Page 32

At five-seven, I’m taller than average for a woman, but Aiden towers over me. Even in my three-inch heels, I have to tilt my head to meet his gaze. If I had to guess, I’d put him at six-six.

He’s not just tall, but built to match. Sturdy. Broad shoulders. The kind of man who makes doorways feel too small. It’s hard to say if he’s pure muscle or just a large man. Until my hand presses into his stomach and I feel it tense under my palm.

Definitely all muscle.

A deliberate invasion of my space, he presses his body firmly against mine, stealing the air from my lungs. His cock digs into my abdomen. Solid and unyielding. No need to question the size, the heat coming from it sears my skin.

The man is large. Packing a lethal weapon that will destroy me. A wave of insecurity washes over me, knowing I’ve never been with someone so endowed.

“Relax,” he moans in my ear. “When the time comes, you’ll take it like a champ. I’ll teach you how. You’ll learn what true pleasure is. No other man will satisfy you after.”

Because he’ll rip me in half.

Although I never get to say that because after he stops talking, his lips claim mine.

My breath hitches as a thick finger slides past the seam of my knickers. The contact delivering a jolt of electricity through my wet, sensitive center. I press into him, moving my hips, keeping up with his ministrations. Chasing the pleasure he’s dragging out of me.

He groans into my mouth. Then demonstrates his control through the slow, painstaking movement of his thick finger. One finger becomes two and then three. Stretching me. Setting it ablaze. His thumb skillfully teases my clit, sending waves of bliss through me.

Never have I ever.

I cling to him, my breath shaky, completely at his mercy as the pleasure builds. I can’t think. All I can do is feel. I moan into his mouth. Everything is building too fast to stop the train racing toward us.

Once he’s three fingers deep, he releases my lips, pulls back, and the world around us fades as we lock eyes. He takes his time. Fucks me with his fingers better than I’ve been fucked by any man before. And I know then there will be no going back.

“Aiden.”

The rough pad of his thumb, calloused and warm, presses against my delicate nerves, igniting a fire that consumes me. He holds me, and I fall to pieces.

My skin tingles. The fabric of my dress rubbing against it reminds me of what we’re doing and where.

The act itself isn’t wrong. Doing it here… in a public place with strangers all around… that is.

The risk, the thrill—it all crashes down around me and triggers my orgasm. One I can’t stop, not that I want to.

His lips once again find mine, capturing my cries as he continues to draw it out until I’m beyond spent. The stark reality of our situation slowly returns as I cling to him. He holds me close, his solid frame a comforting anchor I never knew I needed.

We pause for a moment, gasping for air. Neither of us in a hurry to move.

Aiden then smooths my clothes, making sure I’m stable on my feet, before gently cupping my chin. “You shouldn’t have let me do that, especially here. What the fuck am I going to do with you?”

Catching my breath, I run a hand up his arm, tracing his biceps. “I have so many suggestions.”

With a soft chuckle and a rare smile, he leans in and tenderly kisses my swollen lips. “Will you be okay returning to the gallery? I wish I could stay, but Silas and I have business. If we don’t leave soon, we’ll be late. Not that he cares.”

The aftermath of what we just did leaves me physically shaken. I’d be lying if I said my feelings aren’t hurt. He’s blowing me off to go do something I know he shouldn’t, leaving me in an awful state, sending me back to pretend he didn’t just ruin me.

“Sure, whatever.” My nerves are wrecked, so I run my fingers through my hair and lick my dry lips. “Go do what it is you have to do. Grandmother and I need to get going. It’s getting late.”

As I reach for the doorknob to flee, he seizes my wrist. “Don’t be like that.”

Narrowing my eyes, I glare at him, anger tightening in my chest. “I’m not being like anything. You got what you wanted⁠—”

“Like hell I did.” To keep the door from opening, Aiden holds his hand against it. “What I want, we don’t have time for right now. That was just a taste.”

Unimpressed, I twist the handle and yank. When the door doesn’t budge, I stare at it, refusing to turn around. “I thought you needed to go?”

As he backs away, I feel the shift in temperature, a tangible loss of heat radiating from his body. “If I could stay, I would.”