The world has one more person in it tonight, and somehow that makes the thought of going home to my empty apartment feel lonely. I could go back to the office, but that holds little appeal either.
“I should,” I say, haltingly, wanting only the man standing in front of me.
“But you don’t.” Sebastián steps toward me quickly, as if the band holding him back has been suddenly severed by an invisible force.
I blink and the distance between us is gone, Sebastián standing so close to me that his warmth permeates my skin before we even touch.
And then we do.
His chin dips, his forefinger and thumb grabbing hold of my face and tilting my head to the perfect angle, our eyes meeting in an electrified clash. I take a breath just before my senses come alive with the flavor of tequila that tastes so much better on Sebastián’s tongue than in any shot glass. Fragrant and intoxicating.
I moan as his hand curves around my jaw, his fingers pushing into the hair at the back of my neck and then moving upward, loosening the tight knot and setting it free. He growls something unintelligible against my lips, grabbing mounds of my hair within his fists, yanking just hard enough to pull a surprised gasp from my lungs.
Sebastián pulls away, just far enough to meet my eyes, and whatever he sees in mine makes him smile. It pulls at only one corner of his mouth. A movement filled with warmth and need. And … something else. Something that makes me think Sebastián doesn’t want to want me. Or, more likely, it’s that he knows my loyalty lies with another man—Damon King—and always will.
The power struggle and secrets between us are real. But so is the lust heating our blood like a charged wire.
Before I can come to my senses, Sebastián pushes me up against the wall just behind me, the bulge in his trousers obvious as his mouth trails wet kisses along my neck. His teeth scrape my skin, biting down on the tender flesh and sending a flood of heat pulsing between my quivering thighs.
A low, needy moan leaves my lips, proof that the last vestige of my resistance has been demolished under Sebastián’s less than gentle onslaught.
“Uptight, always-in-control Finley likes it rough, huh?” His voice is a gritty rasp, his breath a caress against my collarbone.
He’s right. I like to lose myself in sex. To be nothing like the woman I am at work. Surrounded by computers and colleagues, I am poised and confident. I can threaten men without flinching, watch them tortured without blinking an eye. I am the ultimate hard ass.
Behind closed doors, however, I prefer to cede control to a man capable of controlling me.
But very few men have ever been able to do that. And all of those were one-off experiences. With a professional.
I’m not proud. But I’m not ashamed either.
I deserve great sex. But I’ve never gotten it from any of the casual hook-ups I’ve met at a bar.
Sebastián Cruz is pushing all of my buttons. It’s been a long time. Too long. And my willpower to resist him is …
Gone.
My hips buck upward of their own accord, my arms wrapping around Sebastián’s neck as he palms my breast, his fingers pinching my nipples through the thin lace of my bra.
Jesus. Why are we still wearing clothes?
As if reading my mind, Sebastián yanks at the hem of my shirt. It is tucked into the waistband of my skirt, but the silk slides up easily. His hands are impatient as he follows the neckline to the base of my spine, finding the button that marks the top of the keyhole back. There is a sharp sound as the small mother of pearl disc flies off, hitting the wall. Sebastián could shred my clothes for all I care.
Finally, my shirt is pulled over my head, the cool air of his apartment hitting my overheated skin like a slap. But it’s not enough. I need to be naked. I need Sebastián to be naked. I need us to be skin to skin.
I open my mouth to tell him to hurry, but before I can get a word out, I feel his hand clamp down over my neck, pressing hard just below my jaw.
Cutting off my air supply.
“No,” he growls. “You don’t get to set the rules or the pace. Tonight, you are mine.”
I have no breath to answer, but it doesn’t matter. Sebastián captures my mouth in a fierce kiss, his tongue sweeping in and exploring every dark crevice.
I kiss him back as my head swims, lack of oxygen stealing my composure and leaving me dizzy. Panic sends a flood of adrenaline through my bloodstream. My pulse is racing, my heart threatening to break free of my ribcage.
Just as I’m about to struggle, he releases me.
The air I suck in is Sebastián’s air. The breath I gulp down, pulling it deep into my lungs, is Sebastián’s breath.