Page 35 of Mariposa
“You should stop looking at me like that.”
“I should.”
“I can’t say what Ireallywant to say without consequences, can I?”
“No,” he growls. His pupils expand.
“What if I want there to be consequences? What if I don’t want to watch my mouth? What if I want to be punished byyou?”
“Careful,” he warns.
“You’re breathing hard…” I say. The way the chain around his neck sways with each shallow breath he takes tightens my core. I flick my gaze back to his, and the fire in his eyes brightens. My fingers slither further down until they’re at my slit. Slowly, I move them inside.
“What’re you doing?” he barks.
“Showering.”
I part my lips, eager to touch him, but his signature hardass expression returns. He turns off the shower by twisting the knob. The lust evaporates, and my lashes flutter as I blink in confusion, breaking the bubble we encased ourselves in.
He gently grabs a dry towel from the rack and places it in my hand. I react quickly and wrap myself in it, embarrassment clouding my feelings.
“You’re crossing lines that will get us both demolished into irretrievable pieces, and we’llbothsuffer harsh consequences. Stop testing hard limits because it’s a dangerous game not only for you but for me.” His cold breath kisses my neck, sending goosebumps all over my naked body.
“Once that bell rings, I’m no longer your student.” I zero in on his beautiful lips.
Reckless desire is written in both of our eyes.
“It doesn’t change that Adam is a part of our lives.”
The facts hurt, but I don’t want to think—I want to do.
“Be reckless with me.” I poke again, daring him to indulge in sins I want to dance with, but only with him.
“Do you know what will happen if you let me touch you?” he growls against the shell of my ear like he’s taunting me. There’ssomething sinister in the way he questions me. My heart thumps faster, temptation crashing into my soul excitedly.
“Tell me. You know what…no. Show me.” I dare him while the dark curiosity creeps inside my veins.
I want him to dominate me. I want to make him forget about the dark demons that plague his soul.
“You’re a broken man, Master Sergeant O’Connell. But what’s that saying? It takes one to know one.”
He hums darkly, and it’s magic to my ears. Geez, even the sounds he exudes make him desirable.
“I know that look in your eyes, and I don’t like it. It’s the same one I had a few nights ago on the rooftop. We’ve been around each other for about a year, and I have never seen you smile. You’re lonely. I know you are because so am I, and maybe I want to take that pain away. Maybe we can be each other’s morphine just for one night?”
He sighs, places his hands behind his back, and looks down at me.
“You’re tempting me to fuck up, and I refuse to let it happen. There’s a reason why I’m number one in special forces.There’s a reasonwhy everyone trusts me and why everyone fears me. I don’t hesitate to make hard choices to save my team and keep my soldiers alive. I always follow orders. I don’t break the rules—I enforce them.”
Guilt and shame pummel me into a pulp of agony. It’s all been in my head. Hasn’t it? The glances, the way his tone shifts into something warm when he’s teaching me.
I crave him. Lust and borderline hatred warp into one every time I look at him.
I’m going to get kicked out for taunting him, and I deserve it.
I bite my lip and am about to clean off my hand with my towel, but Kade’s hands snap toward my wrist like a snake biting its prey.
I hiss from the pain and pull back, confusion written all over my heated face. I meet his darkened gaze, and he clenches his jaw.
