Page 144 of The Young & the Sinner

Like always, Olivia made everything better just by being here. She smiled when she took me in, and there was just something soft about her that I wanted to preserve.

Unlike other women I dated before, Olivia didn’t play games. She didn’t act shy or coy in attempt to get my attention. I didn’t think Olivia knew how, but she got my attention nonetheless.

She was wearing an olive-green jacket, which I was sure was a gift from Max, fitted blue jeans, and black leather ankle boots, with a black overnight bag slung across her shoulder. She looked good enough to eat.

She looked up at me, biting her bottom lip to keep from smiling, and I knew she enjoyed the way my eyes devoured her. She liked it when I looked, even if she was too shy to ever admit it.

I moved aside for her to come in, leaving only enough room for her to squeeze through. She moved passed me, her shoulder brushing up against my arms, her cheeks reddening.

It still amazed me that even after everything we’ve done, she still blushed every time I so much as looked at her. Her innocence was refreshing to a cynical bastard like myself.

I locked the door after us and watched as she moved around the apartment, smiling over how comfortable she seemed with everything. She walked into the master bedroom, and I followed behind her.

When I was staying at Max’s, we spent most nights together. But this would the first night I would have her in my arms in my own apartment.

Something about this made me feel like a schoolboy about to interact with his crush for the first time. That was what Olivia had reduced me to. A blubbering, nervous mess.

She dropped her bag on the floor by the closet door and turned to me.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?”

I could tell she was resisting the urge to fidget under my gaze and call me a bastard, but I liked making her nervous. I liked making her blush more, and nothing made her turn red more than when I was close by.

I ate away the distance between us in three large steps. She tilted her neck back to take me in. She was so tiny, so fragile. Sometimes, I was afraid of holding onto her too tightly, afraid I might break her. Other times, I wanted to push her to her limit, just to prove to myself how strong she was. That I didn’t need to be so careful.

Today was one of those times.

I traced her lips with my pointer finger, and her eyes fluttered closed from the contact.

“Mason,” she breathed out. Just the way she said my name got me hard. I wanted her. I wanted her so bad there were no words.

I never had to wait to take someone to bed before. But then again, I had never dated a virgin, either. I would wait until she was ready. I would wait for years if that was what it took, because Olivia was worth it.

I unzipped her jacket and pushed it off her shoulders until it fell down to the floor in a silent heap, revealing the tight black shirt she had on underneath. The shirt molded to her shape perfectly, and I wanted nothing more than to throw her on my bed and consume her… use her in every deprave way possible, until she forgets everything but my name. She swallowed noticeably, and I held in a smile.

“Do you want me?” I asked, my voice gruff. Evidence of the effects she had on me.

She nodded, nuzzling into my palm when I cupped her soft cheek. “You know I do.”

“We’re going to do something different today. Are you ready for that?”

After a slight pause, she said, “Yeah.”

My stomach dropped in anticipation. Everything we did so far had been a new experience for her. But I wondered if she could tell it was all new to me, too. That I never felt this way about anyone, and because of that, I didn’t know how to let her go. I would have her at any cost, even at the expense of my relationship with Max.

But was Olivia ready or even willing to take that risk?

I didn’t know.

“Do you trust me?” I asked.

“Yes,” she answered, no hesitation.

I smiled, showing teeth. “Good.”

I moved away from her and to my bed, sitting down. Olivia looked at me with wide Bambi eyes. She stayed where she was, but I could tell she wanted to come to me. To seek my protection and my assurance.

I smiled a little at that. “Strip, baby. I want to watch you.”

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