my floor. The team is heading back to Austin first thing in the morning, and if I’m lucky, I’ll get a good six hours of solid sleep before then.
I swipe my key card in the door, then step inside. After flipping the security lock, I turn to see…
“Holy. Fuck.”
The air rushes out of my lungs as I take in the woman sitting on my bed. She’s not naked, nor is she even dressed provocatively, but the sight of her there… It’s the best sight I’ve seen in so long.
“Ellie.” I want to ask why she’s here. I want to ask where James is. I want to ask what she needs, but I can’t bring myself to say anything because I really don’t care.
She’s here. That’s all that really matters.
I walk over to her, studying her face, trying to read her mind. She says nothing, gives nothing away in her expression. When I’m less than a foot away, she stands up and smiles.
“I—” I have no clue what I was going to say, but it doesn’t matter because she quiets me with a finger over my lips.
“No talking. Not tonight.”
In a perfect world, this would be my greatest fantasy. Finding Ellie in my hotel room unexpectedly… I’m supposed to be ecstatic, but for some reason, the pain in my chest drowns out any of that. I can tell by the look in her eye that—despite what I know is about to happen—this is not going to be one of those visits that fixes everything and we live happily ever after.
She pushes my suit coat off my shoulders. “Make love to me, Kingston.”
I swallow hard and nod. I can do that. I want nothing more than to do that.
And though I sense this is probably going to be the absolute last time I get to make love to this woman, I can’t refuse her. My body craves hers; my heart is desperate for a little fix, something to tide me over for as long as it will last.
I remove my jacket and allow her to start working the buttons on my shirt while I cup her face and kiss her with everything that I am. I will her to feel the emotion that’s trapped in my body, desperate to get out. I need her to know everything, but I refuse to become her burden. I love this woman. I want to spend the rest of my life with her, but I’ve come to the brutal conclusion that she will be happier with James.
“God, Ellie.” Her hands make their way beneath my shirt, and I suck in air as her cool fingers slide over my hot skin. “I need you.”
“You have me,” she says. “For as long as you want me.”
I want her for the rest of my life, but I know that’s not possible. Although I probably look pathetic, I’m willing to take what she’s offering. It’ll give me the chance to memorize everything about her, and maybe, just maybe, something will change between us. I’m not holding my breath, though. I’m moving forward with the rationalization that this will be the last time I make love to this woman.
And I’m almost okay with that.
Almost.
Ellie
I do not know what came over me, but here I am.
When James asked Bianca and me to come to Colorado to see his house and so that he could take us to a hockey game, I hadn’t been able to say no. Of course, it didn’t hurt that Bianca begged and pleaded for three entire days before I finally made the decision.
So, James put us on a plane—first class—and picked us up at the airport this morning. Tonight, the three of us are staying in a two-bedroom suite—Bianca and I in one room, James in the other—in this very same hotel. And while Bianca and James decided to settle in to have popcorn and watch a movie, I informed him that I needed to go talk to Kingston. With an understanding nod, he then shooed me on my way and turned his attention back to Bianca.
And here I am, seducing this man, quite possibly for the last time.
Spencer told me which room Kingston was in, and he even managed to help me sneak in without Kingston knowing. For the past half hour, I sat here on the bed, thinking about all the things I wanted to say to him when he came back.
Then, as soon as he stepped foot in the room, I knew there would be