Page 95 of Crazy In Love
I broke her.
Her taunting smart-assery is half the fucking reason I fell in love with her. But my obsession with holding on to the past, to maintaining control, has stolen that from her just as callously as the books stolen from me.
“I don’t want you to stop being who you are.” I cup her face and draw her to the tips of her toes. “Being annoyed by you is half the fun, Fox. Fighting with you makes my heart skip a beat. Just…”
“Just, what?”
“Just leave my forks alone. They really matter to me.”
She laughs, throwing her arms over my shoulders and trembling when I take most of her weight.
“You want to be white or black on the chessboard?”
“Hmm…” She peers across and considers the pieces that are always set up. The board that is never dusty. “Which one do you want to be?”
“White. White goes first.”
“Well, alright then.” Leaning back until she’s on her feet, she unravels her arms and turns, seductively peeking over her shoulder and tugging the hair away from her neck. “Could you help me with my zipper before we start? I figure, even if I actuallytry, I’m bound to lose a few pieces.”
“Confidence is important in battle.” I pinch the tiny zipper between my fingers and peel the metal down, careful not to catch her skin. “You’re very good at seduction, by the way. Letting a man unzip you is a boss move.”
She snorts, sliding out of my grasp and meandering toward the chessboard. And because she’s a pain in my ass, she grabs a white pawn and moves it forward.
Because I said I wanted it.
“Boss move number two. Get a pen, Watkins. You’re about to be schooled.”
“Jesus.” I reach into my pants and rearrange my cock, and following her to the board, I counter her move with a similar one of my own. Pawn, one square forward. “I’m not sure how I feel about associating sex and chess. I’d hate to rock a boner every time I play in the future.” Releasing my piece, I bring my eyes up and lock on to hers. “I usually play against other guys. You’re making me uncomfortable, Tatum.”
“Pretty sure we’ve discussed discomfort ad nauseam. I push you into situations you don’t like, you whine about it and, eventually, fuck me. I tell you Iwon’tdo things to annoy you anymore, you whine and, eventually…” She grabs another of her pawns and charges forward, two squares. “You fuck me. Will I ever satisfy you?”
Without giving it much thought, I grab a different pawn and move it forward two squares. “You satisfy me often. More often when my cock is in your mouth.”
Playful, she tours the room, swaying hips and seductive side-eyes. She strokes the spines of my books, the way she strokes my spine when we sleepin the same bed, and when she deigns to rejoin the game, she takes her already forward pawn and places it beside mine.
Tap goes the timer.
“I could’ve taken your pawn just now. I’m going easy on you.”
“Mmhm.” I grab my bishop and cut it halfway across the board, stopping beside her pawn so she’s sandwiched between my pieces. “Do you have a grand game strategy, Fox? Or are you moving pieces and biding your time?”
“Biding my time for what?” She selects a pawn and drives it forward, quick as a flash and with seemingly no brain power expanded. But then she comes around the board, circling my body and stopping behind me.
I remain stock still, shuddering breath, as she presses her chest to my back and her hands on my stomach.
“I feel no need to bide my time when I could simply take my panties off and sit, open-legged, on your desk.” She trails her palms down my stomach, dipping her fingers into the waistband of my pants. “I can think of far easier ways to secure your undivided attention and use as much, or as little, time as I desire.”
I select an unmoved black pawn and slide it forward, blocking her advance and stopping myself—barely—from hitting a non-existent timer.Jesus, I’m such a fucking weirdo. “Your turn.”
“Hmm.” She pulls her hands from my pants and meanders around the table, slowing to study a globe displayed against the wall, its wooden framing and intricately carved lines put there by a skilled artist. It holds her captive for a moment, distracting her from her seductive dance, and when she can’t help herself, she places a gentle finger on the sphere and turns it until a long, delicious smile stretches her lips. “I haven’t been to the Galápagos Islands. Did you know they have a beautiful white-petaled flower there, with vibrant purple centers?” Dropping her hand, she turns and approaches the chessboard, and selecting her knight, she brings it into battle, placing it behind one of her already engaged pawns. “They’re called the purple passionflower.” She peeks up at me from under long lashes. “Very pretty.”
I select my knight and bring it forward, busying the middle of the board now that we’ve taken a half dozen turns each. “The Galápagos are the only islands in the northern hemisphere with penguins. Did you know that?”
She beams, an expression that may become my most haunting memory once she’s gone. “Ididknow that. And that giant tortoises are native to the area. And that iguanas swim in the water, too.” Glancing down, she pauses for the first time since we started, considering her next move,before she selects an untouched pawn and brings it forward. “Any time is a good time to visit the Galápagos. The weather is always perfect.”
“Maybe you should go there.” I select my unmoved knight and bring it into play. “Maybe I should go, too. Totally nonchalant and coincidentally.”Don’t laugh at me. Don’t laugh at me. Please, Fox, don’t laugh at me. “If we just so happen to be there at the same time, we could hang out. Read a book in the sun.”
“Fuck in the shade?” She mirrors my move, pushing her knight forward and hitting me with a look that warms me all the way to my toes. “How do you handle vacation, Christian? There are no routines. No places of familiarity. We can drink before lunch, and have dinner at four in the afternoon. Or ten at night.” She slides her tongue along her front teeth. “Are you relaxed on vacation, because vacations are inherently stress free? Or are you on edge, because all routine is lost?”
