Page 46 of Shadow and Skulls

His gaze runs down my body, waking up every one of my nerve endings as it passes over them.

I’m embarrassed he’s telling me his age. I don’t care how old he is. Age doesn’t mean a damn thing to me. Tank doesn’t remind me of the men who hurt me. But Matt … Matt remindsme of them. It’s not age or looks, it’s … it’s the way certain men make my skin crawl. The way my mind races to find a way around them.

“If you’re okay with our age difference, let me show you just hownotbroken you are.”

“You ran away from me last night,” I accuse softly.

His head falls back as he laughs loudly. “You’d just given me another mystery to solve. I have this unnatural need to know everything about you.”

“How’d that turn out?” There’s no way he’ll uncover who I was talking about last night.

He shrugs. “It’s still an ongoing investigation.”

The heat of his body next to mine is making me feel all itchy in my clothes. And his smell. And the fact that his entire focus is on me right now. Maybe that’s what’s different about him. When he looks at me, he isn’t looking at the surface. I mean he is, but …

“Ugh, you have an unfair advantage. I don’t have a team of private investigators to tell me everything about you.”

“What do you want to know?” He leans away from me, slipping the condom back into his pocket.

Not going to lie, I’m kind of disappointed. “Well, now that you put me on the spot, I can’t think.”

He props himself over me, one hand between my thighs, the other on the cushion behind my head. For the first time in my entire life, I want a man to lean in closer. His gaze falls to my lips as my tongue rakes across them. My core clenches, making my hips rise ever so slightly from the couch.

His index finger brushes lightly against the seam of my jeans. The green of his eyes darkens as he searches for any sort of negative reaction from me. He does it again when he doesn’t find one. A breathy moan lifts anchor and sails from my lungs.

“You see,” he begins, “we don’t need to know anything about one another. None of that matters. Your soul and mine don’tgive two fucks about anything earthly. They’re just happy they’ve found each other.”

Instantly, tears sting the corner of my eyes because I believe him. I feel it, too.

I don’t care who this man is. All I know is I want to crawl inside him and live. It’s the craziest thing I’ve ever experienced.

“I need to make a call,” I tell him.

He backs away, holding my gaze hostage. My hand trembles as I pull my phone to my ear.

Billie Rose answers in her usual cheerful voice. “Hey, girl.”

“I need a favor.”

Her tone changes. “Oh, okay?”

I hear the question, but I can’t tell her right now. I don’t want anyone to stop this. Whatever is happening between Tank and me, I need it to play out. Good or bad, I’ll deal with the fallout. But what I don’t need is for anyone from the club to interrupt us. I’m an adult, and I need this.

“I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”

She sighs. “I know you wouldn’t. Why does this sound like it’s going to put me in a predicament?”

“Because it is.” Tank and I continue to stare at each other. “I … I’m going to tell Mom and Dad we’re having a girl’s night, and I’m staying over at your house.”

“Kelsie …” she starts.

“And I need you and Elijah to go get my car from the school and park it at your house, so it looks legit.”

The silence on the phone almost makes me regret calling her, but I haven’t given up hope yet. She knows I’ve never asked for anything.

“Are you in trouble? Please tell me you’re not with Jason.”

I break away from Tank’s stare at the sound of Jason’s name. “I’m not with Jason, and I’m not in any trouble.” I pause,peeking up at the man still staring at me. “I really need this, Billie Rose.”

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