Page 52 of Thanks for Coming Along

She placed the mug on the counter, pushed off her elbows, and turned her body toward Ronan. A flicker of heat licked through her as she caught the fiery intensity in his eyes. They smoldered with a hunger that sent shivers down her spine. He looked at her like a lion stalking its prey, fixated on her like she was something to devour. It made her swallow nervously as vivid images of him bending her over the cool, smooth marble counter surged to the forefront of her mind.

"I'm guessing you heard from BNN?" Eden said, trying to extinguish the fire between them. Her question had caused Ronan to break eye contact and had him steering towards the pot of coffee.

"Yeah." Ronan's voice was faint as if he didn't acknowledge her question, and it ceased to exist. He poured himself a cup of coffee, the sound of liquid splashing in the ceramic mug filling the space.

"So we should cool things off?" Eden asked. She didn't mean to make it sound like a challenge, but there was a hint of rebellion in her voice. Her eyes watched as his shoulders tensed. He placed the coffee cup on the counter and turned his body around towards her.

"We will see." The words caused her pulse to race, her heart thumping in her ribcage. His eyes pierced hers, pinning her still. The look skewered her heart, puncturing through her chest, making it feel like it might burst any second. "I can't make any promises about not touching you. Now that I've tasted you, all bets are off, baby."Jesus.

His intense gaze traveled down her figure, every inch of her seemingly under the caress of his eyes. Her skin tingled with a delicious anticipation as chills erupted over her entire body. It was astonishing that a simple sentence from him could turn her on so intensely. Her body felt burning hot, and she felt a rush of heat flooding through her. The fabric of her clothes seemed to tease her, every sensation on her skin intensified by the look in his eyes.

"So, scrambled eggs?" he said casually, walking to the refrigerator as if he didn't rattle her so hard that her bones felt like jello.

35

Eden

9/29 7:26 AM PT

EDEN PERCY AND RONAN MURPHY GET COZY AT KARAOKE, HANDS ALL OVER EACH OTHER IN LAKE TAHOE

Amid filming the documentary about Eden Percy's life, director and journalist Ronan Murphy of the project seems to have gotten much more than answers to some juicy questions from the film's star. They are sparking dating rumors as they were spotted getting nice and cozy at a dive bar "Whiskey Dicks” in Lake Tahoe together. Eden posted a picture from the same night on her Instagram in Ronan's leather jacket in front of his motorcycle, sporting a huge glowing smile. The pair couldn't keep their hands or eyes off each other, according to patrons at the bar... While Ronan and Eden never kissed, it was clear they wanted to stay close. Ronan wowed the crowd with his rendition of "The Joker" by Steve Miller Band. The sexy cover was put over the top when he lifted Percy in his arms, making everyone wonder, "Is he shaking her tree?" after their filming sessions. Then, the pair received a standing ovation after their duet of "Under Pressure" by David Bowie and Queen, the bar descending into chaos once the performance was done. The two quickly left the bar, Ronan holding Eden's waist protectively. Whatever's next for them, we all want front-row seats!

Ronan had made scrambled eggs that morning, and it was a perfect representation of her current mental state. Scrambled..Hard. Hard was a word that she had vowed to avoid thinking about. It brought up too much ammunition she could use for her vivid imagination.

She had been trying to act like everything was normal, pretending nothing had changed between them. But the truth was far from normal. Thatkiss. It was undoubtedly the best kiss she’d ever had. She wouldn’t be surprised if it had caused shockwaves that rippled through the very fabric of the universe, that’s how good it was. Honestly, she half-expected NASA to have noticed the earth-shattering intensity of it. It felt like they were orbiting each other now, treading carefully, with their proximity creating a gravitational pull neither of them could fully resist.

Her libido was becoming a serious problem. It felt like there was a little devil perched on her shoulder, its pitchfork digging into her skin, urging her to throw caution to the wind and forget about BNN. She craved him—allof him—so desperately. She felt like one wrong move could shatter the fragile balance they’d built, unleashing a floodgate that might overwhelm them both. The temptation to give in to that desire was intense, but she knew she had to follow Ronan’s lead. After all, it was his career on the line, not hers.

