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Riley didn’t want to go through the front door. She didn’t want to do this in front of Archer and every other customer in the shop, but Zane was in there, behind the counter, not looking quite genuine as he laughed with his friends. She pushed inside, and Archer grinned.
“Hey. Are you here for the manga after all?” he asked.
She was there for her drawings, but she knew that wasn’t what he meant. She looked at Zane, hoping her expression conveyed how desperately she didn’t want to discuss details. “Technically.”
Zane straightened up. “Hey.”
“I need back that thing you borrowed yesterday.” It took a force of will to keep the tension from her voice. She didn’t care that Zane still had her sketchpad; she didn’t want to talk about it with an audience. Her ego was bruised enough without another dig from Archer. But asking if she and Zane could talk privately would expose as much of her.
“So this is what it’s like to be on the outside of her vague questions.” Archer looked back and forth between them, his tone too light given the tension in the room.
Zane rolled his eyes and turned to Riley, expression softening. “It’s in my apartment.”
“Sounds perfect.” She ignored the way Archer clenched his jaw, and followed Zane upstairs. When he held his apartment door open for her, she brushed past without a word, pacing the short distance between the living room and kitchen areas before turning on her toe and heading in the other direction.
He leaned back against the door, hands in his pockets. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Nothing. Just... Nothing. I need my sketchpad back.”
He kicked away from the door and crossed the room to stand next to the kitchen table, directly in her pacing path. “It’s obviously not nothing.”
“You think?” She came up short, a few feet back. “You really can’t figure it out?” An irritation she hadn’t realized was there surged forward.
He shrugged.
“You can’t just go around telling everyone what I’m trying to do with my art.”
“I won’t, if you ask me not to, but can I at least know why?”
She clenched her teeth. How could he not get it? “Because of conversations like this. Because even though it’s awesome that you support my decision, you don’t understand what it takes. Kenzie and Archer—they don’t get it. Every time they voice their opinion, it’s another layer of doubt, taunting me and telling me I’m making a mistake. It’s more pressure, and doesn’t help that I’m terrified of showing my work to a lot of people.”
The confession was out, and though it left a gnawing in her gut, it also felt good.
The corners of his mouth drooped. “I didn’t realize.”
She sighed. “I adore you—you know it—and I’m flattered you think I’m talented. I’m not sure you’re right, but I like hearing it.”
He closed the distance between them. “You should have told me sooner.”
“I’m telling you now.”
His smile grew hopeful. “I promise I’ll try to keep it all in mind. Are we’re good again?” Zane asked.
She smiled. “Yeah, we’re good again.”
“Which means make-up sex.” The way he raked his gaze over her, lingering on each curve, contradicted his teasing tone.
She couldn’t help her relieved laugh or the flush of heat the idea brought with it. “Technically, I don’t think we get make-up sex without a breakup, and we can’t have one of those.”
“Okay.” He traced a finger down the side of her face. “Then best-friend sex.”
“Is that a thing?”
He brushed his lips along the outside of her ear. “Isn’t it? Besides”—his voice dropped an octave—“I can’t stop thinking about how tight and wet you were last night. How you let me take control.”
The confidence in his words made her skin tingle and her pulse race. “It was pretty amazing.”
“Amazing.” He trailed his fingers up her spine. “I like that. Would you let me do it again?”
Warmth spread deep in her belly. “Maybe.”
“Uh-uh.” He broke contact with her but didn’t pull away. “Yes-or-no question. I know what I want, but I’m not doing it unless you’re sure.”
She swallowed, body humming in anticipation. “I’m positive.”
Her comment was cut short when he nipped her bottom lip with his teeth. He twisted his fingers in her hair and pulled her back to him, crushing his mouth against hers. The smell of sweat mingled with the scents of musk and deodorant. An insistent need grew between her legs.
She covered his other hand and pushed it farther up her thigh, hooking her knee on his hip. Something whispered in the back of her mind that they couldn’t keep toeing this line. She ignored it. This was exactly what she wanted. She needed to be closer to him.
He slid his hand along her ass and up over the curve of her hip, a chuckle rumbling in his chest. He moved his mouth back to her neck, his breath tickling her skin. “During the entire movie, I couldn’t stop daydreaming about how it felt to be buried inside you.”
The confession in his words made her thoughts melt and her skin ache for more. She fumbled for a good comeback, but her attempts failed when he grazed the soft spot between her neck and shoulders and sucked on the sensitive flesh.
