Page 116 of Reputation (Tempt)

Brooklyn was staying with Knox and Kendall for the night, and I’d spent most of the evening looking forward to being alone with Nate. Ever since we’d returned to LA, it was as if life had gone into warp speed. Brooklyn was back at school. I’d buckled down on my training as we neared the homestretch before my competition. And Nate was back at the office.

All of that was mostly manageable. But it was the frenzy that still surrounded our relationship that was the most exhausting. I hadn’t fully appreciated the bubble of privacy we’d enjoyed while visiting Abu Dhabi until we’d come home.

“So…nothing,” Nate said.

Now that I’d thought about it, he’d been quiet on the ride home. Distracted. Sullen, even.

He chuckled and shook his head.

“What?”

“You’re cute when you’re buzzed.”

“Cute?” I scoffed. I didnotlike being called “cute,” especially by the sexiest man alive. Literally. He’d been awarded that at least two times.Three?

He smirked. “Three what?”

“The number of orgasms you’re going to give me.” I stood, smoothing down my dress. Determined to show him just hownotcute I was.

Hooded eyes met mine, electricity surging between us. “I think I can make it four.”

“Is that so?” I challenged.

He stepped closer, his clothes brushing against my back. I shivered. I stood there, almost frozen. Waiting to see what he’d do next.

He trailed his fingers down my back, tracing the column of my spine. His touch was electrifying, and I’d been waiting all evening to be alone with him.

All week, really. He’d been so busy with his film and everything else. And I’d been either training or recovering or taking care of Brooklyn. By the end of the day, we were both exhausted. Time alone together felt like a rare occurrence.

He came to face me, gripping my chin and tilting my head back to place a kiss on my lips. He led the kiss, his touch demanding and insistent, yet controlled. Nate was always in control. At least, until I made him relinquish it.

But this time, he wasn’t giving anything up. He was taking. My lips. My mouth. My body. My heart.

He pulled back and asked, “Is this what you imagined?”

I tilted my head to the side, too distracted by his touch to follow. “Huh?”

He kissed my jaw, behind my ear. “When you stared at my poster at night and touched yourself.”

I stiffened. I was going to kill my sister for mentioning that to him.

“Oh, come on, Em.” He leaned in, his breath a whisper against my ear. “We both know that’s what you were doing. So…” He trailed a finger over my shoulder, down my arm. “Tell me what you imagined.”

“No,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest and trying to ignore the way my body reacted to his touch. His proximity. “Because you’re making fun of me.”

“I’m not making fun of you,” he rasped. “In fact, I’ll tell you one of mine if you tell me one of yours.”

“One of yourwhat?” I asked.

“One of the fantasies I had about you.” He dragged a finger down my sternum.

“Huh?” I asked. Either the alcohol was affecting me even more than I’d realized, or my brain simply could not believe what I was hearing.

“That night I saw you on Knox’s yacht…” He brushed my hair over my shoulder and kissed my neck.

“Mm.” I hummed. “What about it?”

“I watched your poker game.”

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