Alex nods before dropping down and reaching for my blanket to cover me up, only he glances up at me, his face barely an inch from the apex of my thighs, and he groans low, taking me in. All I’d need to do is hook my knee over his shoulder and we’d both be goners. Neither one of us would be willing to say no at that point.

  “Fucking hell,” he mutters, his darkening gaze sweeping over my body before coming back up to meet my heated stare. “You’re so fucking gorgeous, it hurts.”

  “Touch me, Alex,” I murmur.

  He visibly swallows. “Say my name again.”

  “Alex,” I say, lowering my tone. “Touch me before I’m forced to take matters into my own hands again, and I swear, I won’t even picture you while I come.”

  He clenches his jaw, his eyes now jet-black as he rises back to his feet. “When I finally touch you, it’ll be because the anticipation is physically killing you, when you can’t fucking breathe another second without feeling my hands on your hot-as-fuck body,” he growls. “You told me you want a man who’s going to respect you, to know when to push your limits and when to hold back. You said you’re not going to be an easy screw, and I don’t want you to be. I want to work for it, Kyah, because after I do, it’ll feel so much better.”

  With that, Alex pulls the blanket up around my shoulders, fixing it back into position as I simply gape at him, not knowing how to handle his kind of raw intensity, but shit, I think I’m already addicted to it. One minute he’s hot and the next, he’s even hotter.

  “Ten a.m.,” he says, holding my stare. “And you better be ready.” Then not a moment later, I’m standing right where he was, watching as he walks out of my door, leaving me wondering what the fuck just happened.

  It takes almost an hour for me to wrap my head around everything before I realize this is really happening. I’ve somehow agreed to let Alex take me out this morning. Though perhaps agree isn’t the right word for it. I think it was more like shock and not knowing how to tell him no, but honestly, I don’t think I wanted to tell him no.

  The idea of getting to know him intrigues me. There’s something so dominant and yet sweet about him. He’s not like the guys I’m used to dealing with. He knows what he wants and he’s not afraid to go after it.

  On the other hand, Crew has tiptoed around the topic for six years, stringing me along only to get what he wanted and then treat me like a possession. And Viper . . . I have no idea what’s happening with him, but he’s insane if he thinks I’m ever going to end up with him. Though perhaps that’s my fault for leading him on. It’s not as though I do much to deter his advances. I think when it comes down to it, I kinda like Viper’s attention. I like the security he could offer me, and when it comes to sex, I know we would be compatible, but as far as emotions run, that’s about it. I don’t think Viper is capable of falling in love, and despite not being ready for anything like that, I still hope that one day I can find that all-consuming, fireworks type of love. Crew and Viper . . . I’m never going to get that with them.

  Still having a few hours before Alex is due to screw with my head again, I find a sketchpad and start working on the design for Spider’s chest, Viper’s latest project, and quickly get lost in what I’m doing. Then all too soon, I’m looking up at the clock and realizing I’m almost late.

  Shit. I bet a little tardiness wouldn’t go down well with a guy like Alex. I bet he’s the type to hand out kinky punishments. Though why the hell does that excite me so much? The idea of his hand closing around my throat, squeezing just a little . . . goddamn. I’ve never had a man do that before and can’t even begin to understand why I would want to now, but I do. Only with him though.

  I’d never trust Crew to do that, not now. I haven’t spoken to him about his texts or the way he used that night together as a weapon against Viper, but he’s broken my trust, and I really don’t know how to feel about it.

  Realizing I’m distracted again. I hurry off the couch and fly into the bathroom before quickly hurrying through a shower, and when I’m confident I don’t smell like a bar, I turn off the taps and get my ass ready, wanting to put just a little extra effort in.

  I don’t think I’ve ever been on a morning date before. It’s only ever been after-work hook ups and shitty cheap dinner dates that generally ended with an expectation that I’d put out, reminding me that most of the time, men are assholes.

  After quickly drying and straightening my hair, I hurry through my makeup while keeping my eye on the time. Something tells me that Alex isn’t going to be even a second late, and what’s more, I don’t want to be late for him.

