the twinkle lights, that was their cue to cut the night short.
“Well, I’m this way,” Rylan said, jerking her head behind her. “And you’re that way, so I guess this is goodnight.”
Thrett took a step closer to her, well within her personal space, and she found she didn’t really mind. “I wouldn’t be much of a gentleman if I didn’t make sure my date got home safely.”
Heat flushed her cheeks at the reminder that they were on a date, but she was done pretending it was anything else. Letting him walk her home was risky, though. Hell, she’d insisted on meeting him at the restaurant so he wouldn’t find out where she lived, but suddenly that didn’t seem to matter. Trystin was at his sleepover at Blaise’s house so it was safe enough in that regard, but she certainly wouldn’t want Thrett popping by until he knew the truth. Of course, considering how things were developing, that would happen much sooner than she’d anticipated.
They walked most of the way in tense silence, neither of them quite knowing what to do with all of this new information. The tension between them practically sparkled and she had a hard time not reaching for his hand. Her house was dark when they slowly took the steps to her porch. Slipping the key into the deadbolt, she cracked open the door but didn’t move to go inside. She didn’t want the night to end.
Thrett fidgeted and glanced around like a teenage boy looking for her spying parents. He couldn’t seem to meet her gaze.
“I, uh, guess this is goodnight then,” he stammered, starting to reach for her hands before stopping himself.
The king of one-night stands, Mr. Playboy himself, seemed to be at a loss for words. Heat crackled between them and Rylan’s skin felt like it was on fire, waiting for his next move.
“I was wondering,” he said, finally capturing her gaze, “if maybe you wouldn’t mind, um…going out with me again. If you want.”
That was it. The last straw. She couldn’t hold back for another second. In one swift movement, she grabbed his face with her hands and pulled him into a passionate, desperate kiss.
The moment their lips touched, he knew there’d be no stopping them.
The warmth of her mouth remained as alluring as he remembered it to be, as did the curves of her tapered waist. With one hand resting on her left hip, his fingers digging into her thigh, he used the other one to reach behind her. His fingers pushed the door open, and they spilled into the room together.
Closing the door with the heel of his boot, he spun Rylan around and pinned her against it. The dry crack of her body hitting the wood ignited something inside him. His tongue parted her lips, her delicious taste flooding him, and a scorching heat took residence right between his legs. With his heart thumping at a thousand miles an hour, he willingly shut down the rational part of his brain, allowing his best instincts—as well as his worst—to take over.
Fuck, I missed this, he thought, relishing the closeness of their bodies. As she melted into his embrace, her breasts pressed against his chest, and he felt himself stiffen. Boiling blood rushed down his body and his cock thickened at once, his flesh straining against the fabric of his pants. He was rock hard, all of his desire and excitement pooling in his hardness.
For a man who never considered deviating from his rules, he was more than willing to throw them aside now. Rylan was just too precious for him to lock her inside a box labeled as one-night-stand-only. Her presence ignited hellfire inside him, her voice made the hair on his neck stand up on end, and her gaze never failed to make his dragon stir. When it came to Thrett, she was a tinderbox, one designed to plunge him into the depths of an all-consuming wildfire.
“I want you,” he whispered against her lips, both of his hands now resting on her hips. His overstretched fingers went down to the hemline of her dress, brushing against the naked skin right above her knees, and she moaned softly. Despite the wall she had erected between them—one that she had refused to tear down no matter what—she seemed to want him just as much as he wanted her. “I need you.”
Threading his fingers into her auburn hair, he brought his lips down to her neck, gently nibbling at her tender flesh. She