Total pages in book: 144
Estimated words: 147415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 737(@200wpm)___ 590(@250wpm)___ 491(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 737(@200wpm)___ 590(@250wpm)___ 491(@300wpm)
“Then there’s nothing to regret, is there?” I stare at her.
She shifts so her head rests better on my shoulder.
Damn, I should really let her go now, but there’s something horribly reassuring about feeling a beautiful woman’s flesh on mine.
It’s been so long.
I can’t remember the last time I allowed myself this indulgence.
“Are you cold?” I ask, noticing the tremble in her shoulders.
“No. You?”
I shake my head.
“I guess I’m just processing.” She laughs a little then, her breath warm against my skin. “That turned me inside out, I’m not gonna lie.”
“You’re not half-bad,” I agree, biting back a smile.
“Look, I know you probably haven’t been with a girl since Abe Lincoln was President, but FYI. 'Bad' can’t be in your vocabulary after sex like that.” She smacks my cheek playfully. “Now do you think we scared the otters?”
Little brat.
I can’t resist touching her, palming the dip of her waist, feeling how fragile and perfect she is against me.
For such a slip of a woman, she took my cock like she was made for it.
Even now, seeing her naked almost does me in, obliterating what’s left of my well-worn sanity.
Knowing she was so wet for me made it even better.
The desire in her eyes almost convinces me this is something we should be doing.
Like she wasn’t sleeping with me for attention or because she was temporarily overwhelmed with the excitement strumming every nerve.
Fuck, why can’t I let her go?
It’s been a long damn time since I let anyone in like this.
Cuddling.
On the goddamned barren ground, no less, but cuddling all the same.
And she’s not pulling away yet, finding her clothes, making awkward excuses for why she has to leave.
There’s a distant splashing sound that may or may not be the otters.
“I don’t think we scared them away,” I say. “Did you get all the pictures you wanted?”
“I think so. I got a few videos too.” Her sigh is pure contentment. “Did you see them all? There were eight.”
I saw the little animals, sure, but they had nothing on watching her.
The way her eyes lit up, the breathless joy across her face, the way her cheeks flushed as she held her breath.
No one fakes that shit.
There’s no pretending you have a heart as big as a Sweeter Grind cinnamon roll unless it’s really there in all of its massive, sugary goodness.
Everything about Destiny Lancaster is one long lethal sugar rush, and I just caught hyperglycemia.
Part of me knew how much shit I was in even before her clothes came off.
When she looked at me like I’m the one who put otters on planet Earth after talking about them like we were old friends, there was no stopping the inevitable.
Not with the way she stepped up and offered her mouth.
An invitation straight to my soul.
The memory alone reminds my cock that once wasn’t nearly enough as a dark realization sets in.
Once with a girl like her would be a bigger sin than delving into this madness in the first place.
I clear my throat, eager to distract my growing erection.
“We should come to an understanding,” I say.
“You mean unlike with the kiss? So now he wants to talk,” she teases.
I pinch the skin of her waist.
“Yes, you little smart-ass.”
“Okay! You first. I’m dying to hear this.”
My jaw clenches as I ponder my words.
Everything and nothing stews in my head.
Honestly, I hate this shit.
Words are hard when I know how destructive they can be.
Talking about forbidden sex ruins the magic, too, but there’s no way around it.
“First, we need to talk about the fact that I had sex with you.”
“Um, yeah, it happened. What else is there to say? Are you still trying to make it sound like you forced it? That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
I shake my head violently.
“That’s not my point. The fact that it happened at all means we need ground rules, Destiny. Don’t get me wrong, it was damned good. Still, that doesn’t mean it should have happened or change the fact that—”
“The fact that you’re still a huge, uptight, grumpy asshole? Trust me, I know.” She sighs playfully, and I feel the way the air floods out of her. It makes me hold her closer. “But I know what you mean. I get it, and you don’t have to worry, Shepherd. This doesn’t have to mean more. And... and I’m mature enough not to let it go to my head and turn it into something it wasn’t.”
I want to believe her.
But then why does she sound so disappointed?
“It was pure impulse, yeah. It overwhelmed us in the moment,” I say carefully.
“Yeah.”
“Since we also agree that the attraction was mutual, we can be clear about what it was and wasn’t.” I hope it makes some sense to her because it isn’t computing for me.
My brain still can’t believe I’m having this conversation.