It was day three of trying to cool things off, and it was going exactly as well as expected. Their eyes kept wandering involuntarily, guilty glances exchanged like they were sneaking contraband. They were back to the grind of filming, with Eden focused on fine-tuning the lyrics for her album, while Ronan strategically positioned himself in the farthest corner of the room.

He was sitting on a couch pushed against the opposite wall; his camera focused on her while she sat on the plush carpet with her back pressed against the floor-to-ceiling windows. She had worn a pleated tennis skirt just to torture Ronan. She figured she could at least have some fun in this miserable state of affairs.

Her body was in a constant state of arousal, on the precipice of release at most waking hours of every day since that kiss. Her mind was using any minuscule interaction with Ronan and running with it. Yesterday, he unraveled an extension cord, and she almost asked him nicely if he could tie her up with it.

She strummed her electric guitar, feeling its vibrations resonate through her hands. The sound reverberated from the large amplifier, filling the room with its powerful chords. Starting with the backing chords, she played them on the electric guitar, the notes echoing through a looping pedal she had set up. Then, she layered the lead guitar over the looping chords, adding depth and complexity to the melody.

Her words sang out. "I'll pull the covers back, like parting holy seas," she sang, her voice weaving with the gentle strumming of the guitar. Her gaze locked with liquid green eyes, her body swaying to the rhythm of the music. "And I'll worship your skin, newfound faith found in only you. You'll be my endless dream," she continued, a sly smile playing on her lips.

Ronan's eyes roved over her face, his thumb running slowly over his bottom lip as he stared at her. She slapped her hand onto the guitar strings, ending the chords with a soft snap, the sound lingering in the air as the looping pedal continued to play the jolt of background chords over her amplifier.

"Who's that about? Quentin?" Ronan asked, his long body sprawled comfortably over the couch, one arm casually draped over the cushion. His powerful thighs were spread apart, an invitation that seemed almost too tempting to resist. Eden couldn't help but notice the space between them, the urge to crawl closer and take what she wanted nearly overwhelming. Ronan closed the camera unhurriedly, setting it down on the cushion beside him.

"Seriously?" Eden scoffed at his question, tossing her guitar pick at him across the room. The triangular piece of plastic only made it halfway, landing anticlimactically on the carpet. Ronan stared at the pick and erupted into laughter at her feeble throw. Eden huffed in mock annoyance, but then a small smile tugged at her lips. She was more than prepared to return the teasing if he wanted to play that game.

Eden crawled towards the amplifier, searching for a replacement guitar pick. She was well aware that her skirt was ridiculously short, but she couldn't resist the temptation to live on the edge and tease him a bit. She heard Ronan's laughter suddenly cut off, but she just kept going, on all fours, heading toward her Fender amp where she kept the extra picks.

"Eden, please. You are driving me crazy," Ronan said roughly from across the room, she tossed an innocent look over her shoulder. Ronan was running his hands through his hair, staring straight at her ass.

"What's wrong?" she said over her shoulder, her voice dripping with mock confusion. Ronan blinked rapidly as if awakening from a trance. A flicker of irritation crossed his features, his eyebrows furrowing. But instead of deterring her, that look only spurred her on. She knew that her cheeky lace panties were most likely showing, but she couldn't bring herself to care. She continued crawling, stretching her arms over the amplifier to grab a stray guitar pick from behind the amp.

As she reached, her movement exposed even more of her lace underwear, and she could feel the cool air penetrating through the sheer fabric. The guitar chords continued to ring out in a loop, the speaker vibrating against her stomach.

Suddenly, she felt a gust of air on the back of her bare legs, followed by a rough hand grabbing the hair at the base of her neck while his other hand firmly gripped her hip. She let out a breathy gasp at the rough, possessive touch, her body responding eagerly to his firm grip. She could feel his hardness pressing against her, sending a thrill through her. His hand tugged on her hair, tilting her head back slightly.

"Is this what you've been begging for?" Ronan's voice was rough against her ear, his warm breath sending shivers down her spine. She whimpered in response, unable to stop the sound from escaping her lips.

"Who are you wearing that skimpy little underwear for?" he rasped, his hand moving from her skirt-covered hip and slowly trailing inward. His fingers glided over the front of her skirt, tracing the contours until they met the bare warmth of her thigh. Moving upward, his hand caressed the smooth skin, the calloused palm now gently scraping the sensitive flesh of her inner thigh.

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