away.” At least, he’d tried, but he’d been working in the dark. He might have missed something.

“I could see somebody had tidied stuff away, but there were smears of flour on the table, and a bowl hadn’t been cleaned properly.” Holly jabbed him in the shoulder. “You need to get better if you’re going to do more illegal baking in the middle of the night.”

“That was my first and last attempt. I did it for you.”

Holly’s expression grew serious as her gaze traveled down his body and rested on his hard cock.

“I’m all yours, Holly. When I offered you that deal, writing off your debt so long as you didn’t see Eric again, that was wrong. I got so mad seeing you with him. I got jealous.”

“Jealous of Eric?” Holly spluttered a laugh. “He has nothing that you need to be jealous about.”

“He had you. He had your love. He had you in his arms.”

She looked away. “Not anymore. That was a mistake. I wasted my love on him.”

“You can give it to me. I won’t waste it.” He stroked her cheek.

Holly sucked in a breath. “I still can’t believe you forced Eric to apologize.”

“It didn’t take much persuasion. Once he saw the error of his ways, he was eager to please.” And the fact Avel had threatened to remove Eric’s balls with a sharp object had also encouraged him to grovel in front of Holly.

“I got a thrill out of seeing Eric begging on his knees,” Holly said.

Avel grinned. “Holly Lipinski, you have a mean side.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “A very small one.”

Avel turned her toward him and curled his fingers into her hair, drawing her close. “You deserve the best. The way that guy treated you was wrong. I want you to be happy. I want you to be with someone who makes you feel loved, and safe, and sexy.”

Holly gazed up at him. “I might have found that someone.”

Avel’s heart clenched. “I’m not perfect. I screw up. Sometimes, the work I do doesn’t end well. Getting involved with me will bring you nearer to danger.”

She shook her head. “I don’t believe that. You’ve kept me safe and looked out for me ever since we met. I feel safe when I’m with you. I haven’t felt safe for a long time. And when you’re not saying ridiculous things to scare me off and friend zone me, I feel happy.”

Avel brushed a kiss across her cheek. “And do you feel sexy?”

Holly’s hand drifted to the zipper on her jumpsuit. “Sometimes.”

“How about now?” His mouth tracked down her throat. He took hold of the zipper in his teeth and eased it down.