state,” I said, turning my head slightly. I could feel his breath on my cheek. “I’m guessing you don’t let any women into that stone-cold heart of yours.”
A raspy chuckle. “Access is denied to most everyone, yes.”
“What about a woman that devours men’s hearts for breakfast?” I asked, voice barely a whisper.
“Allowances could be made for a woman like that.” He brushed a few wayward strands of hair from the nape of my neck, baring me completely.
I felt his mouth there. A kiss. Almost a bite. A low rumble rose from his chest.
Another kiss, this one on the side of my neck.
One more, lower still.
My eyes closed, soaking in this seduction. Savoring it. “Abraham,” I said, voice a plea.
“Yes, Sloane?”
I steeled my spine and accessed the very dregs of my willpower. Turned my head to the side, and still avoided eye contact. I couldn’t—couldn’t—look him in the eye right now. “I think you and I are smart enough to know the kind of devastation that sex between the two of us could leave in its wake. Complicating devastation. Not an easy night between strangers.”
Oh god, every word of that physically hurt. The casual sexual experiences I had rarely involved more than our first names and a frank discussion of birth control and testing. I’d basically told this man I was too attracted to him to fuck him for fun.
“I am smart enough to know that,” he said. “I am smart enough to feel the same way actually.” He kissed my throat one more time, a searing burn. “And because you were so honest with me, I’ll tell you that I’m also stupid enough to still want this, Sloane.”
“You’re not a stupid man, though,” I said.
His mouth dragged to my ear, and I whimpered. “Generally, I am known for my brilliance, yes. But you’re the first woman who’s ever robbed me of my senses.”
He stepped back, stepped away, and I almost begged again, begged for more, wept at the loss of his masculine strength, and his hard chest, and the confident grip of his fingers.
I finally did catch his eye. There was that shy vulnerability again. My throat was dry, body trembling. “I feel pretty senseless around you too, Abe.”
A smile, a sad smile from him. “I know what’s needed to win a case like the one you have. I know what’s needed from you. The focus, the time, the stress. Please forgive my—” He waved a hand at my door. “—reckless actions. I know you can’t afford distractions right now.”
I opened my mouth to tell him his apology was so unnecessary it was laughable. He unlocked his own door, held it open as he stared at me one last time. “Don’t doubt yourself, Ms. Argento. If anyone can succeed in that man’s capture, it’s you. I’d wish you luck, but I don’t believe you need any.”
18
Abe
What about a woman that devours men’s hearts for breakfast? Sloane purred, slipping first one bra strap, then the other, down the curve of her shoulder.
Allowances could be made for a woman like that, I said, although it was more guttural growl than words. I was naked on my bed, fingers wrapped around my cock, the sole witness to Sloane’s strip tease.
You want me to devour you? She stared at my length, tongue darting out to wet her lips.
Christ, get up here, I begged. She only shook her head, endlessly coy, knowing it drove me up the goddamn wall. Fingers hooked into the fabric, she dropped her bra to the ground. Began teasing at the sheer material of her panties.
Should I keep going? I was so close, so close to seeing everything.
Yes, I demanded. I was going to come. Yes. I was going to—
The ringing crack against my hotel door startled me awake from the hottest sex dream of my life. Gasping, naked, cock aching, I stumbled out of my bed. Glared at the clock, which read 2:15 a.m.
Only silence filled the room.
“Shit,” I sighed, relieved. I sank back onto the bed, scrubbing a hand down my face. The dream—that dream—had been so real I could still taste my desperation, could still feel my skin, hot for her touch. I’d fucking pleaded for her touch, which I’d never, not once, done for a woman.
Instinctively I placed my palm to the wall behind me, the one I shared with Sloane. It slowed my heart to a manageable rhythm.
Another sharp crack shattered the stillness. A third and another. And the unmistakable sound of a doorknob being rattled