Page 44 of Chips & Checks
Violet peeks at me from between her fingers, her eyes sparkling with reluctant amusement. “You have no idea the monster you’ve just unleashed.”
“Oh, I think I do.” I grin, settling back comfortably beside her. “I’m looking forward to it.”
Her laughter fades, but the smile lingers. She doesn’t pull away. Doesn’t shift to the other side of the bed or pretend this is still some kind of slumber party with PG boundaries.
She’s warm beside me, tucked under my arm like it’s natural—like we’ve done this a hundred times before. And the longer we sit like this, the more dangerous it feels.
Because I don’t want to keep this light anymore. And it has nothing to do with Chad or his antics.
The air thickens. Her fingers drum lightly against my chest in a rhythm that’s doing something to my pulse. Her scent’s still citrusy from the shower, but now it’s laced with heat, skin, want. She tilts her head, resting her temple against me. It’s innocent. It should be.
But it’s not.
Not when her thigh brushes mine like that.
Not when her breath hitches, and she doesn’t even try to hide it.
Not when her hand still hasn’t moved from where it landed—just over my heart.
I glance down. She glances up.
Everything in me stills.
There’s a beat. Then two.
Then her voice—quiet, unsure, wrecking me in all the best ways.
“I don’t want to stop, Bowen.”
That’s when it hits me full force. I want her. Not just her body, but everything that makes her Violet. I want to make her come with my hands and mouth. I want to taste her again. I want to fuck her with my tongue.
“Shit.” Violet leans back, though she’s still clinging to me for support. “I don’t have any condoms here. I don’t suppose…?”
I shake my head. “No. But we can do something else, if you want.”Please want me.If she tells me to leave, I’ll… well, I’ll humiliate myself by walking around a hotel with an obvious boner, for one thing. I might also cry a little. Just a tiny bit. Because what I feel when she reaches for me isn’t lust, it’s the full power of the trust and desire of someone whose trust has been violated before.
Violet frowns. “Like what?”
“Trust me?” It feels like a stupid request, but I also want her to agree more than I’ve wanted just about anything in my life.
Violet nods. “Okay.”
She barely knows me. Not really. I’m her patient. Her coworker. Her mistake. And still—she’s here. Curled up against me, cheeks flushed, lips parted, asking if I have condoms like we’re something. And when I say trust me, she doesn’t laugh. Doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t throw up every wall a woman like her has every right to build. She just… watches me. Quiet. Steady. Like she’s already decided I’m safe. And the weight of that? Hits me dead center. Because for someone like Violet, who’s dealt with assholes like Chad, trust isn’t free. It’s earned. And I don’t know what I did to deserve it—but I’ll be damned if I waste it.
So I don’t rush. I don’t devour. I reach for her the way I’d reach for something precious. Something breakable. Something mine.
My hand cradles her jaw first, guiding her mouth to mine. Her lips part, and I take her slowly, deliberately, because I’m memorizing the shape of her sighs. She kisses me back like she wants to forget every man who ever made her feel small. Like I’m a balm to some part of her that still burns.
I press her down onto the mattress, sliding between her thighs. Her fingers tangle in my hair. Her hips arch. Her voice breaks into a whimper when my hand trails under her sleep pants.
“You’re sure?” I murmur.
“Yes,” she whispers. “Just you. Just this. Make me forget, Bowen.”
I drag the fabric down her legs, kiss a trail up the inside of her thigh, then ease her knees apart with my hands, never breaking eye contact. I need her to see that I mean it—that this isn’t just physical for me anymore, no matter how much I want to pretend otherwise.
My fingers brush her slick heat, and her breath hitches.
She’s already so wet.
