Page 20 of Now and Forever

This little bit of jealousy, deep down, stirs my excitement.

“Look, there’s a lot of unemployment in Spain, and, as you might imagine, if I have to work, I can’t be choosy. In any case, I don’t wanna talk about that now, OK?”

“What about the ring I gave you ... ?”

“I don’t want it.”

“It’s yours, love,” Eric says softly.

He tries to kiss me, but I pull away from him.

“Don’t try to overwhelm me with rings, commitments, moves, everything,” I say. “Something happened that shattered my life, and, for the moment, I don’t want rings or anything—got it?”

He nods again. His acquiescence surprises me. The song is over, and now it’s Nirvana. Perfect! Enough romance.

“Do you really love me?” I ask.

“Now and forever,” he whispers, touching my neck with his nose.

My heart flutters; his smell, his proximity, his composure, begin to put a dent in my armor, and all I can think about is wanting him to undress me and take me. His closeness is irresistible, but I’m determined to say everything I need to say, so I pull back again.

“I’m still very angry with you.”

“I’m sorry, baby.”

“You made me feel very bad.”

“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

He goes back to his mission.

He kisses me on my bare shoulder. Oh God, I like that so much!

I take a deep breath. “You’re going to be very sorry, Mr. Zimmerman, because from this moment on, every time I get angry with you, you’re going to be punished. I’m sick and tired of your being the only one who levies punishments.”

Surprised, he furrows his brow and stares at me.

“And how do you plan to punish me?”

I get up from the armchair.

I turn slowly in front of him, confident in my sensuality.

“For the moment, denying you what you desire most.”

My Iceman stands up.

He’s spectacularly tall.

He focuses those brilliant blue eyes on me.

“To what, exactly, are you referring?”

“You’re not going to enjoy my body,” I say. “That’s your punishment.”

His face falls.

“Are you trying to drive me insane?” he says icily. I don’t respond. “You ran away from me. You made me crazy when I didn’t know where you were. You didn’t pick up the phone for days. You slammed the door in my face, and last night I had to put up with your flirting with other guys. And now you want to punish me even more?”

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