Page 38 of Seductive Desires

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The daysthat followed were pretty much the same. Workouts, spending time with Jo and Gabi, dinner together like a real family before heading off to bed. I even carved out time to work on my paper. Liam was kind enough to let me use his laptop for a few days before Mateo showed up with a brand new one. I tried to refuse but honestly it made it a lot easier than having to wait around for when Liam didn’t need his. So I decided to use it for now and return it when I finished.

The biggest problem that I was having was that I seemed to have gained an inability to sleep alone. Whenever I tried, I had intense nightmares and woke up in tears. I’d end up sneaking into Mateo’s room, sobbing in his arms until he sang me to sleep. Eventually, he just started joining me when he was done with work, wrapping himself around me like a Mateo backpack.

Staying away from him when he was sweet like that was beyond difficult. I had to keep reminding myself that we are completely different people and it would probably end in heartbreak. Jo and Gabi tried talking to me about it but I felt awkward. How do you say to someone ‘Yeah, I know you’re married to super dangerous criminals but I don’t think that’s what I want because I’m afraid of things like getting arrested and gunfights.’ I mean, Gabi was literally in the middle of a shoot out like three times so far since she got with Dmitriy! And Jo was kidnapped and beaten nearly to death for information. Why would I sign up for something like that?

It was especially difficult considering the fact that Mateo flirted with me every chance he got. Ever since he told me I lost the game, he has been figuring out new and inventive ways to get my attention. It started off simple, with lusty looks in the halls and trailing his fingers down my arm whenever he walked past me. When that wasn’t enough, he started grabbing me and pressing me against the nearest wall whenever I walked past him. He’d have his hands in my hair and his lips on mine before I even had the chance to process it.

I was in an almost constant state of arousal. Because he was working with Liam and Dmitriy, he was around a lot. He didn’t seem to need to work as hard as they did though because he would purposely sneak around to catch me off guard at odd hours. Liam and Dmitriy’s schedule was at least predictable unless there were extenuating circumstances. Mateo, not so much, so I never knew when he’d pop up.

I was in the library one afternoon, trying to get a decent amount of my paper done when he appeared out of nowhere.

“Has anyone ever told you you work too hard?”

I didn’t even bother looking up from my computer. “Has anyone ever told you you don’t work enough?”

He chuckled. “I thought you didn’t like my job.”

I shrugged. “It’s your life, not mine.”

He stepped up behind me, leaning over the back of the couch. “Take a break, I haven’t seen you much lately.”

I glanced up at him, frowning. “We see each other every day. Besides, I’ve got work to do.” My focus returned to my paper. If I didn’t get this done and done well, I’d have to repeat the semester and I wasnotinterested in doing that.

His arms came around my shoulders, pressing small kisses to my neck. “I see you in passing and when we go to bed. Come relax with me for a while.”

That sounded like code for ‘come to bed with me’ and that wasn’t going to happen. The rules of the game changed after I lost the last round. We couldn’t keep our hands off each other enough to play another round so instead it switched to whoever could hold out the longest before we fell into bed with one another. And right now, I was winning. He was throwing me up against walls or dragging me into dark corners, but I was always able to stop it before he managed to pull me under his spell completely.

“Don’t you have work you should be doing?”

“Life is too short to focus only on work. What’s the point if you can’t have a little fun?”

I snorted. “You have too much fun.”

He released me, walking around the couch to pluck the laptop from my lap. He set it aside before leaning over me, his hands on either side of my head. I had to lean back to see him properly.

“There is no such thing as too much fun, mariposa. If you aren’t enjoying life then you aren’t really living.”

That comment struck a little too close to home and I frowned. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to have fun. I went out with Carlos every now and then. But fear was a huge motivator to staying indoors and keeping a low profile.

Mateo noticed the shift in my mood. He straightened, grabbing my hands and pulling me to my feet. Brushing my hair out of my face, he kissed me lightly. “I’m sorry, mariposa. I know things have been difficult. Fun must not have been the first thing on your mind. Forget I said anything. I only wanted to help. Since you arrived, you’ve been practicing with James or studying. I worry you will overwork yourself.”

I sighed. I was intentionally keeping myself busy so I didn’t have to think about what was to come when I eventually had to deal with Stephen. Even hanging out with Jo and Gabi was falling farther down the list of my priorities because I kept thinking about how everything would go wrong and I would lose them too.

I grabbed the lapels of Mateo’s jacket, pulling him closer to me. We may not see eye to eye on fun vs. work but his easy going attitude is one of the things I love about him. No. Not love. Like. I like it. Him. Shit.

In desperate need of a distraction, I lifted onto my toes, pressing my lips to his. He wrapped his arms around my waist, closing the gap between us. It started off sweet, gentle. He chased me when I pulled away, making me laugh. He grinned, enchanting me as his hand slipped into my hair, keeping me from retreating again.

But what started out as light and playful quickly flared into something more. He nibbled on my lower lip, coaxing me to open up for him. My hands slid to his shoulders and around his neck. Pent up desire surged through me and I poured all my frustration into the kiss. His grip tightened as I took control, massaging his tongue with my own. His low groan made my stomach do cartwheels. His hands had just slipped lower, grabbing handfuls of my ass, when I heard people’s voices as they walked past the open library door.

I pulled back, glancing behind me. Whoever it was walked past without noticing us but we were way too out in the open. I had no intention of losing the game but I wanted to bend the rules as much as I could right now. When I looked back at him, I bit my lip. His eyes were hooded and lust filled. His full attention was on me.

I flattened my palms onto his chest, pushing him deeper into the library until we were hidden by several shelves of books. I felt like a college freshman, sneaking around in the stacks of the library in hopes of not getting caught. When his back hit the wall, I claimed his mouth again. He wrapped himself around me, grinding his hips against mine.

He abandoned all his playfulness. There was an edge of desperation to his kisses. He used his grip on my butt to keep my hips pressed against his. I was thankful more than ever that Jo tended to buy me comfortable leggings and jeans because if I was wearing a skirt, this might be the end of the game with the way we were going at each other.

His cock was bumping my clit with every shift of his hips and my hands delved into his hair, desperate to keep myself under control. If I didn’t flip the tables soon… An idea popped into my head but it really edged between bending the rules and breaking them. I smirked against his lips, releasing his hair. I slipped my hands down his chest and over his slacks, cupping him. His hips jerked automatically.

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