Page 31 of No Rings Attached
Now he was getting it.
“Right? I mean even my own parents struggle to connect with me. So it’s not surprising, I guess.”
Oh my God. Just shut up, Ellie!
Why did I feel the need to tell him all of this? I opened my mouth and everything I shouldn’t say came pouring out.
Was Itryingto scare him away? Self-destruction wasn’t usually my thing, but hedidseem so unattainable, maybe deep down I was just trying to protect myself and prepare for the inevitable.
I kept my gaze on the wall across the room. My emotions were so raw that I was afraid I’d cry if I saw either pity or horror in his eyes. Honestly, I wouldn’t blame him if he wanted to back out of our deal now.
“Ellie. Look at me.”
I bit my lip, afraid if I stopped I’d blurt out something even more embarrassing. This man was successful, had an incredible family, and was just so damn handsome.
And nice. How couldanyonebelieve we were together? At least his family would know the truth. They were probably used to Drew doing things to save the world, one person at a time.
This was just another day to them.
And I was just another project.
“Ellie,” he repeated, his firm tone letting me know he wouldn’t let this go until I acquiesced to his demand and looked at him.
I turned my head slowly, afraid to hear what truth bomb he was about to throw at me.
“Ellie, we’ve been talking for a while now and I feel like I know you well enough to tell you this … ” He paused as though trying to select his words carefully.
Every muscle in my body tensed, waiting to hear his thoughts. To steel my emotions and expression so I could pretend whatever he said didn’t hurt my feelings. I’d gotten really good at that.
He grinned, and Ialmostrelaxed my shoulders. “You have crappy taste in men. Excluding me, of course.” That little half-tilted grin appeared again, making me want to trace the corners of his mouth with my fingertips.
“What?” I was sure I heard him wrong.
“I can rephrase it if you’d like … The men you chose to give your heart to are assholes. If they let their mothers decide who to date, or allow their family to disrespect you and didn’t stand up to the person insulting you, you’re damn well better off without them.”
“Oh.” It wasn’t a response worthy of what he just said, but my heart beat triple time with gratitude and I had the sudden urge to kiss him.
Er … To say thank you, of course, for being so sweet. Not because the feel of his lips against mine made tingles of awareness flood my body.
I tore my gaze away. If he kept saying stuff like this, he was going to make me fall for him, even more than the little crush I’d been harboring all these months. “But it’s a given that I’ll mess this up somehow. There’s got to be something broken in me that makes it so easy for men to walk away. I’ll only make you regret—” I was so flustered I didn’t even know how to say what was on my mind.
He moved so fast it took me a second to process what was happening. His hand slid from the back of the chair to rest on the nape of my neck. The tips of his fingers lightly held me in place. His eyebrows lowered and drew together in an angry v, and a determined look flashed in his eyes that I couldn’t quite understand. He frowned so hard I thought he was going to yell at me.
Hope your face doesn’t freeze like that,I thought, my brain short-circuiting with the intensity of his gaze.
But I couldn’t laugh at my own joke because the pupils of his eyes darkened, telling me another story, and he was leaning in so close that his face was only inches from mine.
“You ... are … not … broken,” he ground out.
My eyes fluttered closed, as the pressure on my neck increased, and he tugged me the rest of the way to him. His lips found mine. It wasn’t a sweet kiss or a gentle exploration. It was firm and punishing, as though he was trying to tell me without words to shut up.
Drew’s tongue ran along the seam of my mouth and I eagerly opened it, wanting this more than my next breath. I kissed him back with a hunger I didn’t recognize. It was needy and desperate, creating an ache that echoed through my body and settled in my core. I wanted so badly to throw myself into his arms. To press myself against his hard planes to see if we’d fit together just as perfectly as our mouths did.
My fingers tightly gripped his shirt then let go to brush over his abs, frustrated at the barrier between us. I barely held back from shoving my hands beneath the fabric to trace each dip and ridge, wanting to feel the heat of his skin. Tingles of awareness sparked along the edges of my veins and spiraled out through my arms and legs.
I matched each tilt of his head. Our tongues dueled, intertwined and I wanted so much more. At the edge of my mind, I acknowledged that my heart beat faster and a fluttering had started low in my belly, two things that had never been so intense while kissing my previous boyfriends. With each lick, press of his lips, and tug on my scalp I craved more of him. His taste, his touch, the possessive way he held me.
A moan reached my ears.
