Page 38 of Accidental Abduction

His eyes flashed toward mine briefly before he looked down again. “She wanted to date other people and make me wait around for her todecide if what we had was worth coming back to.”

Growling, it almost morphed into a laugh at the way the corner of his mouth turned up in amusement at my defensive nature.

“Down girl,” he teased, exhaling and shuffling the cards one more time.

“Know your worth, Hudson. You deserve more than someone who wants to string you along until she’s bored with her next victim.”

“And you deserve more than the string of one-night stands you take back to your apartment to torture me.”

“Maybe that was my plan all along,” I giggled, rubbing my toes against his thigh underneath the table.

“Wouldn’t surprise me,” he laughed, tossing a stack of brightly colored cards at me from across the table. “Maybe once you beat me, I’ll let you UNO reverse cowgirl me.”

I giggled, picking up my cards and fanning them out to plan my method of attack. I’d reverse cowgirl that bucking bronco any day of the week.

The fireplace crackled behindme, casting an ominous glow across the dimly lit great room. I should have been asleep, but after I’d awoken in the dark, my heart beating frantically as I tried not to dwell on the panic of my dream, I knew it’d be futile to try to go back to sleep.

Hudson had been out cold. In his defense, once we’d finally succumbed to the tension that’d been building all day, we’d frantically had sex three times—in varying acrobatic positions and unconventional locations—until we’d fallen asleep long after midnight.

Then my subconscious had decided to be a bitch, and I had a nightmare about a manic vampire dressed Harley Quinn chasing me through the woods intent to stab me to death and drain all my blood. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the vampire was more of the emotional kind, and I was worried that maybe I’d kicked the hornet’s nest when I’d brought up Viv yesterday.

Hudson hadn’t seemed upset with me, per se, afterward, but he had been uncharacteristically quiet while we cooked dinner together last night. I was trying not to read into it too much. He’d had a rough week, but I was determined to make it clear that I was here for him, and not just as a warm body.

But this morning, he was going to be my warm body to command.

Stretching my legs out in front of me on the coffee table, I tried to pull the hem of his hoodie down a bit further so my bare legs—and other parts—didn’t stick to the heavily lacquered wooden surface.

“God this thing is terrible,” I grumbled, scratching at the edge of my jaw, where the hard plastic of the mask he’d been wearing rubbed against my skin. It’d looked sexy and intimidating in the dim lighting of the dance floor during the party, and the dark of the woods behind the bar, but I was worried Hudson would stumble out here half awake and decide I was ridiculous for doing this.

He’d taken control during every interaction so far, but it was my turn.

And there was a huge difference between me taking the lead in the bedroom because we’d both like it, and me demanding control because I wasn’t willing to satisfy anyone’s needs but my own. This was for his enjoyment just as much as mine.

But Hudson had better fucking wake up soon, because now I was starting to second guess my sleep deprived plan to flip the script on him. Except for the chasing part. Cause the temperature had dropped outside overnight and it was too fucking cold to chase him through the woods when there weren’t any warm clothes in the house that actually fit me.

“Charley?” Hudson’s sleepy voice carried down the hallway, and I nervously shifted, trying to look like I had control of the situation. I could fake it until I made it with the best of them.

Deciding to stay in the role, I silently remained where I was, stretched across the table in only his sweatshirt, his mask and my knee-high leather boots.

“What are you doing up so early?” he asked as he appeared at the end of the hallway. His long arms stretched above his head as he yawned with his eyes closed. One more step into the great room and he’d see me.

And judging by the tenting in the front of his worn blue pajama pants, he seemed to beupfor a little fun this morning.I fucking loved morning wood.

His footsteps halted the moment I came into view, the flames from the fireplace reflected in his wide eyes. “Holy fuck.”

“Such a mouth on you,” I teased, beckoning him to come closer with my finger.

“Never fucking said I didn’t,” he laughed. “Clearly, someone is feeling naughty this morning.”

“Hmm. Have you been a naughty boy, Hudson?”

He took another step toward me, and I held up my hand, indicating for him to stop.

“Are you wearing anything underneath that sweatshirt?” he asked in a low voice, his eyes shifting down to where I had my legs crossed.

“No,” I chuckled, keeping my voice low.

“Show me,” he ordered, trying to take a step forward, but I shook my head, pointing my finger at him.

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