At a loss for words, I just keep gazing at him.
My heart is feeling so many emotions, but none of them are clear enough for me to comprehend.
I didn’t think those words through before uttering them. It came from within. Like we were on the same team.
Maybe I forgot for a moment that this heartbreakingly beautiful and infuriating man is my rival.
For a second there, it slipped my mind that we are competing against each other. That we were supposed to plan and plot to ruin each other instead of consoling and sharing words of encouragement.
I obliterated the animosity first, then the competitiveness. What is happening to me?
“I am not upset because I didn’t succeed, Hannah.” Raleigh shakes his head, his eyes imploring.
It’s like he has lifted the wall that caged his emotions from me and now I can see it all. Anger and confusion. Sadness and frustration. Raleigh is allowing me to see it all.
“I am angry because I am not upset at all.” A small frown creases his brows.
My heart beats a little louder and my breath comes a little faster. What is he saying?
He takes my face in his hands and bends so our foreheads connect. “What are you doing to me?”
I close my eyes and inhale him deeply.
He shakes his head, rubbing his skin on mine, before pulling back.
“Whatever it is you are doing, you need to stop, princess.”
My eyes open at his frustrated tone.
“I don’t like feeling like this. I shouldn’t be okay with losing. I shouldn’t be happy for you. And I definitely shouldn’t be standing here with you in my arms. I should stay away; draw a line.”
I try hard to ignore the pain in my chest. “Then why don’t you?”
It’s alarming how much my heart is aching.
He places two fingers under my chin. “Because I can’t. And I don’t want to.” His lips find mine and I whimper in relief.
His demanding tongue meets mine. Raleigh tastes like cigarettes and bad decisions. Tugging my lower lip between his teeth, he pulls back. Stares at me for a second then returns to kiss me hungrily.
My fingers tangle in his hair and his shirt as we drink from each other.
His kiss is feral. Kissing Raleigh makes me feel so much. Every damn time. Fake or not, I am always looking forward to getting devoured by him. Always desperate for more.
His tongue works its spell on me and I find myself getting lost.
Everything crumbles down around us. The thin veil between fake and real has dropped now, confusing me further. Everything feels real.
As the seconds tick by, the kiss grows desperate. More urgent.
Raleigh’s strong arms keep me in place. I try to squirm against him but he limits my movements. I moan against his lips. “Mmm… Raleigh,”
“Stay still.” He growls, his hand reaches inside my skirt and he slaps my pussy over my panties. His action makes me shudder, blush and feel such a rush of anger as I have never felt before.
“What did you do?” I ask as a small shudder runs down my spine.
I clench my thighs, unknowingly caging his hand between my legs and against my throbbing pussy.
Raleigh’s blue eyes have turned darker as he stares down at me. “Did you like me slapping your pussy, princess?”