He found the seam of her jeans that ran between her legs. She whimpered when he applied pressure with his fingers, rubbing her already wet slit through denim. She dug her nails into his back, squeaked, and shifted her weight until her aching button settled under his touch. He massaged harder, and she ground against his hand, feeling her climax build.
Her breathing came in short gasps, so many points of contact making her light-headed. Disappointment washed over her when he pulled away.
He kissed her pout and then moved to stand behind her, leaving her between him and the table. He brushed the outside of her ear with his lips and rested his hands on her stomach. “You trust me, right?”
She swallowed, mouth dry from anticipation, not doubt. She made sure her answer was clear, without any waver. “Yes.”
His chest was hot against her back. “And you’re okay with wherever this goes?”
“More than okay.” Her heart hammered as a million images of what he meant taunted her simultaneously.
He tugged her shirt over her head and tossed it aside. “No bra. Makes this easier.”
He moved his hands to her breasts and kneaded the soft flesh. She arched her back against him when he finally reached her nipples. He pinched both at the same time and fire spread through every inch of her. He bit the soft skin between her neck and shoulder, sucking in time to her moans. His hard arousal dug into her ass. She wanted more, but she also wanted to stretch the moment out and enjoy the prolonged teasing.
He dropped his hands to her waist, not fumbling at all as he undid her jeans. He hooked his thumbs over the waistband and tugged everything to the floor, leaving her exposed from head to foot, and binding her ankles.
Cool air rushed in around her, and her pulse pounded under her skin. She’d never had a guy take control like this before. She and Zane had talked about it several times. Now that it was actually happening, it made her head fuzzy, and she wanted more.
He cupped her ass before sliding his hand between her legs. “Fuck. You’re so wet.” His growl vibrated through her back.
“I think you had a lot to do with that.” She closed her eyes, focusing on as many sensations as she could.
He massaged her slit, not dipping inside or reaching high enough to brush her clit. He placed his free palm against her spine and pushed her forward.
She did as prompted, bending at the waist and leaning over the table. The hard oak pressed into her chest and aching nipples. He held her in place. Her desire swelled when he dropped his hand from between her legs, and the faint but familiar sound of a zipper greeted her. A few seconds later, she heard the crinkle of cellophane.
He ran his hands from her shoulders down her arms, and pulled her wrists together. He grabbed both hands in one of his and pinned them in the small of her back. He spread her lower lips with his fingers, teasing her entrance.
She couldn’t hold out much longer. “Please.”
“Please what?”
“Fuck me.”
He chuckled. There was no warning before he pushed inside, and her moan echoed off the table at the exquisite pain of being stretched out so much, so fast. He didn’t let up, grunting as he pounded against her. The friction of having her legs together, combined with the spot he hit in her pushed her toward climax hard and fast. Her breathing came in short gasps, and she couldn’t hold back the cries as she came.
She clenched around his cock, his erection buried deep inside her. She gasped when he found her clit at the height of her orgasm, and he rubbed the throbbing button. Part of her wanted to pull away, because it was almost too much, but the pleasure continued to assault her in waves. He slammed inside her, and her nipples scuffed against the wood grain with each new thrust. Another orgasm taunted her, bringing her right to the edge, but not further.
His breathing grew shallower, his thrusts more abbreviated and frantic. “I want you to come for me again.” It was a command, not a request. Instead of teasing, he pressed his fingers roughly against her clit.
The sensation tore a climax from her, and she came hard, tightening around him. He pulled his fingers away from the now too-sensitive region between her legs. His grunts were fast and heavy, ending with the sound she knew so well and loved hearing on the phone. Hearing him get off was even better in person. The pounding slowed and then came to a stop.
He let go of her wrists and moved his hands to her hips as he and she struggled to catch their breath. She pushed up to her elbows, wincing as her legs wobbled and threatened to give out. He collapsed into a nearby chair, and was tender, helping her find her balance, and then tugging her to sit on his lap.
She rested her head on his shoulder and her hand on his chest. His heart hammered against her palm.
He brushed his lips along the outside of her ear, his teasing voice barely a whisper. “I know it’s not why you came over, but it’s definitely a plus.”
She smiled at the gentle sensation and struggled to find her voice. “I can’t believe you did that.” It had never felt so good in her imagination.
He traced his fingers up her bare spine. “It seemed appropriate.”
“I’m not complaining. You should trust your instinct more often.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” A tiny waver lined his laugh. As if he held back... again. Or she was imagining things that weren’t there, when she should be falling into this moment and enjoying it as the flash in time it was.
He tightened his grip around her, and the feeling echoed in her chest, squeezing around her heart. She snuggled closer and tried to blank out her mind.