Page 63 of Mine to Take

And then I can walk away.

Unscathed.

I can leave Maverick McKinnon where he belongs.

Safely tucked away in my memories.

I force myself to eat up the remaining distance. Air gets clogged in my lungs as my shaking palms settle on the broad expanse of his chest. His muscles bunch and tighten, straining beneath the flesh. All the warring thoughts within my brain go silent as my senses are bombarded by him.

The heat of his skin.

The woodsy scent of his cologne that cocoons me in familiarity.

The steady tempo of his heart beating beneath my fingertips.

The harsh breath that belies the calm expression on his face.

I want to soak in this moment so I don’t forget a single second of it.

When my palms slide toward the necklace, his larger hands settle over them, drawing them upward until they’re tangled around his neck and my body is flush against his.

Our gazes stay fastened.

I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to.

“We shouldn’t do this,” I whisper, trying one last time to stop this from happening.

Even to my own ears, the protest is weak.

“Do you love him?”

“Of course.” The truthful response is out of my mouth before I can think better of it.

Fury flashes in his eyes as his voice dips, sounding as if it’s been roughed up by sandpaper.

“I’ve never been one to fuck other dudes’ girlfriends.” Just as relief rushes from my lungs, he tacks on, “But I’m going to make an exception in this case.”

I don’t realize that he’s walked us toward the bed until the backs of my thighs hit the edge of the mattress and I tumble onto it. My brain spins out of control as he follows me down, his larger body caging me in.

“Tell me you don’t want this to happen.”

My tongue darts out to moisten my lips.

One word has the power to stop this in its tracks.

Except, when I open my mouth, not a single sound escapes.

I’m slammed with the realization that I can’t give him a response.

Because when it comes down to it, I want this.

I want Maverick to run his hands and lips over me like he did the night we spent together. More than anything, I want him to make my body come alive so I can forget the reason this can never be more than a few stolen hours.

When I remain silent, satisfaction dances in his eyes right before his lips crash onto mine.

20

Maverick

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