Page 51 of In Shadows We Dance

My hand slides under the hem of her hoodie, pushing the material higher and higher. Her skin is warm, smooth under my palm, trembling faintly with every shallow breath she takes.

“You can’t hide from this. You can’t hide from me.”

“Stop talking!”

“Oh, but I love watching the way you squirm when I talk. The way your body gives away what your mouth can’t say.” I drag her hoodie higher, exposing her skin inch by beautiful inch. My mouth finds her ear. “I think your body is much more honest than you are.”

She jerks back, trying to escape my touch, but there’s nowhere for her to go. My body cages hers, pinning her to the wall, forcing her to stay exactly where I want her.

“You feel it, don’t you?” My fingers find the edge of her bra. “The way the air shifts between us. The way every nerve in your body is alive right now, begging for me.” I nip the lobe of her ear, drawing a soft gasp from her. “I could take my time, make you beg. Would you like that?”

Her head shakes, but her body leans into me, her pussy moving over my thigh. I’m not even sure she’s aware of the action.

“You want me to stop, but you can’t bring yourself to make me.” I trace along the edge of her bra. She twists, trying to pull away.

“I hate you.” But the venom is diluted by the tremble in her voice.

I laugh, low and dark, my lips moving over her jaw. “Hate can be delicious. It burns so close to passion. Maybe that’s why you’re shaking like this. You don’t hate me nearly as much as you wish you did.”

I push my hand under her bra. Her nipple hardens against my palm, and I drag my nails across it. She gasps, her head falling back against the wall.

“Sensitive. So responsive.” Satisfaction courses through me.

There is so much power here. Knowing I can bring her to this edge—make her feel so fragile, so completelymine.

I want to see more. To strip her defenses bare and watch her unravel.

“Lift your top.” I want her to be a part of her downfall.

She shakes her head. “No.” Defiance flares bright and fierce in her eyes, igniting something primal inside me.

“No?” I echo, letting the word hang between us. “You think you can deny me?” My teeth graze the spot where her pulse pounds, where I marked her, and I bite down, just hard enough to draw another gasp from her. “Lift your top, or I’ll do it.” My fingers pinch her nipple. “You want me to see you. Why pretend you don’t?”

I pull back just enough to see her face, her lips tight, her chest rising and falling with each ragged breath.

“I won’t do it.”

I wrap my fingers around her wrist, bringing her hand to the hem of her top.

“You will. You don’t understand yet, but you will.”

She tries to pull away, her body twisting, but I don’t let go.

“Don’t hide from me now. I want to see it all. Every reaction. Every gasp. Every time you shatter.”

Her breath comes in shallow bursts as I pull her hoodie higher, revealing her bra. The plain white cotton is simple, unassuming,and yet it makes my dick hard.

“So pretty. So perfect. Do you feel it? The way your skin heats under my touch? The way your heartbeat races when I get this close?”

Her lips part again, and this time, a small broken sound escapes. It’s enough to undo me.

I drag her bra up, freeing her breasts, and stroke a finger over her nipples.

“I’m going to bite them, mark them, make them mine. But first …” I pull back just enough to reach for my phone. Her eyes widen when she sees it, panic crossing her face.

“Wren, stop.”

I ignore her, pressing her back against the wall, my hand returning to her breast as I lift the phone.

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