  Once I’m finally ready, I make my way to my front door with exactly a minute and a half to spare and as I wait impatiently, I pull my phone out and send off a quick text to Nat, making sure she made it home okay.

  Kyah - Alive?

  Nat - Hardly. My knees have never shook like that before. I’m just about home but haven’t slept yet. I’ll call you tonight and tell you all about it. But damn, that Sullivan! Holy shit! I think he just knocked Mark out of the top spot for best screw of the year.

  I gape at my phone, my brows arched. Best screw of the year. Shit. Sullivan should be proud. Nat doesn’t offer up titles like that to just anybody. He must have a magical tongue personally gifted to him by a raunchy sex demon found only in the deepest pits of hell. Though if that’s the case, I sure hope I get to live out eternity with that demon. I mean, surely I’m going to hell anyway, so I hope I get to enjoy it.

  Glancing up from my phone, I realize I have all of ten seconds left and I creep in closer to my door, leaning in to peek through the peephole, and the second it ticks over to ten a.m., I see Alex’s door open. My mouth waters taking him in. He always looks so good and I can only imagine just how good he smells. He’s like the perfect snack, and I can’t wait to devour him, but then, I can’t stop thinking about what he said—not touching me until he’s worked for it, building the anticipation, and damn it, I think he’s right because when he finally takes me, I know it’s going to be explosive.

  My hand curls around the doorknob, and just as Alex steps forward to knock, I open the door, pulling it wide so that we stand face to face, each of us appraising the other as though we both haven’t got a damn clue how the hell this is supposed to go down. “Punctual,” he states, a smirk playing on his lips.

  “Arrogant,” I throw back.

  His eyes glisten with silent laughter. “You’re confusing confidence with arrogance,” he tells me. “It doesn’t make me arrogant for knowing what the fuck I want.”

  “And I’m assuming that’s me?”

  “Damn straight it is,” he says. “Now, are we going to stand in the hallway all morning, or are you going to let me take you out?”

  I laugh and step out into the hallway, pulling my door closed and making sure to lock up behind me. “I’m assuming I don’t have a choice in the matter, Mr. I Don’t Give A Shit About Your Rules.”

  “I’m glad you’re finally learning,” he murmurs, placing his hand on my lower back and leading me toward the stairwell. We fall into easy conversation, and I find that the second sex is off the table and neither of us are trying to get the other on their knees, everything becomes so simple.

  He’s a flirt with a cocky smile that makes my stomach do flip-flops, turning me into a giddy teenager who’s talking to her crush for the very first time, and I absolutely love it. But I’m not going to lie, when he throws me up against the wall and that dominant streak comes out to play, I love that too.

  Alex is the perfect gentleman, offering me his arm as we make our way down the stairwell and holding the door open for me as we step out into the street. “I’m assuming you had a big night,” he asks.

  “A little too big,” I admit as he leads me down the street. “My friend who I was meeting was already a few drinks deep when I got there, and I insisted that I try and catch up with her. But I should have known better. No one can catch up with Nat, especially when she’s on a roll.”

  “She sounds like trouble.”

  “She is. The best kind though,” I laugh, glancing up at him. “She’s intrigued by you.”

  His brows furrow, and he glances down at me. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asks. “You’ve been telling your friends about me?”

  “Don’t get ahead of yourself. I didn’t paint you in a very good light,” I tease. “As far as Nat’s concerned, you’re my pushy neighbor who doesn’t like to take no for an answer.”

  Alex smirks and curls his arm around my waist, pulling me into his side as he tips his head down toward me, his breath tickling my neck. “You’re telling me that you didn’t tell your best friend how your body shudders every time I touch you or how you whimper and your knees go weak when I pin you against the wall with a burning need pulsing through your body, so fucking desperate for more?”

  I swallow hard, needing to clench my thighs as we continue walking down the street. “Don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, my raspy tone giving me away.

