Page 49 of Sweetheart: Part One

I blinked, unsure of how to respond to that.

Did Iwantto kiss him? The boiling lust in my core was a clear answer. There was something charming about the curiosity burning in his eyes as he watched me work through that ask.

I turned to face him properly, so I was kneeling between his legs.

He was so fucking beautiful it was a scandal, with flutters of his midnight hair loose from his braid, feathering the pale skin of his broad shoulders.

I dragged my gaze back to his expectant eyes.

Kiss him however I wanted?

Despite who he was, or the fact I was vying for a contract as his Sweetheart, the ask still felt a little arrogant, and I couldn’t help the decision my brain landed on. I leaned close, palms pressed gently to his chest, and I brushed my lips along his collarbones.

He tensed, and I felt his fingers brush my waist just briefly before falling away as if he were struggling to hold back. It was more than the action, it was the way his scent shifted, vanilla winter edged with something desperate.

Lust?

I tried to shove down the thrill of that as I pressed another kiss to his collarbone and trailed it up to the corded muscle of his neck. I moved slowly, and the edge to his scent got stronger, his body becoming more tense beneath me.

He wanted me.

Love Hightower wanted me.

Butterflies soared in my chest, almost halting me. It took everything I had not to switch my pace. I reached his jaw, pressing my lips to it, once, twice, three times before drawing away, taking him in.

Holy shit.

His pupils were dilated, and his jaw ticked. His sapphire eyes regarded me with lust unmatched by any beta I’d ever seen in the bedroom.

My breath was trapped in my chest.

I wanted him.

I wanted him more than I’d ever wanted anyone.

This was what it was like,trulyhaving a mate?

I felt like I was staring into the centre of the universe. The safest place in the whole world. I opened my mouth to tell him I was absolutely changing my mind on the no sex rule, but then I got a grip on my hormones.

No.

If I gave everything up right now there was no telling that he wouldn’t just get bored.

I would never get bored with him, a little voice whispered.He won’t get bored with you.

But foolish little hormonal voices in my head weren’t good enough when it came to the rest of my life.

So I leaned close to kiss him on the jaw. I dragged my lips along his cheek, one fraction at a time. Beneath my palms, I felt his breath getting heavier as I moved closer to his lips. Before I reached them, I drew away again.

The sight that met me was more undone than before. His jaw ticked as he watched me, his chest heaving. I leaned close, this time to his other cheek, and his grip bit down on my waist. I felt the faintest smile curving my lips as I pressed them to his skin. Once more, I teased him, dragging my kiss so close before pulling away.

This time, a low, rumbling growl loosed from his chest.

His grip jumped to my hair, and he dragged me forward in one quick motion, tilting my head so he could kiss me properly. He froze at my little gasp of surprise just before he stole it.

I could feel the warmth of his breath on my lips, so close to claiming the kiss I’d denied him.

A part of me was screaming at him to claim it.

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