“What are you now, embarrassed or nervous?” he asks, stepping into the kitchen.
I spin around to face him. “Both.” I laugh out loud. “I mean, you caught me naked. If that’s not embarrassing, I don’t know what is.”
“Why are you nervous?” His eyes are intensely locked on mine. His eyes are usually an ocean blue, but now, they seem darker, like they’re clouded with fear, worry, or lust.
I shrug, suddenly feeling self-conscious. “I don’t know. It’s just when we’re alone together, I feel nervous.” I roll my eyes. “I also feel stupid because I still want you, but you couldn’t care less.” I let out a nervous laugh. “You’re probably not even attracted to me. I was probably just the first girl that showed you attention since you got back, and I mean, hey, who turns down the easy girl, right?”
He takes a slow step forward, and the butterflies in my stomach take flight. “I am attracted to you, Deven. In fact, that night in my truck was the best night I’d had in a long time, maybe even ever. If I hadn’t run into you here the following day, I probably would have gone looking for you. I got a taste of you. That’ll never be enough,” he says, looking down at me now that our bodies are only an inch apart. I can feel his warmth radiating off his body. Mine is absorbing it like I’m frozen to the core.
His eyes are burning with emotion, passion, and lust as he looks down at me. His jaw is tensed. like he’s holding back, but his arms are limp at his sides. “As much as I’d love to pull you against me right now and fuck you senseless on your brother’s kitchen table, I can’t. I’m not that guy. Brad specifically asked me to keep my hands off. I can’t ignore his wishes. There’s a hard line between you and me. There is no crossing it despite how badly I want you, how much you tease me, or how much you beg.”
I’m lost. I’m lost in his words, his eyes, the way he makes my every hair stand on end and vibrate. I feel like I’ve floated up out of my body and I’m watching things unfold from the sky. I don’t even know what I’m doing. My body is controlling itself. “We can’t cross the line. That doesn’t mean we can’t push it,” I say, stepping forward and pressing my mouth to his.
His lips part for me on instinct, his hot tongue grazing against mine. For a moment, he seems frozen or surprised, but after a second, his hand moves up to cup my cheek as he deepens the kiss. He sucks on my tongue and explores every inch of my mouth. He releases my jaw, and I think he’s going to pull away, but instead, his hands land forcefully on my hips, picking me up and setting me on the counter in front of him. He moves between my knees while our kiss grows more urgent. His hands tour my body: my thighs, hips, breasts. My whole body feels like it’s been set on fire. My skin tingles and burns, metaphorical flames lighting along the trail his hands are making.
I whimper against his lips when his thumb grazes over my clit. “Hudson, please,” I beg as his lips fall from mine, kissing down my jaw and neck.
At my words, he pulls away, putting as much space between us as he can. He presses his back to the counter on the far side of the kitchen. He covers his mouth with his hand, wiping away the wetness from our kiss. His chest is rising and falling quickly as his eyes stare down at the floor between us.
I immediately feel cold without him pressed against me. A shiver races up my spine as I lower myself back to the floor. I raise my hand to cover my lips, enjoying the way they tingle from his kiss. Air is rushing in and out of my lungs, and my heart feels like it will soon explode from my chest. I chance a look up at him.
“We need to keep our distance. You hear me? I’ll stay in my room, you stay in the living room. If we’re never together, we can’t be tempted. Got it?” His voice is steady and sure.
My mouth falls open with surprise, but I nod in agreement. Without another word, he turns and