Page 169 of Out of Bounds

"You have to rest." I ran my fingers through his hair again. His curls were really starting to come in and every time I drew my fingertips along them, Ryan relaxed a little more, leaning into my touch. "I promise, it’s okay to sleep. You need it."

Suddenly, it was hard to look at him and I averted my eyes to grab my laptop charger.

"Z and I are going to watch a movie. You could enjoy the fruits of your labor. Look around, no more holes in the walls."

I didn’t make it two steps away to start rooting for Zariah’s pajamas before Ryan snagged the bottom of the hoodie, drawing me back to him. Even in the darkness, his dark honey eyes smoldered. They trailed down my face. Drinking me in. And he was so close, I was an open book. The blush was impossible to hide.

My heart thumped painfully in my chest.

"This is my hoodie," he murmured.

I drew in a slow breath, "I stole it. Finders keepers."

With his hands on my hips, Ryan gently turned me around until my back faced him, clearly showing off his jersey number. He made a noise of approval. "I like seeing my name on you."

"You are very possessive," I said, not even joking. "Has everybody else clocked that?"

"No."

I frowned, turning back to face him. "No?"

"I’ve never been possessive over anyone else. I’ve never found anyone else to be possessive of."

Ryan wasn’t tired anymore, he was all too awake, bright-eyed and slipping his hands under the hoodie to stroke my skin, inching up, while I struggled with a response. I had no experience with anything like this. There’d been other guys tofool around with, sure, but nobody like Ryan. Nothing like the way he could untangle me, leaving me exposed. Vulnerable.

"Well, I needed the hoodie," I explained and even that explanation sounded weak. With shaky fingers, I tugged down the collar until I could show him the necklace of hickeys and bite marks that he’d gifted me. I tried to laugh. "You’re trouble."

Ryan’s eyes darkened.

The look on his face made it hard to swallow.

"I’m looking for an apology," I said softly.

He shook his head and wrapped a hand around the back of my neck, tugging me closer. "I’m not apologizing for this."

The first thing he should’ve thought of when he saw the hickeys was how visible they were. It was all about keeping up the Romans’ image. A ring of hickeys around my neck didn’t exactly scream professionalism.

But he dipped down to my throat anyway.

I couldn’t believe it. "Ryan."

He ran his lips across my skin, bringing out more than goosebumps. More than a blush. My entire body leaned towards him, practically begging for him to continue, and the words vanished to stop him. This was one of Ryan’s favorite things. I could taste his excitement in the air as he kissed my neck slowly, languishing in the moment.

But I can’t hide these forever.

"Ryan," I said, a little more firm. Stopping him was the hardest thing in the world to do but it was a necessary evil.

He made a noise at the back of his throat in acknowledgement and it vibrated against my skin.

Oh. Fuck.

I squeezed my eyes shut. "Don’t."

"Don’t what?"

"No hickeys."

Ryan kissed the base of my throat. "But I like showing off what I own."

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