Page 79 of Snap Shot

Indi

Having the upper hand with men is something I've experienced only in an academic or courtroom setting. Any intimate relationships—if they can be called that—left me powerless. I got crushed by the same guard I let down.

It's different with Landon.

The way he accepts the drawn boundaries is disarming. It's an unfamiliar level of safety and security. I didn't think he would agree to all my demands. Instead, he shows care, restraint. Dominance, too, but in a way that's all for me. He may have been talking, but I'm in control. Rash. Empowered. Landon's on his knees, andI want to push him to the brink, exactly how he pushed me to mine.

“Beg.”

Thin blue rings replace the endless azure of his eyes from the widened, blown pupils. My knees separate when his hands drop, broad palms wrapping the backs of my naked ankles in an insistent grip.

“Please.”

It's nearly inaudible. He doubles over, kissing the bony joint under my shoe strap.

“Please.” Agony laces the plea.

His fingers wisp around the curve of my calf, plush lips brushing over the invisible arc. “Please.”

Thumbs circle both inner knees before the ghostly echo of his mouth grazes the skin.

“Please, Indi. Just a taste.”

I expect goosebumps, but the contact is too warm, too electric. Heated blood rushes to every spot he connects with, surging wildly at the lowest point between my legs. I swallow down any lingering hesitation and bring my hand to him. The pads of my fingers sit on his lower lip for a few seconds until I push them past the parted seam.

“Suck.”

Landon’s wet, warm mouth welcomes me with a rumbling, chesty moan, striking pins and needles against the pads of my fingers. His eyes fall shut, lash line shading his handsome face. Hollowed cheeks highlight the sharp angles of his jaw as my fingers pass over the flat surface of his tongue.

I'd be a puddle on the floor if it weren't for my heels planted into the rug. My breath trembles with poorly contained restraint.

I want to believe the new height of trust means something, but I wash the thought away. It's too hopeful. We’re using each other. We keep it physical, and it can't be anything more.

Landon releases my fingers and collapses onto my chest, hands scrambling from my knees upward. “Goddamn it, Indi.”

The gruffness in his voice sends delicious shivers down my spine. He gasps out humid breaths onto my bare skin. I count them to distract myself from how hard my heart thumps underneath. Four. This man breathes four times before detaching himself and forcing eye contact. Those blues dart back and forth, gleaming, piercing into me.

“You're gonna ruin me.”

A smugness takes over my smile. “I bet you say that to all the ladies.”

He scoffs out a laugh. I don't know how he does it, but Landon carves windows into the walls I put up. His half-smile fades. “There are no other ladies.”

I can't let myself believe him when he says things like that. We're just friends. I won't serve up my heart on a plate. That's why there are rules. We don't kiss, we don't sleep together, we don't catch feelings. We don't do anything beyond what we're doing. Easy peasy.

“Sure, Landon.” I fiddle with my dress, smoothing it out. It's fiddly, and definitelynota tactic for me to brush off his statement. “It's late. I should head home.”

He stands when I do. My brain clouds at the sight of the massive bulge on his thigh.Idid that. Little ol' no-one-likes-me Indira Davé brought panty-melting, golden boy Landon Radek to his knees. And now he's following me around his penthouse like a loyal puppy.

I rinse and soap up my hands in the kitchen sink. Landon watches, shifting his gaze between my hands, eyes, and mouth.

When I return the towel after drying off, he flips my wrist and drops a metal ring into my palm. “The key fob for the garage doors.”

My lips part. “Oh.” He seems unfazed, crossing his arms and tipping back onto the counter, relaxed, except that hard-oncannotbe relaxing.

“It's easier than risking getting caught. When can I see you again?”

“I,uh…” Not tomorrow. I'll never hear the end of it if I cancel on the girls. “Sunday?”

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