Page 68 of Worth the Risk

“You don’t want people to know you’re a woman who has sex?”

“No, it’s not that. I mean, yes, it isn’t anyone else’s business if I’m having sex or not.”

“You’re right.” His hand brushes against my hair. “It isn’t anyone’s business what I do with your body, but that’s not what these marks signify. They’re not here so that people know you have sex.”

“No?” Goosebumps pepper my skin as he continues to gently drag his fingers over my neck and shoulders.

“They’re there as reminders.” His fingers slip beneath my sports bra, running softly over my breast. “So that every time I see them”—he tugs my bra down, exposing one breast—“I’m reminded that only I get to mark you.” He pinches my nipple. “Isn’t that right?”

“Yes.” I flinch at the pain.

He spins me around, clamping his teeth down on my breast and sucking. When he releases me, there’s another mark encircling my nipple, teeth marks already dark purple. He kisses it, pulling my bra back into place.

“And it also better serve as a reminder to you, who you belong to.” His eyes burn into mine. “Because when you were bouncing in that spin class”—he cups my breast, his hand sliding up my throat as he snakes his tongue around my earlobe, biting down softly—“all I could think about was wanting every single man in that room who was watching your tits to know that you are mine.”

That line echoes through my head the entire class. Along with a myriad of half a dozen other naughty things he said to me on the drive over.

“You know what the best part of going to yoga with you tonight is?” He drops his sweaty shirt on the floor of my hallway as he reaches for me. My shoes are kicked off farther down the hallway, my shorts halfway down my thighs.

“The staring? The stretching? The way you kept making sex eyes at me in the mirror, making me lose my balance?” I toss my shorts at him once they’re down my legs. He swats them out of the air, lunging for me. He grabs my arm, both of us tumbling into each other, our mouths crashing into each other in a lust-filled haze.

“The fact that this time, I get to try out some of those moves we just did, only naked.” He spins me around, pushing against my back. “Matter of fact, get into that downward dog position again.”

We both fall into a jumbled, laughing pile of limbs on my floor. Austin takes the opportunity to tickle my sides. I laugh for several minutes, my stomach starting to ache. But when the laughter dies down and I’m left beneath him, stretched out, that underlying tension that’s always present takes over.

And once again, instead of that panicked feeling of losing control, of not knowing, a calm sense of relief washes over me. Like this is exactly where I’m supposed to be—in Austin’s arms.

All at once, it feels right. That giddy, silly kind of excitement you get when your high school crush finally asks you out. When all of the heartbreak in your past seems worth it and almost trivial.

Like for once, you’re not overthinking it.

CHAPTER 20

Austin

“So, how are things going with Mia?”

Miguel laughs, bringing his coffee to his lips and taking a healthy swig. “Good.” He laughs again, nervously this time. The unspoken guy way of sayingpretty fucking goodwhile wanting to be respectful. “Damn, I like golf but this early in the morning.” He yawns for the third time in a row, shaking his head to wake up.

“Happy to hear it.” I reach for my own coffee. “Tell me about it, but thanks again for agreeing to meet me on the course. I really hate getting stuck between the two of them alone.” I nod toward Nick and Niles, our richest and also oldest clients who are talking instead of swinging their damn golf clubs.

When the Roloff brothers call you on Thursday night and say to meet at their golf club for a six a.m. tee off the next morning, you show up. And when they want to bitch and moan at each other about God knows what for fifteen minutes at the second hole, you let them.

“Thanks again for giving her my number. I wasn’t sure if it would be awkward.”

“Awkward? Psh, you saw the way I behaved at pickleball.” We both laugh. “Taylor and Mia both made sure I knew how awkward I made it for everyone. Sorry about that by the way.” I lift my cup toward him.

“Not at all man, I get it.” He gives me a knowing laugh. “But, uh, I just didn’t want you to feel like I’d overstepped a boundary with you and Mia, considering...”

“Oh.” I realize what he’s alluding to now. “Not at all. Did she tell you about our first date? How it went?”

“A little, just that it led to a second date but that it wasn’t really a second date?”

“Something like that. She’s great and a beautiful woman, that’s what caught my eye, I won’t lie, but uh…” I chuckle to myself. “She reminded me of Taylor.”

I pick at the sleeve on my coffee cup, remembering the way Taylor stretched against me this morning, her warm body feeling so damn good I wanted to stay like that forever.

“I don’t want you to go.”

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