She grinds down on me hard, and I groan, thrusting up to meet hers. The friction is unimaginable, even with my pants and her panties.

But I’ve thought about her in more ways than one—how it’d feel to sink my fingers into her, to put my mouth between her thighs while she begs me to continue.

My hand runs up her thighs as I pull down her dress from the top, exhaling in awe when her breasts spill out.

“Fuck,”she whispers as I run my tongue over her nipple, flicking and licking until she’s gasping and arching, pushing into my touch. My lips close around her nipple, sucking as I slide into her panties, stroking her clit.

She gasps and buckles, falling backward with needy whimpers as she rides my hand. The air is mingled with the sound of my fingersslipping in and out of her, the breathy moans… and I grit my teeth as my hips jerk, wondering how much more I can take before I lose itcompletely.

Her hand slides between our bodies, and I curse under my breath when she touches me, rubbing her fingers and curling around my crotch.

“I have to—” I groan, unable to finish my sentence as she strokes me harder.

Haphazardly, I get my pants unzipped and pull them down. I lift my head to look at her—messy hair, swollen lip, and hazy eyes.

I’m seared.

Then she sinks, taking me to the hilt in one smooth thrust. I pause with painstaking patience, savoring the indescribable feeling of being in her. When she tilts her hips, I groan, capturing her lips in a kiss and quietly driving into her with steady, deep strokes.

Her mouth falls open in a soundless scream, and her eyes roll back as I fuck her hard and deep—so good and intense that she clenches around me, shaking all over as she climaxes.

I pull out immediately, finding a release that shatters me to stillness.

Natalie’s head falls on my shoulder, and my arms instinctively go around her body as we catch our breath. Her weight is nothing compared to the realization that dawns on me afterward.

Not post-coital clarity, no.

The realization that I liked this way too much that I should’ve. The knowledge that Natalie is now seared into my brain because I acted when I should’ve looked away.

It was reckless. And stupid.

It’s not like I can keep her around—Anthony was right about Natalie being too good for the Cross family’s stain. I should never havestopped, or at least I could’ve guilt-tripped Anthony into giving her a ride.

I’ll end it herein hopesthat I never see her again.

Chapter Seven

Natalie

Igroan as the sound of my alarm interrupts my sleep, reaching blindly for it on the bedside table. After patting the surface for about a minute without success, I reluctantly open my eyes.

“Ah, shit,” I groan, looking at the phone on the floor. “That’s why I couldn’t find you.”

I do the lazy roll with my body half dangling from the bed while my fingers slide under the phone, lifting it. It takes three attempts before I can manage the trick, and my screen protector now has a new crack, but I’m too happy to be pissed.

I don’t have to get out of bed. It’s a weekend. I just finished a week-long job.

“Yes,” I murmur, tossing the phone to the other side of the bed and pulling the covers over my head. Just as I settle in, my phone begins to ring again.

Choosing to ignore it, I pull the covers tighter over my head.MaybeI shouldn’t go back to sleep, though. It’s not like I was having the best dream ever.

Because I was dreaming about Ethan Cross.

I mean, while I was dreaming, I liked it. The feeling of his hand on my waist and his mouth—

“Nope,” I shake my head, pushing the sheet down with my feet. “No, no, no. I’d rather take a call on my day off than reminisce about having a sexual dream featuring Ethan Cross.”

My phone is no longer ringing, though, and I’m fully awake. So I drag myself to the bathroom, taking off my nightwear before I get there. Standing in front of the mirror, I stare at my reflection, and a sigh slips out.