Page 185 of Hard Knot

The smugness in his tone makes my pulse quicken, and I shift against the counter, trying to ground myself in something other than the growing tension between us.

“Can you be patient?” he asks, his voice low, cutting through the thick air between us like a blade.

I lift a brow, meeting his heated gaze head-on.

“Maybe I can,” I reply, my tone teasing, “but you should try telling that to my body.”

Holmes’s smirk deepens, and he reaches into the pocket of his slacks, pulling out a small metal container. With a flick of his thumb, the lid pops open to reveal a handful of white tablets.

Without hesitation, he plucks one out and tosses it into his mouth.

Then he turns his attention back to me.

Before I can ask what he’s doing, his hand cups my jaw, tilting my head back as his lips crash against mine. The kiss is hard and unrelenting, his tongue coaxing my lips apart as he passes the tablet to me. The faint taste of mint and something medicinal spreads across my tongue, and I have no choice but to swallow as he deepens the kiss, his other hand tangling in my hair to hold me in place.

By the time he pulls back, my breath is ragged, my heart pounding like a drum in my chest.

“What the hell was that?” I manage to gasp, though the words come out weaker than I intended.

Holmes doesn’t answer immediately.

His hand slips down, sliding past the loose waistband of my pants to find the wet, swollen heat of my pussy. His fingersstroke me with maddening precision, his thumb brushing over my clit in a way that makes my hips jerk involuntarily.

A moan spills from my lips before I can stop it, and Holmes leans closer, his breath hot against my ear.

“I’ll take you slow during your Heat,” he murmurs, his voice rough and filled with promise, “but if I have to go sit back in my seat without fucking you right now, I’ll lose my goddamn mind.”

His words send a shiver down my spine, my body arching into his touch as his fingers delve deeper, teasing and stroking until I’m trembling.

“Stop talking,” I groan, gripping the counter’s edge for support as my legs threaten to give out. “And fuck me already.”

His lips quirk into a smirk, his gaze darkening as his Alpha instincts kick into overdrive.

“As you wish, sweetheart,” he murmurs, his tone dripping with hunger.

Holmes doesn’t waste a second. His hands hook into the waistband of my pants, tugging them down in one swift motion to pool around my ankles. He steps closer, his chest brushing against mine as he lifts me effortlessly onto the counter.

The cold surface bites against my thighs, but the heat radiating from Holmes more than makes up for it. My legs wrap around his waist instinctively, pulling him closer, and I can feel the hard length of him pressing against my slick entrance.

Holmes leans in, his lips brushing against the curve of my neck.

“Hold on tight, Abercrombie. This might get a little rough.”

I open my mouth, ready to snap something smart back at him, but the words are stolen from me as he pushes into me in one smooth, deliberate thrust.

“Oh, fuck,” I moan, my head tilting back to rest against the wall as the stretch of him takes me by surprise. He’s thick, fillingme completely, and it feels like every nerve in my body is lit on fire.

“Could’ve warned me,” I manage to gasp, my nails digging into his shoulders as I try to adjust to the sheer size of him. “You’re so fucking big!”

Holmes chuckles, his tone rich with amusement as he rolls his hips slightly, making me shudder.

“You make it sound like it’s a curse instead of a blessing.”

“Shut up,” I snap, though the bite in my voice is undercut by the way my words dissolve into a whimper as he moves again, deeper this time.

Before I can muster another complaint, he sets a slow, deliberate rhythm that silences me completely.

His cock drags against every sensitive spot inside me, his movements precise and measured, and the tiny space of the bathroom amplifies every sound—the wet slide of our bodies, the muffled gasps I can’t hold back, the low growl of satisfaction that escapes him as he picks up the pace.

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