Page 70 of Boost

-Raf-

I stretched an arm sideways, expecting to find Greer next to me—just like she was last time I reached for her in the dead of night. The bed was still warm, but her body wasn’t near.

Opening my eyes, I took a moment to watch her sitting on the edge of my bed, back exposed and the muscles working under her skin as she began to pull on her bra.

Not happening.

I slid across the bed and wove an arm around her waist. “You won’t be needing that, mamacita.”

“I will where I’m going,” she replied, with a smile in her voice.

I hummed and shifted closer. “And where’s that?”

“Home.”

Normally, it wasmekicking pussy out, not it prematurely leaving. Besides, Greer wasn’t just some tap and toss. I actually fuckingwantedher here. To stay and, shit I dunno, hang out for a bit.

“I think you’re making an extremely bad decision,” I murmured against her bare shoulder blade, while trailing my fingers over her breasts. I toyed with one nipple before she had the chance to conceal it behind the black fabric of her bra.

A subtle laugh reverberated under my ear. “Do you just?”

“I do,” I growled playfully. Fuck, since when did I have to work this hard? “You’re worth it,” I added.

It was meant as a confirmation for myself, but Greer tensed.

She twisted to look at me. “Worth what?” Questions swam in her beautiful eyes.

“Worth stayin’, that’s what.” It was a distraction, and we both knew it. “Now, you won’t be needing this-”

I whipped the scrap of lingerie from her grasp and tossed it to the far side of the room.

Greer’s laughter rang out and fuck if it didn’t fill my bedroom with hopes and fucking dreams.

“Is that so?” she teased.

“Yes. Now, get your ass back in here so I can tell you good morning properly.”

I tugged her backward. The length of her rich, dark hair tickled across my torso as she put up a small and futile struggle before succumbing to being off balance. With her laid against my chest, I kept her there with one hand cradling her jaw and the other trailing over her abdomen. Up and down until her laughter fell away. Up and down until she fully relaxed under my fingertips.

“You’re so fucking perfect,” I murmured, watching goosebumps ripple over her belly where my fingers grazed.

Greer tilted her head to look at me. An unreadable story seemed to linger within her expression. “Nobody’s perfect, Rafael. We all have our dark places.”

It struck way too close to home. Punched through the shelter I’d created around myself after years of barricading in the darkness that would forever mar my soul.

“Hey,” Greer whispered, and brushed her fingers along my jaw. “Where’d you go?”

I gently captured her hand and brought it to my lips. “Nowhere important, baby.”

During the fleeting seconds she held my gaze, it was as if she saw directly into my soul. Saw the evil that lingered there. The evil that took away the innocence I would never get back.

Unable to stand it any more, I looked away and returned my hand to her chest. I lightly brushed over both breasts, feeling the beast within stir as her nipples started to pebble. Her breath grew shallow and her back arched as if aching for me.

“You like that?”

She hummed. “I haven’t decided yet.”

That lit my fire. My hand trailed past her belly button. Teasing. Coaxing more of her need to the surface. Her legs fell wide as I reached lower to find her wet and ready.

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