unstaid and skittish in all motions else
save in the constant image of the creature
that is beloved.
William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, act 2, scene 4
Lola didn’t believe in the walk of shame. So why she felt uncomfortable slinking into Braden’s house at eight in the morning, she didn’t understand. It wasn’t his business where she’d slept the previous night. Still, that didn’t explain why she chose to quietly unlock the front door rather than barrel through as she normally would. She tiptoed through the foyer, intent on packing her bags before he discovered she was there.
“Good morning,” he said, startling her.
Her breath caught in her throat and she jumped, covering her heart with her hand.
He sat on the bottom of the stairs with Zeus purring in his lap. With his hair disheveled and dark circles under his eyes, it looked like he hadn’t slept well, if at all. She probably didn’t look much better. Of course, on him, messy was sexy as hell. She wanted to plunge her hands into that dark hair and soothe the ache in his eyes.
She coughed, clearing her throat. “Morning. Sleep well?” she said brightly, trying to ignore the tension between them.
“No,” he said plainly. He stared at her, his expression unreadable.
She shifted back and forth on her heels, waiting for him to elaborate. He stroked Zeus from head to tail, the cat’s eyes closed in contentment. She couldn’t take her gaze from Braden’s strong hand. Tingles vibrated up and down her spine as if Braden was caressing her rather than the animal in his lap. Her eyes involuntarily fluttered shut and she trembled, overwhelmed by the sensation of Braden’s feather soft touch on her skin. The smell of cinnamon and sugar tickled her senses. How could Braden’s scent reach her from across the room?
Warmth enveloped her, but the tremors continued. Why was she shaking?
“Shh,” he whispered in her ear, his lips grazing her lobe.
He held her in the shelter of his arms like a tree protecting them from the coming storm in last night’s dream. Her head rested on the hard contours of his chest, her thighs pressed against the solid muscles of his legs. She fit perfectly in his embrace, and for a moment, she allowed herself to savor it, knowing she’d never have the chance again.
His hot breath blew on her neck, and then she felt his mouth latch onto her flesh, sucking it gently, teasing it with the tip of his tongue. An electric current ran through her, her nipples hardening beneath her Hello Kitty T-shirt, moisture coating the inside of her thighs. Her head fell back as he continued his ministrations marking her skin.
“You taste so good,” he groaned, nestling his head between her neck and shoulder. “Where have you been?”
“Please,” she responded, although she didn’t know what she wanted. Please don’t ask questions? Please kiss her? Please let her go?
She opened her eyes to the beautiful sight of that hair she’d desperately craved touching, and without hesitation, she submerged her fingers into its thickness.
His body shook, and when she felt the hardness of his lengthening cock pressing into her lower abdomen, her own body shuttered as well.
He raised his head from her shoulder and placed his hands on the sides of her face. “Did you sleep with him? Did you share his bed?” he asked, his voice tight and pained.
She should lie. There were a million reasons to tell him she spent the night in another lover’s bed. But she couldn’t kid herself any longer. From the moment Braden had kissed her, she’d given him control over her heart. She could only hope when she walked away from him forever, he’d forgive her and find another to share his life, because he deserved someone better than her. Someone would could settle down, who wasn’t always itching to move on. Someone who could stand by his side and help raise the children he’d eventually want. Because that person would never be her.
But she had the here and now, and she intended to spend every moment she could with him expressing with her body what she couldn’t express with words.
“Sex with Jon wouldn’t mean anything—” she began.
His eyes darkened and narrowed as he interrupted, “Did you have sex with him?”
“No,” she managed to say, her pulse roaring in her ears like the waves crashing over the rocks in the stormy sea. “I slept at my apartment. Alone. Not even Reina—”
She didn’t get the chance to finish her sentence before his lips slammed down on hers in almost brutal possession, and in that moment, she lost the ability to think. She could only feel. Her body floated weightlessly above the floor as the world twirled around them. His mouth, hard and unyielding, continued its assault and she matched it with her own intensity. She tasted the sweetness of Braden mixed with the mint of his toothpaste. A soft moan echoed in the foyer and it took her a moment to realize it had come from deep inside her throat. The longing for him overshadowed all of her doubts. They had this moment to share together and she wouldn’t throw it away no matter what the consequences.