Page 74 of Ghosts of Halloween

She looks at me, her face flushed, pupils blown wide, and my breath hitches in my throat. Damn. Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea.

“Wanna know why I fuck around’?” she asks, sounding kinda melancholy. She’s not angry, so I give her a cautious nod, because hell, I’ve always wanted to know. She gives me a small smile and nods at my bag. “Give me more first. I want to get drunk so I don’t remember this tomorrow. It’s pathetic enough talking about it.”

I shrug and pour her more rum. She takes a sip, her mouth twisting, and wipes her mouth, looking at me with glazed eyes.

“Careful,” I murmur, feeling bad for getting her drunk so I can get her secrets out of her. That doesn’t stop me, though. “Since you don’t usually drink, this will knock you out.”

As if to prove this is exactly what she wants, Harlow gulps down more, making such a disgusted face, I can’t help but laugh. When she settles the can at her feet and doesn’t say anything, I carefully lace my fingers through hers. Her hand is warm and small, her skin soft, a bit red across the knuckles.

She flinches as I run my thumb over her palm, her fingers twitching, and looks up with wide eyes.Fuck.I freeze, staring at her. With her cheeks colored, eyes so open and dazed, and lips parted to reveal the pink tip of her tongue, she looks almost… aroused.

But I haven’t done anything. I simply took her hand. Yet when Harlow wets her lips, clearing her throat, my suspicion turns into certainty. She wants me. The thought sends a pleasant tingle down my spine, even though I know nothing’s gonna happen.

It’s like my cock doesn’t even know what’s good for it, though, because it fills up rapidly, tingling when the barbells tighten.

Harlow grips my hand and looks away, but then her eyes dart back at me and she slowly raises our joined hands, wetting her lips.

“Because I’m looking for this,” she whispers, her fingertips digging in. “I call them sparks. It’s… When someone touches me, I get this… this rush… And the easiest way to get people to touch me is, you know. To let them fuck me.”

I blink, staring at her, when realization slowly sinks in. Harlow just handed me the fucking key to hereverythingand I don’t even stop to think before I decide to use it. Right now.

My heart is in my throat, beating wildly, when I slowly turn to her and reach for her cheek. With just my index finger, I slowly trace the curve of it, and Harlow gasps, eyes flaring with open want.

“Do they touch you like this?” I murmur, because a sick, rabid jealousy boils in my gut, and I have an urge to strangle each and every one of those men who gave hersparks.

But Harlow snorts softly before drawing in a sharp breath when my finger reaches her jaw and follows its shape down to her chin.

“N-not usually,” she says, swallowing with difficulty. “I… I sometimes ask for it but… They are more interested in touching me elsewhere.”

I huff with derision, my jealousy settling. Of course they are. Fucking animals. But then, what does she expect?

“So what kind of touch gives you those sparks?” I ask softly, teasing my fingers down her neck.

She releases a shaky breath and tilts her head back, giving me better access. Her pulse is wild, fluttering fast, and I press the tip of my finger to it, feeling her blood rushing with excitement. With arousal. For me.

“Like… like this,” she answers, her unsteady voice making my dick twitch.

Holy hell, this is fucking sublime. Just seeing the pleasure and need painted on her face makes me want to keep going and never stop. Even if she only wants me to touch her so innocently, even if she won’t touch me back, I’m already addicted.

“J-Jack,” she moans when I slowly unzip her hoodie, just enough to reveal her collarbones, which I gently caress with my fingers. She’s shaking and panting, and fuck, but she looks like she’s about to come. It’s wild, and I can hardly believe it.

I get only a brief warning when boots thud on the porch outside. I jerk away from Harlow, shooting her a sharp look, and she yanks her zip up, grabbing her can and taking a long, mouth-twisting gulp. When the guys enter the room a few seconds later, she’s still flushed and breathing too fast, but no one seems suspicious. Noah sits down with a grunt, giving her just a perfunctory glance, and I slowly let out a breath, sipping my beer.

I don’t say much when the guys talk about some asshole client in Caden’s landscaping job, just sit there with my nerves jittering. Will they go foranother cigarette break? I know it’s pretty late, so Noah will want to take Harlow home, but I still hope for one last chance to touch her before she leaves.

It’s not like I can do it out in the open. Or when she’s sober. I don’t think she’ll let me do this again, not when she knows so well Noah’s against it. But tonight? Her inhibitions are gone, and fuck me, but I’ll use it. And is that really bad? It’s not like I’m going to fuck her. I’ll just touch her face. There’s nothing more innocent than that.

I cast furtive glances her way, kinda admiring the way she sips her rum with a straight face, only her eyes watering slightly. She can be sneaky, even when drunk. Just another thing I love about her.

When Caden gives me a wink and gets up, reaching for his cigarettes, I could kiss him. Somehow, he knows. Creepy fucker, it’s like he’s psychic or something.

“One last smoke, gentlemen.” Silas and Noah get up, and I make a point of looking bored while they shuffle out through the door.

It gives me wicked pleasure that Noah is the one who insists on them smoking outside even when we’re in this crappy hole. He doesn’t want Harlow to get lung cancer.

“Where were we?” I ask, standing up on legs that are just a bit unsteady. My dick, which has settled, comes back to life as I stand over her, Harlow’s face turned up and so wanton, I want to kiss her.

“Touch me, Jack,” she whispers hoarsely, and I drop to my knees, my hands already reaching for her face.

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