Page 45 of Heartless Beloved

“I dreamed of you last night. It was…interesting.” I wiggle my eyebrows at him, but his unimpressed stare doesn’t falter.

“Don’t tell me you had a sex dream about me, cupcake.”

I feel the rush of warmth going from my neck to my cheeks. I can imagine the way my porcelain skin blushes in the low yellow light of the room.

He moves closer to me, his thigh now touching my hip. My bodycon dress is a few inches from uncovering my underwear, and I gulp when his eyes dart to the space between my legs.

“Tell me.” His eyes come back to mine with a glint in them. “What was your dream about?”

I shake my head, making the room tilt and my vision blur. “I can’t.”

He leans toward me, our lips practically touching.

“I could make your dream come true,” he murmurs.

Where is that glass of water again? My throat is suddenly dry.

Your friends warned you, Alex. Don’t let him do a fuck-and-forget on you.

I break eye contact and turn my head to the side. “No,” I finally say as a wave of clarity washes over me. “Really, I can’t. I know you and Harper are a thing. I don’t want to be the kind of person who gets in the way of a relationship.”

As I look back at him, I see him run a hand against his face. “Harper and I aren’t in a relationship.”

“You know what I mean.” I roll my eyes. “Regular fucks or whatever it is you two have.” I completely fail to hide the jealousy in my voice. “You have a thing.”

He licks his lips, watching me with a knowing stare. I guess he heard the jealousy too. “No relationship, no regular fucks, nothing. Only her imagination.”

Biting my inner cheek, I blink at him. “Are you sure about that?”

“Happened once. Last year. Nothing else.”

I purse my lips, not even liking the idea of that. This man owes me nothing, yet I’m making him reassure me that he’s not into Harper just because I need to hear it.

What am I doing?

With a small shake of my head, I give him a sorry smile. “Doesn’t matter. She’s into you; we’re part of the same sisterhood now. Sisters come before anything else. Sorry.”

Apparently, the concept of sisterhood is also on the list of things that don’t impress him.

“You say sorry way too much. It’s annoying.”

His left hand comes to wrap around my naked thigh, just under the hem of my dress. “Why did you mention your dream if you didn’t want to tell me about it?” he asks with genuine curiosity.

“I don’t know,” I huff. “I’m drunk and high and…I feel safe with you.”

His grip tightens and his hand comes higher. It’s one slight movement, and it brings the hem of my dress up before he stops.

“See, that’s your mistake, Alexandra.”

Just like that, I sober up.

I force a chuckle out of my mouth. “That’s not funny.”

His hand moves higher again, and I shift, pressing myself deeper against the headboard. “Xi…”

“What kind of naïve girl are you? Getting yourself in uncontrollable inebriated states and letting a man like me into your bedroom?” Is he…scolding me?

I feel my eyes round, a small whimper escaping me as he raises his hand again. Another one of these movements, and he’ll be touching my underwear. I feel my breathing accelerate as a tight band starts pulling at my lower stomach. It twists every time his low voice resonates and his warm skin presses against mine.

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