Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 101736 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 339(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101736 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 339(@300wpm)
If he noticed I was shaking, he didn’t say anything. The moment I was on my feet, his mouth was on mine, and everything else faded away. It was burned up in the heat of his kiss because the connection to him created an inferno inside me.
It barely registered that his fingers were at the bottom of my shirt and tugging it upward. It wasn’t until cool air wafted across the bare skin of my stomach that I realized what he was doing. We had to break the kiss and part for only a moment as he dragged the fabric up over my head and dropped it to the carpet with an almost inaudible thump.
As soon as it was done, his lips captured mine again and his hands went to work on the snap of my shorts. It was stunning how quickly he moved, and yet a part inside me whined for him to move faster.
My knees were already weak, but when he unzipped my shorts and shoved them down over my hips, my legs went boneless. I melted into his arms, falling into his all-consuming kiss.
He’d seen me topless before, and he’d seen beneath my skirt when I wasn’t wearing any underwear, but this . . . it felt so different. Much more real. And I wasn’t even naked yet.
I wore my matching bra and panty set I’d picked out for tonight. The cotton fabric was a simple white, trimmed with lace at the edges, and sprinkled with pairs of tiny pink roses printed on the fabric. It was so girly.
And innocent.
Preston’s kiss ended and he glanced down, letting out a choked-off sound of surprise as he stepped back. He gazed at my body packaged in the feminine lingerie like he both loved and hated it.
The set wasn’t overtly provocative. No mesh, or low-cut cups, and it certainly wasn’t a thong. If anything, the lingerie bordered on childish, but . . . shit. I thought it was sexy in a different kind of way.
Maybe even a little wrong or taboo.
The longer he stared at me, the closer I came to bursting into flames.
“Look at you.” His voice was full of gravel. “Did you wear this for me? It’s so . . .” he drew out my anticipation, “virginal.”
I exhaled loudly and crossed my arms over my chest, trying to hold myself together because I was coming unglued. When I was in his arms, I felt brave, but with the distance between us, it made room for my shyness to move in and take over.
“You’re so hot, and you don’t even know it.” He wiped a hand over his mouth, like he wanted to say more, but needed to stop himself—except it came out anyway. “You’re fucking gorgeous.”
His compliments, paired with his intense stare, made me burn hotter, and my knees threatened to buckle. He sounded so genuine, but my mind immediately went into safety mode and refused to accept it.
He was just saying it to be nice—it couldn’t be true.
I held my arms tighter across my scantily clad body, and tension pinched my shoulders together.
Whatever face I was making, it caused the lust in his eyes to dissipate. He blinked, and a new thought developed. “You want me to turn off the lights?”
Relief washed through me. I didn’t know why, but it felt more private that way.
“Sure,” I eked out.
He stepped forward and planted a searing kiss on my lips, and the connection to him was a drug that settled my nerves. My heart didn’t beat quite as erratically.
“My bed’s nice.” His smile was easy. “You should give it a try.”
When he left me and strolled toward the switch, I turned to face the bed and swallowed a breath. My unsteady legs carried me there, and as soon as I crawled onto the mattress, there was a soft snap, and the room plunged into near darkness.
I sat in the center of the bed and kept my gaze fixed on Preston. I’d expected him to come to me, but he didn’t. He crossed the room back to the dresser. Was he picking up his drink?
No. He opened the top drawer and pulled something out. It clicked, and a blue-yellow flame leapt to life at the end of the lighter. It didn’t take him long to light the three white pillar candles that rested on a gold charging plate, but I held my breath the entire time.
The flickering light cast a warm glow that wasn’t just sexy . . . it was romantic.
But all thought ceased when he turned. He took in the sight of me on his bed and his expression changed to one of absolute hunger.
God, it sucked all the air from the room.
I couldn’t move, couldn’t blink, as he grabbed the bottom of his shirt and stretched it up over his head. As soon as he had it off, he balled the shirt in his hands and tossed it aside, revealing the perfect landscape of his chest. Even in the low light, I could see he was toned and tanned, and my gaze traced over every delicious inch of bare skin.