Page 55 of A Kiss at Midnight

The month we’ve been apart evaporates in an instant and I’m back with him, right where we were on our last night together, where anger and frustration have morphed into heat and ecstasy.

His kiss is masterful, and it doesn’t take him long to part my closed lips and access the warm recesses of my needy mouth. There’s hunger, danger, and so much more in the way he holds my body, the way he devours me, leaving no room for thoughts of anything or anyone but him.

One feeling merges into the next as he plunders my mouth, intimately reacquainting himself with the touch of me, making my knees grow weak, my heart thump erratically, and my core heat to the point of boiling. This is raw sex at its most basic level.

His fingers tighten in my hair, and he moves his body rhythmically against mine, his arousal pressing as intimately against my womanhood as our clothes allow. I’m ready, so ready, for him to take me.

“I want you, Jewel; I want you more than I ever wanted any other woman. You make me burn,” he says when he pulls back for air. He trails his lips down my throat after his words make my insides dissolve.

I try to remember why this is wrong, to regain my equilibrium, but I can’t think, can’t move, can’t breathe, let alone resist this pull he has on me. I know I’ll hate him and myself even more, but I can’t stop responding. The only way this will end is ifheputs on the brakes.

But Blake obviously isn’t finished. He frees my hands to let his fingers glide down my body, stroking the sensitive flesh of my sides, hips, and ass. My head falls back, and a sigh escapes my lips while he caresses the skin of my neck. And then it stops as quickly as it began.

It takes a long moment for me to realize he’s stilled. He rests his hands on my hips, and his mouth is no longer making its seductive way along my skin. I slowly tilt my head forward, and once again, find my eyes captured by his ardent gaze.

We must stand here for an eternity, neither of us saying a word, our breathing returning to something like normal — though my body will never be normal again. I don’t know what to say, and I can’t think with his hard body pressed against mine.

But the silence gets to me, and just when I can’t take it another second, I finally open my lips, run my tongue slowly along their swollen edges, and take a deep breath before I speak.

“That didn’t prove anything,” is all that comes out, but not nearly as strongly as I’d intended.

Blake throws me a hint of a smile and leans a little closer. When he finally replies, his mouth is within an inch of mine.

“I think it proved exactly what it was supposed to, Jewel.”

“And what is that, Blake? That you have power over me? That no matter what I do or say, you’ll still get exactly what you want? Well, if that’s what you’re trying to prove, congratulations, you did it. Yes, you can force me to do what you want. You’re bigger, stronger, and far more manipulative than I am.” I hope I’ve infused my voice with utter disdain.

“You’ve developed some bite in the time we’ve been apart,” he says, his voice smooth and... impressed. I’m trying to sound fierce, intimidating, frightening. I’m not supposed to be turning him on more.

“Yes, I have. In the month since you discarded me so carelessly, I developed a spine. You’ll find I’m not the same submissive little girl you abused to your heart’s desire. Oh, sorry — you never had a heart. But you wasted your time, Blake Astor, because I won’t be what you want.”

“Oh, Jewel, I know exactly what I want,” he says, running his hand through my hair again. “And it’s most certainly you. Besides, wasn’t the original dealanythingI want?”

“We broke that deal,” I tell him, but I’m losing the fight in me. I promised my brother. And here’s Blake, a sure thing where the other guy could flake out.

“We can make a new deal.” He seems quite happy to do this. I want to say no, but then I have an idea.

“How bad do you want to make the deal?” I question, my fight returning. “If you want a new deal, I want an official contract, one you sign saying you’ll come to court, that you’ll say what needs to be said.” My spine is straight against the wall I’m still backed into.

He doesn’t look fazed. “Deal,” he says. “I was going to say a contract is a good idea to protect us both.”

He has no advantage with a contract. Technically, he can’t take me to court if I decide to not have sex with him. But, then again, could I really take him to court if he doesn’t go with me to Justin’s hearing? Probably not. What am I going to say?I had sex with him again and again, and he won’t come in here and lie to you.Yep, that’s not going to get me custody of my brother. I’m desperate though, and he knows it.

“Just so you know, I won’t enjoy this, nor will I try to make it better for you. Be warned.”

He laughs. “That’s where we’ll agree to disagree,” he whispers. “I know for a fact that you’ll not only enjoy it, but will beg me for more... and more... and more.” With these last six words, he brushes his lips against mine. “And I’ll definitely give it to you.”

Liquid heat flows through my veins. Yes, he’s given me pleasure, pleasure beyond anything I’ve felt before. But he’s also given me pain. And the pain is what I’m afraid of. I’ve suffered enough emotional trauma to last a lifetime.

He can so easily destroy me — I have no doubt of this. But I’m once again agreeing to this deal. Why fight it? Because even though he might own my body, he can’t own my mind, my heart, or my soul, or at least the pieces of those I still have.

“You know I’ll hate you forever, Mr. Astor.”

Only a tiny spark igniting in his eyes shows my words have registered. When his lips part, I wait for the backlash. I don’t get it.

“I don’t require any emotion from you except passion,” he says dismissively. “A nice, basic animal response.” The words sting more than I’ll ever admit.

“Then we’re on the same page,” I tell him. “Because you won’t get anything other than my body.” How desperately I wish he’d give me just a bit of breathing room.

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