Page 18 of Shock to the Heart

She nods eagerly, then stops and shakes her head vigorously from side to side. "I don't want to relax. I want…you."

My lips brush the tip of her nose. "Baby, you can have me for as long as you want to keep me."

Her fingers walk up my chest. "Is it weird that we're starting this…whatever-it-is…with me asking you to keep a secret?"

"No, I don't think so."

She links my hand with hers. "And here I don't know any of your secrets."

"As far as secrets go, mine is pretty tame," I breathe, my lips brushing her ear. "My dad doesn't know that I sometimes do electrical jobs for another company. Dad only does electrical, but Marty McGee is a contractor who oversees a huge variety of jobs. I don't think Dad's jealous exactly that he sometimes loses work because he specializes in one thing, but he draws a very strict line. I'm pretty sure Dad would see it as a total betrayal if he knew I was getting a bit of extra work elsewhere. So he can't find out, because he'd probably want to kill me."

"Naughty boy," she smirks.

"Yes. Terribly naughty. But you're the one inviting a strange man into your bed."

Her grin is a ray of light as she squeezes me. "True. So let's go already."

"I love when you boss me around."

I scrub the flecks of paint from my hands in the kitchen, then follow her upstairs to the far corner of the house. Her bedroom is quite large, with its own adjoining bathroom. "Nice. It's kind of like your own hotel suite."

"Yeah. It's my sanctuary when there are a ton of strangers in the house." She looks around, then grabs a few things from a drawer. "Back in a sec."

I turn on the bedside lamp, then switch off the overhead light before stripping down to my boxer briefs and slipping into Electra's bed. Looking around the room, her things are as eclectic as she is. Books and art supplies, and interesting photographs. Sculptures. A row of hats hanging from nails in the wall. A desk with two laptops and a stack of notebooks.

The rest of the house is curated specifically to look like a musician's paradise. To impress outsiders. To be photographed. Electra's space is a cozy, creative escape from all that.

A tiny, dark whisper of doubt lances through me.

Am I just an escape for her from the "appropriate" suitors her parents are trying to set her up with who suit their own needs?

Is there any chance Electra sees this as just a weekend fling?

11

ELECTRA

I’m on fire. My mind. My soul. My everything.

It's as if releasing those songs properly created fresh space inside me.

As I wash my face and brush my hair, I blush at the notion of feeling empty when Trey is such a huge…

Shaking the thought free, I pull on a giant tank top. It's what I've always used as a nightgown. If I chose something cute or girlie, it wouldn't be me, and he'd know right away. It already feels like he knows me better than anyone – which is, of course, part of why I want him so badly.

The other part is that he's the first man who has ignited my lust so intensely. So I'm curious: if just his kisses make me tremble, what's going to happen when we do…a lot more?

I'm nearly bouncing as I come out of the bathroom. As someone who has practiced various breathing techniques for years, you'd think I'd be able to deal with this.

Nope. I'm practically panting.

Trey is sitting up in my bed, the blankets only going up to his hips. His shirtless chest…his thick, sculpted arms…the hungry look in his eyes as he stares at my bare legs… It's hard to complete thoughts. It's as if I've become non-verbal, wanting only to stare.

He flips the covers open. "Come here, beautiful."

A shiver runs through me and I hurry over to jump in beside him. He's so warm, and his bare skin feels incredible against me.

"Last night I told you what I wanted to do, so that you wouldn't be nervous." He strokes my hair as I wriggle to bring my lips up near his. "Tonight we do whatever you want."

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