  Alex laughs, his grip tightening around my waist. “You’re a fucking terrible liar, Kyah.”

  “Perhaps,” I say, that giddiness returning as a wide smile stretches across my face. “But I think you like that about me.”

  “You’re damn fucking right, I do.”

  We arrive at a small café after a short ten-minute walk, and by the time Alex is pulling out a chair for me, I already know that this guy is going to be important to me. He’s not going to be a quick screw that I’ll use for a good time, he’s going to be something so much more, I’m just not quite sure what yet.

  He’s cocky and smart, charming and flirty, everything that makes my heart race, and the more time I spend with him, the more intense the anticipation builds. I’ve barely spent more than a handful of minutes with this guy so far, but already I’m starting to wonder if I was wrong about being a relationship kind of girl.

  Alex makes me want something more, makes me want to explore something I’ve never explored before, and honestly, that scares the shit out of me, so much more than the thought of potentially starting something with either Crew or Viper.

  My hands shake when I’m around him, and I turn into a nervous bundle of excitement. When his hand skims past my waist, I get goosebumps, and when his lips twist into that delicious cocky smile, I swear I could die right here in the middle of the busy Brooklyn café.

  But this is new—too new—and when it comes down to it, I don’t know shit about this guy. He could be a serial killer for all I know. I can’t rush into it. I need to keep myself guarded while I try and figure out what the hell this burning insanity is between us. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have fun while we’re working it out.

  13

  KYAH

  “I don’t think I know a damn thing about you,” I say as Alex leads me back toward our apartment complex, a strange disappointment firing through the pit of my stomach, realizing our breakfast date is almost over.

  “There’s not really much to know,” he tells me, his hand resting in the back pocket of my jeans.

  “I’ll be the judge of that,” I tell him. “Where’d you grow up?”

  “Everywhere,” he says as we reach our building and he hashes in the passcode. “I was a bit of a troubled kid. My mom abandoned me at seven, and I jumped around foster homes until I enlisted with the Marines at eighteen.”

  “Shit, that sounds rough,” I say as he holds the door open for me and waves me in, devastation weighing on my chest, picturing Alex as a seven-year-old boy being abandoned by his mother. “I’m sorry you had to go through that. I never had a great relationship with my mother, but I couldn’t imagine how horrible it must have been to be abandoned at only seven.”

  “It’s fine,” he murmurs. “It was a long time ago.”

  “Have you seen her since then?”

  “Nah, I was an angry kid and didn’t want anything to do with her, and by the time I was old enough to understand that perhaps there might have been a reason apart from the fact she just didn’t love me enough, it was already too late.”

  My brows furrow, not following, and he’s quick to fill in the blanks. “She died a few years back, during my first tour,” he explains. “Drug overdose.”

  “Shit. I’m sorry.”

  “You don’t need to be sorry, Mace,” he says as we make our way up the stairs. “She was nothing to me. Just some stranger who birthed me and didn’t care enough about the son she brought into the world.”

  “Yeah, I get that, but it doesn’t change the fact that it must have really sucked for you. Jumping from foster home to foster home couldn’t have been easy.”

  “I don’t want you feeling sorry for me, Kyah. It was shit, and I had more than my fair share of run-ins with my foster parents, but I grew up and got over it. The military gave me the discipline I needed, and then I was able to make a life for myself,” he tells me. “And considering it’s brought me right here to meet you, maybe it was all worth it.”

  My cheeks flush like a goddamn teenage girl, and as I try to smother the ridiculous smile cutting across my face, we reach the landing on the third floor. “Has anybody ever told you that you’re a shameless flirt?” I ask, only his strong arm shoots out in front of me like a steel bar, stopping me in my tracks. “What’s—”

  “I know you locked your door,” Alex says, his brows furrowed as he cuts me off.

  My gaze shoots down the long hallway toward my apartment, and a sharp gasp tears from the back of my throat, finding my door hasn’t just been pushed open, but kicked in, breaking right through the locks. “What the hell?” I mutter, creeping toward my apartment, only Alex holds me back, his big hand curling around my elbow.

