Page 59 of Guarded
Picking out each of his muscles as he stretched and hammered.
I’d forgotten my demand that he do this shirtless. Evidently, Jeremiah had not. I’d been openly drooling since he’d shed his top. It was a good thing I was sitting down, because there was no way my knees were strong enough to hold me up right now.
“Does this look straight to you?”
My eyes were firmly locked on his denim-clad rear. Damn he did fill out a pair of jeans well. “Nothing about what I’m thinking is straight.”
Jeremiah’s laughter had me reluctantly dragging my gaze upwards. He was smirking at me over his shoulder. “Now who’s going for the cheesy lines?”
I leaned my chin on my hand with a sigh. “You can’t blame me when the material is right there.”
“As much as I love having your eyes on me, if you don’t give me the okay, you’re going to potentially end up with a wonky frame.”
“Fuck the frame,” I drawled, spreading my legs a little wider. Not much, just enough so Jem could see the effect he was having on me. “Or, better yet, fuck me. That sounds infinitely more fun.”
His gaze fell on my bulge with predatory efficiency. “For an angel, you have one hell of a dirty mouth.”
“You bring it out in me,” I said truthfully. Confidence wasn’t something I lacked…except for in the bedroom. My past had made sure of that. With Jeremiah though, it was surfacing. “Must be your demonic influence. You should be careful how you wield it. Next thing you know, I’ll be asking you to lie back on the bed so I can kneel over your face.”
Smoke filled the air and Jeremiah gave a panicked hoot. He set the picture down and peered at it closely. “Balls. Sorry. I don’t think it’s singed.”
Right then, I couldn’t have cared less about the art. What I did care about was the frown on his face.
Getting up from my chair, I went over to him and rubbed his shoulders. God, they felt just as wonderful as I’d been imagining. “It’s okay. It’s my fault.”
“It’s not your fault that I keep losing control around you,” he grumbled, still inspecting the art. “I should have a better handle on it.”
“What if I like that you don’t?”
His forehead crinkled as he peered up at me. “What?”
I shrugged, hating that I was blushing. Again. “I like it, Jem. I like knowing I can make you lose control sometimes.”
The confusion faded as desire took over. Jeremiah got to his feet, taking my hands in his as he faced me. “You do?”
I bit my lip, trying to hold back a whimper. I couldn’t help it, okay? His sweaty chest wasright there.Beggingfor me to lick it. To taste him. To go to my knees and unbucklehis belt to see what I’d been fantasising about every day since he’d sent me that photo.
“I do,” I said breathily.
Jeremiah’s crooked grin was back as his chest brushed against mine. “You like that I can’t think clearly when you’re near me?”
“Yes.”
His hand smoothed my hair off my shoulder and his lips found their home there. “You like that the mere mention of you in a sexual scenario has my demon desperate to break free?”
I held back another whimper as he kissed up my throat. “Yes.”
“You like that I’m going fucking crazy right now?” he whispered in my ear, one hand cuffing my hip. “That I can barely focus on a simple task because all I can think about is you in this fucking lingerie?”
“I do.” I moaned as his teeth sank into my earlobe. “Heaven punish me, but I do. I love it, Jem. I love how crazy I make you.”
His dark pupils had almost swallowed the amber as he leaned back to study my face. “Tell me why.”
Not a question—an order. My knees threatened to buckle as my cock throbbed in the tight lace. “Because you make me feel the same way.”
It was the truth, but not the whole truth. I loved it because no one had ever felt this way about me before. For the first time, I wasn’t alone in how fast I was falling.
I hadn’t expected to feel such a sense of…relief.
