Page 143 of Rewind It Back

He shakes his head. “Slowly, Hallie. It’s been a long time. Let me savor this.”

And dear God the way his eyes are hooded over, the way his bottom lip slips between his teeth as he rakes his gaze up my body. I hope he plans to savor me all night. Over and over again.

I make a whole show of it, slowly undoing each button and letting my sweater open a bit at a time, teasing what’s underneath. My bra isn’t anything special, plain white with a touch of lace over the cups, but Rio is watching me like I’m unwrapping a gift he’s been asking for his entire life and is finally about to get his hands on.

He takes slow steps towards me, green eyes tracking every inch as I give him his own personal striptease. When my sweater opens fully, he wets his lips. When I slip an arm out, his throat bobs with a harsh swallow. When I let the entire thing pool on the floor by my feet, leaving me in only my bra and midi skirt, he stops dead in his tracks.

Rio shakes his head in disbelief and that alone has me standing straighter, shoulders pushed back.

His eyes roam, cataloging every inch of me. He’s seen me naked countless times before, so I’m not sure if he’s looking to see if anything has changed since the last time, or maybe it’s been so long that he doesn’t remember.

“Fucking beautiful,” he murmurs under his breath. “It’s been a long time.”

So, it’s the latter of those two options. But who remembers every little part of a person they had sex with six years ago?

Well,Ido, but that’s because I haven’t been with anyone else since him.

“But I still remember everything,” he says.

“It’s been an awfully long time, Rio. Are you sure you’re remembering correctly?”

His brow furrows. “Did you not believe me when I told you I picture you whenever I’m getting myself off? Do you think I made up an image of what I thought you looked like? No. Your body has been ingrained in my mind since I got to see it for the first time when I was nineteen. I remember everything.”

Reaching out, he cups my elbow, his index finger running over a bit of raised skin. “I know you have a scar right here from falling off your bike when you were eleven.”

“Well, I’d hope you remember that. It was your fault. You were going too fast, and I was trying to keep up.”

Chuckling, he wraps his other hand around my hip, running the pad of his thumb over the inner part of my upper thigh. Even though I’m still wearing this satin skirt I can practically feel the warmth of his skin on mine, and it sends a rush of heat about two inches north, right where I wish he were touching me instead.

“I know you have a freckle right here.” He softly strokes that same spot. “That I loved to lick before I tasted the rest of you.”

Jesus.

He steps into me, trailing his lips along my jaw and down my neck until they meet the dip that connects with my shoulder.

“And I know that when I bite right here...” He does exactly that, pulling an instant whimper from my lips. “You’ll make that fucking noise.”

I’m writhing into him with my head thrown back as he kisses a path across my throat and up my jaw until he finds my mouth again.

“So yes, baby, I remember everything. Including all my favorite ways to make you come.” He runs his thumb over the lace of my bra. “I was staring because I can’t get over how innocent you look in white when we both know that you’re not.”

I hum. “That’s your fault too.”

He smiles against my skin, dragging his warm, wet lips over every inch of my neck and collarbone, his thumb still drawing languid strokes against the fabric of my bra, but I want his skin on mine, so I reach back to unclasp it.

But before I can, Rio has his arms around my waist, his hands covering mine to stop me.

There’s an overwhelming sense of déjà vu from the very first time we did this together.

“Are you nervous?” he whispers.

I shake my head no. “Are you?”

“Not even a little bit.”

I softly smile up at him as he draws small circles on my spine, but still he doesn’t undo the clasp.

He watches me for a long moment, toying with the fabric back there, until eventually he pulls his hand away, leaving my bra in place.

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