Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
“Where are you taking me?” she demanded with a catch in her voice.
“To your room.”
She sighed and rested her head against my chest. It was a sweet gesture and I felt something inside me melt. When I laid her on her bed, she opened her eyes and looked at me from beneath her eyelashes.
I understood instantly.
The air between us throbbed with thick desire. To say I was not tempted would have been a lie. I was. So tempted I had to force myself to turn away, but her hand reached out and gently curved around my wrist. I looked down at it. It looked so fragile and pale against my skin.
“I just want to forget,” she murmured. “Just for a little bit. Can you really not oblige me?”
“You’re drunk,” I said, my voice sounding harsh.
She shook her head. “I’m not. Not really.”
She was half-drunk, disheveled, and dressed in an oversized tracksuit, but at that moment she was the sexiest woman alive and I wanted her. How I wanted her. Unlike her, I didn’t want her because I wanted to forget my pain for a while. I wanted her because I’d always wanted her. From the first moment I saw her. I swallowed hard. This was wrong. This was Marco’s daughter and I could never take advantage of her when she was under the influence.
“Sleep on it. If you’re still interested when you get up, come to my room.” She had no idea just how much restraint I had to employ to reject her offer.
“Then can you stay with me for a while? We don’t have to do anything. When I fall asleep you can leave. Please, Dante?”
I took a deep breath. She was really asking for the impossible. Still, considering how much alcohol she had consumed it was a safe bet to say she would be asleep in no time. I was no animal. I could control myself for a few minutes.
Wordlessly, I unzipped my jacket and shrugged out of it. Then I lay down next to her, not touching any part of her, and waited for her breathing to become even.
Chapter 24
Zola
My eyes were fixed on the ceiling as I listened to his gentle breathing. A part of my brain tried to warn me this was a terrible, terrible idea … horrible, but between my legs I was soaking wet.
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt such a strong, almost irresistible desire for a man.
Was it the alcohol? Or maybe, if I was really honest, it was the simple, uncomplicated lust for an extremely delectable man.
Why not? He was attractive and I felt illogically safe with him … It made perfect sense on paper, but I’d never forced myself on a man who didn’t want me and I wasn’t going to start now. Alcohol always made me drowsy so I let it do its work …
I shut my eyes.
One hour later I was still wide awake. I turned to face him and the more I looked at him the more my appetite intensified.
Unable to hold back any longer, I tapped on his shoulder. “I’m hot. Are you hot? I mean you can take your shirt off.”
He didn’t respond, but it was highly unlikely he was asleep. I took my top off and threw it on the floor. My sweatpants followed. I was now only in a tank top and a thong, and it still felt like too many clothes.
I turned to my side and watched him. His hair fell over his eyes, and it made me want to reach out to tenderly brush it away. And that is exactly what I did. Still, he did not open his eyes. Because his eyes weren’t open and piercing through me as usual, I found that I could properly admire and even appreciate the beauty and magnificence of his face. He was all chiseled angles and contours, yet with an undeniable sensual softness to his mouth that made me hungry for him.
Actually, famished was closer to what I felt at that moment.
Even if I got nothing else from this trip, I would have the memory of finally sleeping with my teenage crush.
“You're not really sleeping, are you?” I whispered.
His arm came over his eyes and one corner of my lips curled in a smile. I decided then I was done waiting or susceptible to any feelings of shame. The only thing I could think about was giving my full attention to the maddening pulsing between my legs. If I had been emotionally attached to him in any way, I might have kissed him, but since I wasn’t, I rose up and positioned myself across his midriff. I tried my best to settle my weight on him as gently as I could.
My heart was racing so hard it was as though it would fly out of my chest, yet I persisted. Grabbing the hem of my tank top, I pulled it over my head and flung it away. It left me in just my bra which I considered leaving on, but when I considered what I ultimately needed to feel was the weight of him intimately pressed against me, I took it off as well.