Page 20 of Hollywood Humbug (The Naughty List)

“It’s taken me two years to get my head out of my ass and come to grips with the fact that my life is empty without you. Protecting my heart from you—which is a lost cause, by the way—just dooms me to a cold and lonely life. And even if it means that it’ll end up crushed someday, I’d rather take the chance and spend however long I can holding you in my arms every night, waking up with you in the morning, and making you smile,”—I smiled wickedly—“and scream, as often as possible.”

She didn’t seem to realize that throughout my speech, she’d been scooting closer and closer. Now she was practically in my lap, so I grasped her hips and moved her over me, settling her astride my legs.

“How about you, baby? Will you take a leap of faith with me and give us another chance?”

Ten

SCARLET

Ihated that Kane and I had spent the past two years not only apart, but living with pain and regret, even if in the end, it seemed like it had been necessary. Now that I understood why he’d assumed the worst back then…and after he’d put his apology out there for the whole world to see, I wasn’t going to waste any more time with him.

So, when he asked me to take a chance on us, I didn’t hesitate. “Yes,” I said softly as I slid my palms up his broad chest and gripped his shoulders through his shirt before leaning up to brush my lips against his. Kane wasn’t hiding his feelings behind a mask anymore, and his blue eyes burned with desire. When I swiped my tongue across his bottom lip, the color deepened to navy, but I didn’t have long to appreciate his reaction because he tossed me over his shoulder again. Only this time, I didn’t struggle. Instead, I groped his ass and his deep chuckle filled the interior of his trailer.

After he tossed me onto his mattress, I grinned up at him. “You can’t blame me for copping a feel when I’ve been ogling your butt every chance I got over the past two years.”

“I won’t hold it against you, just so long as you realize that turnabout is fair play. I intend to do all the things I’ve dreamed about doing to you since before our first date.”

I quirked a brow, my smile widening. “I guess that depends on what kinds of things you’ve been fantasizing about all this time.”

“I’m going to have a fuck of a lot of fun showing you.” He punctuated his sensual promise by ripping his shirt over his head and thumbing open the snap on his jeans.

Eager to be skin to skin with him, I scrambled to my knees and lifted the hem of my shirt.

“Stop right there, baby,” Kane growled. “Stripping you bare is one of the first fantasies I’m going to turn into reality. You’re going to be my favorite present to unwrap from now on.”

A delicious shiver raced down my spine as I dropped my hands to my sides. “Next time I’ll wear a bow,” I teased with a smirk. “And nothing else.”

Kane’s blue eyes darkened to almost black, and he growled as he prowled toward me. When he climbed onto the mattress, his gaze locked with mine and my panties practically disintegrated. His jeans were riding low on his hips and I licked my lips as I stared at the happy trail pointing toward the impressive bulge in his jeans.

“That fucking mouth of yours,” he groaned, brushing his thumb against my bottom lip. “It’s so damn perfect. You could drive a man wild without even trying.”

Driving him wild sounded wonderful to me. “How about you hurry and get me naked and we’ll see just how wild I can make you?”

“I can abso-fucking-lutely do that.” He dropped his head to claim my mouth in a deep kiss that left me breathless. I whimpered when he finally pulled back, but he just gave me a wicked smile. “But my fantasy of having these perfect lips wrapped around my cock is going to have to wait. I want to feel your pussy sucking me deep when I come with you the first time, and there’s no way in hell I’ll last if you get your mouth on me. I’ve been waiting too long for this.”

The hope that I was afraid to feel—that he was talking about more than just wanting me for the past two years—must have shown on my face, because he nodded. “Yeah, baby. I want you more than anything, but this first time won’t last long. I need you so damn much because I’ve only gotten off with my fantasies of you all this time.”

My heart soared at his confession. “I haven’t been with anyone else either.”

“Good,” he grunted. “Then I don’t need to kick someone’s ass for taking what’s mine, even if I’ve been too damn stubborn to see it.”

“It also means we don’t have to use a condom since I’m on the pill,” I offered.

“You gonna let me take you bare, baby?”

I nodded. “Uh-huh.”

“Fuck, yeah,” he growled before quickly stripping my clothes from my body until I was sprawled naked on the bed while he kneeled above me in only his jeans. “I’ve never gone without a condom, but I have a feeling it’s gonna make it even more difficult to hold out until I give you a couple of orgasms.” He shook his head and exhaled slowly as he raised his eyes to the ceiling. “Knowing there won’t be anything between us…” Our eyes met once more and I could see he was struggling to maintain control. “I can’t wait to feel your sweet pussy wrapped around my cock.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure,” I murmured breathlessly. “I probably won’t last very long either since I’ve never done it without—”

He cut off my confession with a brutal kiss. “I know it’s a double-standard with what I just told you, but I can’t listen to you about anyone but me, baby.”

The possessive gleam in his eyes gave me a feminine thrill that turned into a rush of pleasure when he moved down my body to suck on one of my nipples while he used his fingers to toy with the other. By the time he’d given both breasts plenty of his attention, I was writhing beneath him. He trailed kisses down my belly, then wedged his shoulders between my thighs and parted my pussy lips with his thumbs as he met my gaze over my mound. He stared at my tattoo for an extended minute, then looked up at my face. “Next time, I’m going to hunt down every tattoo on your body and trace them with my tongue.” He watched me intently as his hands slid under my butt to lift me up to his mouth so he could lick me. The first touch of his tongue was a gentle swipe over my tattoo, the next was up my seam from bottom to top. “Fuck, you taste good,” he groaned in a guttural voice. “You’re fucking drenched.” He licked me again before asking, “Is that all for me?”

“Mmmmhmmm,” I moaned.

He grinned. “Good, because I’m already addicted to your taste.”

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