Page 28 of Cruel Steps

At his taunt, all logic left my head, and I unlocked the door and flung it open. Holden stood, bracing the doorframe sans shirt, his hard muscles on full display. A tattoo I hadn’t noticed before ran along his ribs, but I couldn’t read the words. My eyes traveled the rest of the way, and I gulped at the sight of him in a pair of low-slung shorts.

This had been a terrible idea.

All the words I’d wanted to fling at him dried up at the sight of his naked chest. I stood there staring like he was the only drink of water in the desert.

“Can I help you, Emerson?”

“I, uh, um, er,” I stuttered, my cheeks flaming.

It was then I noticed how he gripped the doorframe, his knuckles white and his muscles taut as he held himself back. His eyes were locked on me, his nostrils slightly flared, and I wanted to say his shorts were tented. It was hard to gauge with him leaning. That was when I realized that I’d opened the door in only my towel. Such an idiot!

Holden took two steps back and pulled the panties he’d taunted me with out of his pocket. He held the red off one finger and the black off the other. “Since you need me to get you off, it’s only fair you decide.”

Cheeks red, I held my ground. I wouldn’t let him get the better of me. “My orgasm had nothing to do with you.”

“Tell that to my name you shouted.” He smirked, and my brain went fuzzy.

Crap. Had I shouted his name? I didn’t think so, but it was the second time he’d said it now. It was all hazy.

His smirk grew, and he full-on smoldered as he stared at me. The electrical tension between us vibrated, my heart nearly jumping out of my chest. He licked his lips, and my eyes eagerly watched as his tongue peeked out, remembering exactly what it could do. My pussy throbbed in response, and I sucked in a breath at the tension. We both leaned closer, his knuckles grazing my skin.

“Holden, dinner’s in five! Do not miss it, and wear something nice,” Rose said, knocking on his door.

Jumping apart, I felt an ice-cold bucket of reality dumped over my head. I slammed the door between us and ran to my room, shutting and locking that one for good measure.

I blindly chose a dress and absently brushed my hair. I didn’t want to look like I tried, but also didn’t want to disappoint Rose. I needed a balance between feeding Holden’s ego and not giving Hope ammunition.

I couldn’t lose sight of who he was.

Of what he’d said to me.

Of the side he’d chosen.

Holden was the enemy and off-limits.

When I felt adequately dressed, I exited my room and sped past his door. However, luck was not on my side, and he opened it as I passed. His cologne wafted from his room, and I picked up my pace, not needing his intoxicating sandalwood scent to sway me.

I wasn’t positive, but it sounded like he groaned and stopped to take a deep breath. I’d probably imagined it, but it felt powerful to believe I affected him.

His long legs caught up to me quickly, and he walked right behind me, but I ignored him and took the steps as quickly as I could.

“I’m curious, Emerson. What’s under that dress if you haven’t earned back your panties yet?”

I stopped, stunned by his words. “Earned? What?”

Holden sauntered around me, his movements pure sex as he stopped on the stair below mine. He towered over me and bent to whisper in my ear. “If you want your panties back, you gotta earn them, Wildcat. Go ahead. Ask me how.”

His lips brushed against my skin, and I shuddered. It was too much. His smell. The proximity. The words.

“I’d rather drink boiling water than ask you for anything.” My nostrils flared, and I pushed past him, his deep chuckle caressing me like a lover. I stopped on the bottom step, knowing I needed to gain some ground. So, without thinking of the repercussions, I glanced over my shoulder and gave him my best come hither look.

Holden’s eyes heated, his nostrils slightly expanding, and he gripped the railing. I blinked slowly, looking at him from beneath my eyelashes just like I’d done that night.

“The answer is nothing, Jockstrap.”

With that, I strolled into the formal dining room and took my seat, smiling big. Maybe this dinner wouldn’t be as bad after all.

CHAPTER

---