Page 31 of All That Glitters

He’s made it very clear what he thinks of me, and if his words weren’t enough, the way his face tightens tells me it’s wrong to kiss him. There are no more murmured praises when he grabs my elbow and turns me toward the door, away from the comfort and ease of my sanctuary. My chest carves out.

He’s comfortable doing these things for me, but it’s insanity to think it will go any further. Time for me to stop dreaming of fairy tales.

TWELVE

Her tiny kiss staggers me and gets me instantly hard.

My cock strains against the tight pleats of my dress pants, and only the six inches between us keep Empire from feeling it.

“Fuck.”

The word explodes out of me, and I catch a flash of worry on her face before she’s got her lower lip between her teeth, nibbling. It’s hard to keep my hands in place, to keep my grip light instead of crushing her to my chest and finishing what she started. I guide her down the hallway with her face ahead so she can’t look at me.

“The other day, on the couch…” I start then stop. “With us.”

“Yes?”

“That wasn’t your first kiss, right?”

She took my breath away the moment I saw her with her dress halfway on, her hair and makeup done, and a slightly wry grin on those bright red lips. I wanted to thank God for whatever a fuck like me did to earn even a glimpse of her, a fallen angel made of sin and smiles.

She lets out a soft giggle. “No, it wasn’t my first kiss. Not by a long shot. But Marcus…”

The sound of my name on her lips is a prayer, one I’m powerless against.

“I want you to kiss me again. I want your hands on me.” Her back straightens as she speaks. “I don’t want you to hold back.”

If I start, if she turns and looks at me, then I won’t be able to stop myself. I keep my eyes ahead, my own breathing ragged as she turns to glance at me over her shoulder. Her gaze travels over my chest and back up to my eyes while she waits for me to answer.

An undeniable hunger passes through me and lodges in my insides. A low growl burns the back of my throat.

Blame it on my dick. Blame it on too long without having a woman to fuck or to hold.

I’ve got to have her.

I grab her and back her into the wall, the full force of my lust focused entirely on her. I lunge, freeing myself of any ties, and kiss her hard. Thoroughly. Empire throws her arms over my neck until we’re a tangle of lips and teeth.

“Give me everything, Marcus.”

It’s a whispered plea as loud as a shout.

She runs her fingernails down the back of my neck, across my overheated skin, and I want to tear at her clothes until they are on the floor.

She moans, and something inside me hardens further at the sound. Kissing her is a terrible mistake, and I can’t stop myself. Even the layers of fabric between us feel like walls, and I’m about to burn everything down. There’s no denying the attraction I feel for her, the completely impossible attraction that we will probably both regret once this moment passes. But there is nothing but hunger in her eyes when I break away, and her gaze darts do my lips.

“More.”

Fuck any control.

Her mouth is on mine this time, insistent and angling to take the kiss deeper.

Careful of her hair, I wrap my hand around the back of her neck to keep her close, her lips parting to accept my tongue eagerly. I tease her with short strokes that have Empire clutching at me. She tastes sweet, like mint. Like spearmint. Light and sharp and intoxicating.

And when she kisses me back, scraping her teeth over my lip, I moan her name, feasting on her, holding her in place with my hand against her hip and kneading her skin even as I press closer.

I kiss her again and cup my hands around her ass, grinding her against my erection. The dress won’t allow her to wrap her legs around me, but she holds onto me like her life depends on it. My cock presses to her front, the wall at her back, and she’s as soft as I imagined.

We move together, burning each other to ashes, and I know if I ever got the chance to take her, I’d go over the edge entirely, sweat slicked, panting, smelling of her the way she’d smell of me.

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