Page 89 of Behind the Net

“I know.”

There’s a smug, determined tone to his voice, and it sends more heat pooling around his fingers. My breath is coming out in short little gasps, and I cling to his gaze as the pressure at my center intensifies.

“There,” he mouths, watching me intently, and his hand speeds up. His thumb brushes my clit, and the wave inside me rises. “Quiet,” he whispers as I start to shake.

I clamp my lips closed, wincing as I clench up on his fingers. Intense, mind-bending light floods my body, curling, swelling, coursing, flowing through every inch of me, expanding from where Jamie’s long fingers stroke me. I canhearhow wet I am while sparks burst across my nerves. As I ride out the last of my orgasm, I let my head fall against his chest.

“Perfect,” he whispers in my ear. “Fucking perfect.”

I’m still catching my breath when he lifts his fingers to his mouth and sucks me off his hand. Another ripple of heat moves through me, and my clit throbs. He leans down and presses a soft kiss against my mouth, and I can taste myself on his lips.

There’s another knock on the door, and Jamie’s hand is on the doorknob. I scramble to straighten my skirt while he pulls the door open.

“About fucking time—” Rory stops when he sees Jamie, and he breaks into a cocky grin. “You going to crash our date, Streicher?”

“Yeah. I am.”

CHAPTER41

PIPPA

This has beenthe most awkward dinner ever.

We’re sitting in the dim bar on Main Street, within walking distance of the apartment. It’s a speakeasy with a secret entrance disguised like a seventies accountant’s office, but the inside is all lush maroon velvet, bizarre and fascinating artwork, and a bright, hedonistic mural of people lounging around naked in nature.

I sip my chai whiskey sour and glance at the back hallway, where the washrooms are. There’s probably a back door I could sneak out of.

I’m still buzzing from what Jamie and I did back in the apartment, and every time I think of it, my face feels warm. Beside me, Jamie’s back to his glowering self. I know we shouldn’t have messed around again, but the second he touches me, all the thoughts just fall out of my head. It’s too electric between us. Too intense, too good.

God, his fingers inside me… A shudder rolls through me.

“Pippa.” Rory leans back in his hair. “What’s this I hear about you playing guitar for everyone?”

I roll my eyes. “It’s just for fun.”

Beside me, Jamie makes a low noise of disapproval in his throat.

“It is,” I tell him with an indulgent smile, and he frowns down at me.

“She’s good,” he tells Rory. They’re the first words he’s said to him since we got here. “If she wanted to, she could work in the music industry.”

A block of ice forms in my stomach. “It’s not just about talent.”

“No, it’s not.” Jamie’s gaze is hard. “It’s about hard work and believing in yourself. You’re just missing the last one.”

An ugly, hesitant feeling rises in me, and my hands twist in my lap. I’m about to change the subject when Rory cuts in.

“Sounds like you have a fan,” he says, flicking a grin at Jamie.

No teasing. No overconfident smirk. Just a smile.

“Her biggest fan.” Jamie’s words don’t have the bite they usually do when he speaks to Rory.

They look at each other for a long moment, sizing each other up.

Alright, enough of this.

“Why aren’t you guys friends anymore?” I blurt out.

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