Page 22 of Mine

My knees felt like jelly. He was speaking the desires I’d locked away long ago, dragging them out into the open—and it was both jarring and freeing.

“Do you crave giving in?”

All I could do was nod. “All the time.”

“Then give in to me for tonight. You don’t owe me anything else. Nothing to do with your company or my music. I don’t care if you want a meeting this week or not. I think I let that go when I realized who I dry humped in the hall at Beaumont’s. What I do care about tonight is you. I haven’t been able to get you off my mind since I saw you in the coffee shop.”

“Do you normally hit on strangers?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said earnestly. “All the time. But I don’t ask to go home with them. In fact, I don’t do shit like this at all. I also don’t cage women against walls in clubs or call them a good girl without their consent.”

“But you did with me.”

“I did,” he whispered.

I pressed my lips together, looking around us. It was the middle of the night and I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been out this late.

His body language softened and he offered me a more genuine smile. One with dimples. I couldn’t help but stare before my gaze followed the trail of tattoos that licked up his neck the way I wanted to.

My resistance crumbled. “Only tonight,” I said.

He nodded. “If that’s all you want.”

It had to be. “I should make you sign a NDA.”

“I will, if you want me to.”

My muscles stiffened. Was that silly?

“You have trust issues,” he said.

“I have to have trust issues,” I snapped. I reached into my purse, pulling out my keys. “You can’t tell anyone about this, Salt. No one. Not a single fucking soul, or I’ll make sure your career never happens.”

The smile disappeared and he cocked his head thoughtfully. “Is this your attempt to put me in my place?”

“Fuck off,” I hissed. “Fuck. Why am I doing this?”

His hand darted out, circling my wrist with an ease that made my thighs squeeze tighter. Inked fingers plucked the keys from my hand, and then he was guiding me to the doors.

“I won’t tell anyone,” he said. “I’ll sign an NDA if it makes you feel better. I have no interest in what you can do to me or my career, Pepper. I just want to know whatthisis.”

I wasn’t sure I should believe him. This was stupid, careless, reckless.

Heat tugged at my core as he held me close, possessive. Lust boiled in my blood as we crossed the empty lobby to the elevator, not a soul in sight but us. The silver doors slid open and we stepped inside. Salt set his guitar case down as I pressed the button quickly.

Then I found myself against the wall again.

I arched against him this time. I was going to give in. The resistance was unraveling, slipping further and further out of reach.

He gripped my hair and pulled my head back, swiping his tongue along my neck. His lips hovered over my pulse, teeth grazing my skin. “Do you know what a safe word is?”

My head spun. “Yes. I’ve read a lot about it. But, I’ve never done anything… kinky.”

“I see. Your safe word is red. Promise me that if you ever need things to slow down, you’ll tell me. That you’ll speak up for yourself.”

I scoffed. “I speak up for myself.”

“Can you, when it has nothing to do with work?”

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