Page 37 of Tempted By Sin

Ace rolls his tongue inside his cheek, eyes darting to mine when the car comes to a halt at a set of traffic lights. He regards me, the gaze long and intense as my words settle in the air around us. With how he’s looking at me, I wish I could shove the words back in my mouth.

He chuckles and shakes his head. “You got all that from just looking at me?”

I shrug, my right leg bouncing with nervous energy. “I like to read people.”

The light turns green, and the car jolts forward. “Well, I would have to say that is a fair assessment. Did you gather all of that when I had you at the cabin?”

“Mostly,” I answer. “And partly from our encounters since.”

He grins as he turns the car onto a quiet residential street. We turn into a driveway of a two-story house, the outside pristine with dark gray panels and a wooden porch attached to the front. The gardens around the house are well kept, and the lawn is freshly mowed. It looks like something out of a movie and not something I would have expected from a man like Ace.

He catches me blinking up at the house. “What?”

“Nothing,” I murmur and clear my throat. “You have a nice house.”

“It belonged to my parents before they passed away a few years back.”

My head snaps to him, ready to ask about his parents since he brought up the topic, but he’s already stepping out of the car, the door closing behind him.

I release a long breath before getting out and following him to the front door. The house is pitch black when we enter, but Ace flips a few switches, and the bottom floor is immediately illuminated with a yellow glow.

In this lighting, Ace is just as handsome as when he’s lurking in the shadows of the alleyway, watching from a distance. Besides when he would bring me food in the cabin, I haven’t seen him in anything but the natural lighting of the moon. Now, as I stand here gazing at him across the foyer, it’s hard to deny just how attractive this man is.

“You have to stop looking at me like that, little bird.” Ace’s deep voice shocks me from my thoughts.

He’s standing in front of me, his eyes gazing down at me with such intensity I shiver. His hand comes up to cup my cheek, the gesture stealing the breath from my lungs.

“Although, did you really think I was going to keep my hands to myself?”

My heart hammers in my chest, and in the silence of the house, I know he can hear it. I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out besides a puff of air. In the back of my mind, I thought he would keep from tempting me, but I knew deep in my heart he wouldn’t. But if I’m being honest, I think my subconscious knew that would be the case and forced me to agree to go with him. I set myself up.

Ace’s hand moves from my cheek to slip a strand of silver-white hair behind my ear. Warmth floods my skin where his fingertips graze. No matter how soft the touch or subtle the gesture, my body immediately reacts to him.

He lowers his head, our lips barely brushing as he holds my gaze. “Say the word, little bird, and I’ll fucking devour you.”

No. I should say no and push him away. It would be the right thing to do considering the circumstances and the fact I have a fiancé at home.

But the words refuse to leave my mouth, choosing to stay hidden in the back of my throat.

He grins at my lack of words and tilts his head to the side. “Or would you prefer I take what I want?”

The thought of him taking what he wants from me, with his dominating presence and intensity, should have me running for the hills. Instead, heat pools in my core, and I have to squeeze my thighs together to fight the dull ache beginning to throb.

When I don’t respond, Ace’s eyes darken, and his hands find my hips in a punishing grip. “Don’t say I didn’t try to play nice, little bird.”

In the blink of an eye, a pressure presents itself against my stomach and my hair flies around my head as my eyes lock with the ground beneath me. I’m too startled to make a sound as Ace walks to the staircase behind us and takes two steps at a time with me over his shoulder.

All I can do is stare at the ground, stunned by what happened. He picked me up and flung me over his shoulder without so much as making a sound or breaking a sweat. If Liam were to do something like that, I’m sure he would struggle to get me over his shoulder considering his narrow shoulders and lack of strength. But Ace did it with ease, and I can’t stop the blush from spreading across my cheeks.

What the hell have I just gotten myself into?

Each step down the dark hallway echoes in my head. I feel like a lamb going to the slaughter, unable to stop my fate even if I wanted to. And I don’t.

It’s hard to rationalize the situation I’m in when Ace has his thick arm wrapped tightly around my thighs, his fingers grazing over my skin as he stalks closer to the door at the far end of the hallway. I know this is wrong and I should get the hell out of this house, but I’m unable to find the strength to leave. To walk away and never see this man again.

But the thought is somewhat depressing to me and I can’t figure out why. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Ace makes me feel alive and safe. My body responds to his touch with ease, like I was made for him. When I feel him watching from a distance, my skin alights with thousands of tiny fires as adrenaline pulses in my veins.

What I feel when I’m with Ace is not something I can explain. It doesn’t even make sense to me. But I know I can’t continue to fight whatever is happening. If anything, I need to allow myself to give into this man, only if to see what becomes of it.

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