“I definitely would not.” He took both her hands in his and started walking backward, bringing her along with him. In the dim light, his eyes looked strangely ethereal, and the lines of his face were sharper. More exaggerated. “You’re far more interesting than you give yourself credit for.”
“I’d rather be…”
Beautiful. Successful. Formidable. Powerful.
Free.
“Something else,” she said.
“You can be anything and everything you want.” They were in his bedroom now, and he tugged her back toward the spacious bed dominating the room. But he didn’t immediately pull her down or start stripping her.
Instead, Ronan stared right into her eyes as if forcing her to focus and let her mind slow down. He was so beautiful she wanted to pinch herself.
Yeah, because that won’t make you seem like a born-again virgin.
But it was hard for someone like her to accept that good things wouldn’t come with a hefty price tag. Life had taught her that any time she wanted something for herself…well, it always turned out to be out of her budget.
Why wouldn’t Ronan be the same?
So long as you’re not paying with your heart, you’ll be fine.
“Like I said before, I don’t like Instagram wisdom,” she said eventually, her hands coming to the ties holding the keyhole neckline of her camisole together. She tugged on the bow until it loosened, and then she slowly pulled one end to release the knot. “If anyone can do anything, then no level of success has meaning.”
Ronan’s eyes were fixed on the bow as she slowly undid it, opening the neckline of her top more to expose the press of her cleavage. She’d worn her favorite bra—the one with turquoise lace and hints of gold that she saved for when she needed an extra boost of confidence. And it appeared to work its magic on Ronan as well.
“I’m not saying that anyone can do anything; I’m saying you can do anything. Because you’re not average, Audrey.”
Her breath stuttered in the back of her throat. “You don’t have to flatter me, Ronan. I’m already here.”
“I want you to see even a sliver of the potential you have. I want you to see a speck of what I see when I look at you.” He fingered the lengths of her bow, which now hung loose and useless. “I don’t know whether you’re afraid or if you really are blind to it, but I see, Audrey. I see all of you.”
This wasn’t what she came here for. She didn’t want Ronan touching her soul as well as her body, because that was a path that she couldn’t go down. Feeling something for him would be her undoing. Emotions would be her undoing.
This was about sex. Pleasure. Release.
Nothing more.
Even as she drew the lines in her mind, there was a niggling voice in the back of her brain—a whisper of discontent, telling her she was lying to herself. But sometimes lies were necessary for survival, right? Because Audrey told herself that everything would turn out okay on a daily basis, even though she knew that at any moment it could all come crumbling down.
Please don’t make me crumble.
“You can see more of me,” she whispered as she drew the hem of her top up and over her head. “Every last inch.”
Her hands then went to her jeans, and she popped the button slowly. In the quiet, almost blotted out by the soft drumming of rain, was Ronan’s breath. His eyes looked dark, his jaw tight, as he watched her undress. She toed off her sneakers, and then her jeans hit the floor. Stepping out of the pile, she brought her hands behind her back and released the clasp on her bra.
It felt good to shed everything. To take it back to the physical.
She didn’t feel worried about being naked in front of Ronan—curves and dimples and jiggles and all. He’d never made her feel anything but beautiful. Audrey dropped her bra to the ground and then hooked her fingers into the waistband of her panties, pulling them down, down, down.
“Turn for me,” he said with a husky voice.
Audrey did as she was told, taking her time to give him access to every angle. Then she ran her fingers through her hair, letting it filter down over her shoulders and her breasts and back.
“Touch me, Ronan,” she said. Her mouth was dry, anticipation making her heart thump like a marching band drum in her chest. “I want your hands on me.”