Page 6 of The Devil's Pawn

Hot.

Heavy.

Tempting.

All of him is.

It’s clutching my body in an erotic undercurrent. One I’ve never felt this strongly before. I’m afraid to turn, to glance at him.

Why am I so turned on by a stranger? This is crazy.

I know it’s been a while since I’ve been with someone, and this man is beautiful, but this alluring, electric energy pulling me in needs to stop.

“I’m not against you objectifying me.” His voice caresses over my skin, his words gliding lower, filling the emptiness with rousing need. “Please continue. I’m rather enjoying it. It’s been a while since I enjoyed something this much.”

My heart rate kicks up a notch—okay, a bunch of notches—mingling with the ball of knots meeting my insides.

I should be afraid, sitting here with this man who clearly wants me and could probably hurt me. But does it matter if he does? What do I have to lose? I have nothing to live for anymore.

“I—I wasn’t looking,” I lie as I risk a glance, an exhale dropping harshly from my lips.

The smile dancing on his mouth and the glint in his eyes tell me he knows I’m lying. His gaze flickers past my face and down my body, making me squirm. He looks at me as though he wants to taste me, like the liquor still on his breath. The eroticism slinking in those copper hues should drive me away, but it only pulls me deeper, like quicksand.

I want to be desired. Hungered for.

I crave it. I’ve never felt this level of lust before.

Maybe this is my chance to be someone different. I’m not the Raquel I was yesterday. Today, I can be someone else.

The old Raquel had a chance to live.

The new one doesn’t.

I can finally be carefree with a man and not give a crap. What do I have to lose? He might be just what I need to help me forget the awfulness of my existence, even if just for a few hours.

He focuses on me, and my body instantly comes alive, begging me to surrender to the temptation. He’s an angel in a devil’s body, and deep down, I want to know how it’d feel to be corrupted by the likes of him.

Chiara has hooked up with strangers before, but I’ve always been the relationship type. I need the emotional connection before I dive into someone’s bed. But why should I let that stop me now? I might not be alive tomorrow.

I wasn’t lying when I told Chiara I wanted to die. That’s the only choice I have. The only choice my family left me with.

“So, what was that all about on the phone?” he asks, angling back a bit, yet still uncomfortably close.

“Aren’t you nosy?” I pop a brow as some of the stress leaves my shoulders.

“You were practically giving the whole bar your life story, baby girl.”

He gives me a crooked grin, roughing his fingers through his voluminous strands, and I instantly shudder at the sentiment, at the way those large hands move.

“If you wanted to keep things a secret…” He leans into my ear, his lips a drop away. “You probably should’ve used your inside voice.”

My body breaks with heat and goose bumps from the soft seduction flickering in his tone. I’m not sure if there was sexual innuendo hidden in those words, but it sure felt that way.

I grow even more conscious of his proximity, and each time he talks, it sounds like he’s reading a dirty poem.

“Yeah, well, rough day,” I mutter, trying to hide behind this intense attraction as he pulls back.

“I’m sorry.” His flirting is now gone, replaced with a wave of concern.

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