Page 58 of Crossing the Line

Good lord.

The lines of his muscles are clearly visible. I had no idea that’s what was hiding underneath his clothes all this time. My eyes trace over each of those lines until I arrive at his half-sleeve tattoo. Finally getting a good look at it, the black and grey ink goes from a dense forest to the head of an owl, and the detail is captivating. Pulling him closer, I try to guide his mouth back to mine, but he starts leaving a trail of kisses from the top of my stomach to right above my underwear. Skipping over the cotton, he kisses the top of my thigh, letting his lips linger. Slowly, he works his way down until he’s on his knees and kissing my ankle that now rests on his shoulder.

Lowering my leg, he climbs on top of me again, this time pressing himself into me. Moving my hips, I rub myself against him and he groans. Aiden’s lips finally find mine again, and they’re back with a vengeance. They move to my neck, my chest—he’s all over me.

Holy shit.

I’ve never felt anything like this.

This is more than just wanting someone.

My body needs him.

Now.

I grind my hips against him again, trying to soothe the building ache, but it only makes me want him more.

Aiden pushes himself up so that our bodies are no longer touching, and I practically whimper in protest. Breathing hard, his blue eyes turn to ice as he stares down at me. Slowly, he brings his mouth to my ear, and my chest rapidly rises and falls in anticipation. His lips barely brush my ear as he says, “Don’t tease me, Claire. I promise you’ll lose that game.” He drags his teeth over my earlobe before moving himself off of me. Pulling his shirt over his head, he says, “Meet us at The Patch. It’s on the far end of the pier, you can’t miss it.”

Scrambling to sit up, I gape at him. “You’re leaving? Right now?”

He turns to grab his phone from the end table, putting it in his pocket. “Yeah. We’re not doing this.”

I should feel uncomfortable having this conversation with him in my underwear, but my growing anger makes that the least of my concerns. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, I say, “So you don’t even know if you want to be with me, but it has to be all or nothing?”

Letting out a sigh, he says, “No. It just has to be more.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Listen, I meant all that shit I said before about you making me finally feel something. The last time I let myself want something with a girl, it fucked me up. I’m not going back there again if I can help it. I can’t set myself up for failure with you.” His eyes rake over my body before he adds, “And that’s exactly what this would do.”

Hearing him talk about his ex spurs new questions in the back of my mind, but I have a feeling he wouldn’t want to give me answers. Narrowing my eyes at him, I say, “In case you forgot, my ex isn’t the greatest either, but I’m not going to let it affect what I do and who I do it with.”

Aiden’s jaw tenses and I know I’ve said the wrong thing. His voice is deadly when he says, “And in case you forgot, you didn’t want anything from me. You were so worried about me even flirting with you that you made a fucking rule about it, Claire.”

Pressing my lips into a hard line, I hate that he’s right. I roll my eyes at the ceiling, refusing to look at him, but I hear him gather his things.

“Be at The Patch in thirty,” he says.

Then, he leaves.

And I’m done having Aiden Lewis walk out on me.

53

Aiden

Jesus, this girl is going to be the death of me. I’m sure I’ll pay for that later, but I think I made my point.

And she might be pissed.

Tearing myself away from her was probably one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. As soon as I decided to give her a taste of her own medicine, I knew it would be, but I wasn’t prepared for those damn hips to move the way they did. Just thinking about it makes me want to turn around and go right back through that door, but I grit my teeth and keep walking.

And keep thinking about how good she felt.

And tasted.

And looked.

Damn it.

By the time I reach The Patch, I’m so wound up I don’t even want to be here. Then I see Chad and remember that he’s tasted Claire too, and now I really don’t want to be here.

---