Page 51 of Reckless Temptation

Sprinting into the brutal weather, I escaped as if my life depended on it.

Because in the back of my mind, simmering with regret, one thought crystalized so clearly that I wanted to scream.

I couldn’t run from what I’d done.

I caved. He’d won.

And I’d lost.

I’d let myself go, losing all sense of my worth and pride.

No matter how fast I dashed away, I couldn’t outrun the fact that I’d let my bully fuck me.

Nor could I dispel the lingering reminder that I’d enjoyed it, too.

18

NICK

When I came back to the living room in the pool house, I wasn’t surprised that Sabrina had taken off. She was that determined to stick to what she thought was right. All logic and resistance hadn’t mattered when I showed her that she was, in fact, wrong about me.

I was still a jerk.

And she wouldn’t be smart to trust me.

Those facts remained the same. But I had proved her wrong about how much she desired me. It turned out that the line between lust and loathing could be really thin. And we’d crossed it.

What also remained the same was that I had to target her. I couldn’t renege on this deal with Tiffany.

As I cleaned up from taking her virginity, I stood at the wide windows of the pool house and watched her go.

Of course, she’d take off. She had to be upset that she’d surrendered.

I bet she was pissed that I’d “won” in this mutual hating game we had going on.

I hadn’t counted on her beingthatmuch of a good girl, though. I was surprised that she hadn’t had sex yet, but it didn’t change anything about what would have to happen next. Instead of comforting her or trying to be gentle after the fact, I had to go back to bullying her somehow.

Tiffany wanted me to ruin her.

Now that I’d had the pleasure of having Sabrina wrapped around me and gloving me so well, it killed me to think of taking advantage of her like I just did—again.

I’d won. I got close. I finally made her crack.

So why did it feel like I was losing?

I headed back inside the main house, glad that the mansion was more or less empty from the dinner and meeting George had earlier. I needed the solitude. I didn’t want to talk to anyone until I could make sense of the mess in my head.

I wouldn’t even try to delude myself into thinking it was just sex.

It felt like so much more, and from her perspective, it was more than an ordinary quickie. Sabrina was supposed to be forbidden. Off-limits. And she’d given me her V-card.

Hours later, as I lay in bed and stared at the ceiling, I struggled with how drastically things had to change between me and Sabrina now.

How would I face her?

How could I handle both sides of what had to happen?

I’d have to put on a good show for Tiffany to make her think that I was trying to ruin Sabrina’s reputation. But I couldn’t get past the new realization that I didn’t want to. All I wanted was… her. Once was not enough.

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