  “Stay here,” he says, his whole body going rigid. “I’ll check it out.”

  Not wanting to argue, I remain by my door as Alex slips inside my apartment, nervously peering in and hoping like hell whoever did this is already long gone. Hell, I’m just glad I wasn’t here when this asshole decided to break in. Who knows what they might have been looking for.

  I track Alex across my apartment, watching as he moves around my living room and kitchen, checking inside my bathroom and then moving into my bedroom. I hear as he opens my closet and even drops down to look under my bed, and when he’s finally done, he strides back out of my bedroom. “It’s clear,” he calls out to me. “Whoever broke in is gone.”

  Relief surges through my body, and I creep into my apartment, immediately getting hit with a familiar cologne as I glance over the broken door, wondering how the hell I’m going to fix this. I don’t know the first thing about hanging doors. Hell, I don’t even know who I’m supposed to call, let alone where I’m supposed to get a new door from.

  Moving into my living room, I glance around, making sure nothing is missing, and from what I can tell, everything is right where it was when I left, which means the asshole who stormed in here wasn’t looking to raid my apartment, he was looking for me.

  Anger bubbles through my veins, and I clench my jaw, knowing exactly who’s responsible for this, and considering the slew of jealous texts and missed calls I’ve been dodging for the past fourteen hours, I think it’s about time Crew and I have a little talk.

  Alex walks right up to me, a smirk playing on his lips. “I don’t think anything’s missing,” he says. “But I did find something in your room.”

  My brows furrow, and I look up at him, meeting his stare as fear begins pounding through my veins, my mind immediately taking me to the worst-case scenario. Crew is an asshole at the best of times, and he’s never done anything to make me question him, but this new crazed version of him . . . I don’t know what he’s capable of, and to be completely honest, it scares the crap out of me.

  I stare up at Alex with wide eyes, waiting for him to break the news, my heart pounding so hard I fear I could collapse, but then he pulls his hand out from behind his back, my giant dildo braced between his fingers as a starved smirk crosses his ruggedly handsome face. “Surely this doesn’t fit, Mace.”

  Humiliation booms through me, and I lunge for the dildo, but Alex is way too fast, tearing it back out of my grasp. “Seriously, though. This has gotta be a joke, right?” he asks, springing up onto my couch as I barrel toward him, his hand held so high above his tall frame, I don’t stand a chance in hell of getting it back.

  Alex laughs as my cheeks flame, enjoying my humiliation. “This is not happening,” I mutter, mentally scolding myself for not putting it away when I had the chance this morning.

  Alex locks his other arm around my waist, holding me against his strong body. “Just tell me one thing, Mace,” he murmurs, his voice deep and rumbling through his chest. “Is this what you used last night while you were thinking of me?”

  I nod, tilting my head up, figuring there’s no point in being embarrassed about it now. I might as well own it and use it to my advantage. “Uh-huh,” I say, my eyes hooded as we stand on my shitty, cheap couch. “You should have seen how hard I fucked myself with it. Had to take it nice and slow at first. I wasn’t sure if I could stretch that wide, but once my body adjusted, it felt too fucking good to stop.”

  Alex groans, his hand dropping to my ass and giving a firm squeeze as I feel him hardening through the front of his pants. “Show me.”

  I shake my head, a wide grin stretching across my lips. “No chance in hell, Mr. I Won’t Touch You Until The Anticipation Is Killing You. You left me hanging yesterday and this morning, and now it’s your turn to walk out of here feeling the same throbbing ache.”

  “Kyah,” he growls, his eyes flaming with red-hot desire.

  “Take a cold shower,” I tell him, pulling out of his arms. “It’ll help.”

  Alex groans and reluctantly gives in, jumping down from the couch before offering me his hand to help me down, not that I’m so precious that I couldn’t have jumped myself, but I kinda like the way he’s a gentleman. Once I’m firmly on my feet, he leans into me, pressing a soft kiss to my cheek, lingering for a moment too long and making me crave so much more.