Page 75 of The Breaking Point

“Why not? Nobody can hear me.”

“Because I don’t need you to tempt me right now.”

She just kissed my ear and said, “Then I’ll come back later to see if you’ve changed your mind.”

Despite my best efforts to avoid Grace this evening, she was determined to drive me insane. She kept coming up to me and saying dirty nothings in my ear. Reminding me of when I’d spanked her. Telling me about the paddle she’d brought with her. Describing how easy it would be to reach under her dress to stroke her thighs.

Every time I told her enough was enough, she’d just giggle and flutter away. And I didn’t even mean it, anyway.

I loved that she was flirting with me. I love that she felt comfortable playing with me. It was an entirely new dynamic to our relationship that I never realized I’d wanted.

But as the evening wore on, my self-control was splintering. I ran into Mac, who took one look at me and laughed.

“Jesus, what’s wrong with you?” he asked.

I gestured toward where Grace stood and talked to some of her PR friends. “That woman is trying to kill me.”

“Oh, man. You’re in deep, aren’t you?”

“I’m sticking with you for the rest of tonight.”

Mac patted my arm, grinning. “I’ll keep you safe from the scary lady.”

I glared at my friend, but he didn’t care. He was just enjoying this whole thing way too much.

It was near the end of the event when I stepped outside to get some fresh air. The ballroom had gotten way too packed with people. I inhaled deeply, feeling my shoulders relax a little.

It was a full moon tonight. I remembered when Grace was younger and would always drag me outside to show me the moon, especially if it was full.

It’s just the moon,I’d said.

But look at it! It’s beautiful.

I hadn’t understood why she’d cared back then. Now I wondered whether she’d done it just to have a reason to talk to me.

“Beautiful night, isn’t it?” Grace said behind me.

“Did you see the moon?” I asked.

I could feel her smiling. She came to stand next to me. “Mmm, it’s gorgeous.”

Now, my gaze was on her face. “Yeah. It is.”

She just kept smiling. I realized that we were alone—and how dangerous that was for my self-control.

Grace turned and wrapped my arm around her waist. “I lied earlier, you know,” she said.

“Oh really?”

She opened her purse. To my dismay, she pulled out the paddle she’d been talking about.

“I didn’t leave this in my room. I brought it with me.”

I stared at it. I stared at her. And then, like glass shattering, my self-control finally broke.

I grabbed the paddle and, after stuffing it back into her purse, hauled Grace into my arms.

“You want to keep poking the bear?” I growled. “Then you’re going to get eaten.”

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