Page 43 of Finally Moore

Okay, at least I didn’t actually forget something, seeing as this is the first time I’m hearing about concrete plans. I’m sure I have a million squealing texts from Jax. I’ve just been so caught up in spending time with Scarlett and Brittany I never thought to check my phone.

“Sounds like a plan,” I tell Kasey with a curt nod.

We all say our goodnights, leaving just Scarlett and me alone for the first time since myPeeping Tomincident this morning. My heart races as we continue back down the path in silence. The sound of our boots crunching in the snow is almost deafening. And before I know it, we’re standing under Scarlett’s little porch light, the only thought in my head…

We got here way too fast.

She opens the front door and waits on the threshold. “Are you coming in?” she asks me.

“No,” I tell her, shocking not only Scarlett but myself too.

“No?” she repeats with a frown. Then her shoulders sag. “It’s fine. I get it. I know I’ve been asking a lot, and tonight… well, it was incredible. But I can’t keep asking you to pretend. Don’t worry about this whole thing.” She waves a hand between us. “I’ll come up with something—”

Before I can think better of it, I pull her into my arms and crash my mouth onto hers, silencing whatever she was about to say. Scarlett doesn’t hesitate to tug me closer, but I stop us from stepping inside.

“Scarlett,” I say against her lips. She hums her acknowledgment. “I can’t go in there.”

That knocks her out of whatever daze she seemed to be in. “What? Why?”

I sigh. “Today… yesterday… no, more like every second we spend together is amazing. Honestly, these past few days have been the best ones of my life. But that kiss, then this morning…”

“What happened this morning?” She cocks her head to the side and studies me.

Although this is one dirty secret I would love to take to my grave, nothing more can happen between us until I’m completely honest with her. I know how that sounds. It’s a weird hill to die on with yourfakefiancée. But it’s starting not to feel all that fake anymore.

“This morning.” I swallow hard. “You were dreaming.” Her face goes pale as realization appears to set in. “I should’ve left, but you were so gorgeous and those little noises you were making…” I rub at the back of my neck, where there’s a sudden accumulation of sweat despite the chill in the air. “So I stayed and watched you—”

“You…” Her cheeks turn a deep shade of red as all the pieces click together.

“And now, after spending this incredible evening together… Fuck… I just can’t go into that small little cabin and pretend that I don’t want you. That I don’t know how beautiful you sound when you come. I can’t lie and say that I’m going to sleep, when what I’m really gonna do is stay up all night hoping like hell you do it again.”

“You want me?”

I chuckle at the absurd question, because out of everything I said—admitted—that’s what stuck. Not to mention, who the fuck wouldn’t want her?

“Sorry…wantis an understatement. Ineedto touch you, taste you, fuck you. I’m starving for you, and I—”

This time, Scarlett is the one to cut me off with another searing kiss. “I want you too,” she tells me. “You’re all I can think about. That kiss… dreaming about what your lips could do to the rest of me…”

The thread of self-restraint that’s been keeping me from crossing that line thins by the second. “Are you sure? I know we’ve been treading dangerous waters the past couple of days, but if we do this, there’s no changing—”

“I know…” Scarlett grabs me by the belt loop, and I don’t resist as she tugs me through the door. “And I don’t care.” As soon as it shuts behind us, there’s no holding back.

I crash my mouth onto hers and my first thought is that her lips are sweet. They taste like sugar and apples. I savor the foreign flavors until I find the one that is uniquelyherbeneath it all. “You taste incredible,” I groan as my hands reach down, grip her ass, and lift her up.

Scarlett wraps her legs around my waist and we continue to devour each other as we make our way to her bed. She’s at the perfect position to rock against my firm cock. As soon as my legs tap the metal frame, I lay Scarlett back and cover her body with mine. My lips travel down her jaw, until she grips my head and leads me to the places she wants me to go. When I reach the collar of her sweater, I sit up enough so that I can clutch the hem and rip it over her head. Scarlett smiles, her soft curls a mess as she looks up at me.

“You’re fucking breathtaking,” I tell her and I mean it. I’ve never seen something more perfect than the woman in front of me. She turns away from me at the compliment. But I refuse to let her fold in on herself, not this time, so I grip her chin and pull her focus back to me. My eyes lock with hers. “Do you have any idea how drop-dead-fucking-gorgeous you are, Scarlett Valentine?”

“Scott…” She tries to pull away again, but I hold strong. “Please…” she says while chewing on her bottom lip.

It’s clear this isn’t a habit I can break in a single evening. Not that I wouldn’t love to try, but based on the few encounters I’ve had with Scarlett’s mother, I gather there is a lot of baggage there—baggage that includes a huge pile of self-doubt.

“Fine.” Instead of continuing to argue, I decide to distract her with another searing kiss. “But this conversation isn’t over,” I vow against her lips. “I’m going to remind you every day, replace every negative word you’ve ever heard and have locked up in that head of yours, until you can look me in the eye when I call you beautiful. Then, do you know what will happen?” I pull away and gaze down at her swollen lips. She still appears a little dazed.

“What?” she asks on an exhale, almost as if she forgot to breathe for a moment.

I flash her a half-cocked smile. “Well…” I trace a finger down the smooth buttons of the blouse she had hidden under her sweater, undoing each one as I go. “You’re just going to have to be a good girl and find out.” When my hand lands on the hem, her top falls open. “Absolute perfection.” I gaze down at her large breasts, testing the strength of the fabric holding them in place, her nipples like little diamonds threatening to poke a hole through the lace bra.

---