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“What are you doing?”
“Hold on to me for dear life,” he says, his arms out, biceps and shoulders bulking and eager to hold me while a playful twinkle dances in his eyes, a smile spreading across his lips.
“Wait, what?”
He scoops me up off my feet. I’m weightless in his arms. This man is something else, and I can’t help but giggle like a flushed teenager as I put my arms around his neck. “Like this, right?” I ask, jokingly.
“Is this how you hold on for dear life? Try harder,” he says.
I tighten my grip and it brings me closer to his face, closer to his lips.
Time stands still, his fingers digging into my flesh. I breathe him in. Our eyes are locked on one another and I forget to breathe.
“Like this?” I ask again, quieter this time.
He kisses me then, and every emotion that I’ve held back, every thought and dirty idea, every sinful figment of my imagination, it all unravels like a ball of yarn as Eric’s mouth commands me into submission.
I moan against his lips, our tongues clashing and swirling in heated conflict.
I slide from his arms and lean into him while he hugs me tightly against his chest, deepening the kiss. I keep my arms locked around his neck, my breasts pressed into his rippling pecs. His hot breath tickles my lips, his taste making me drunk and hazy.
We’ve lost control. It’s sheer madness yet neither one of us can find the strength to stop.
“Oh, wow,” I mumble as I take a deep breath. I don’t know how I managed to pull back, but I did. My body is close to melting, my throat dry and my core tingling. Liquid heat has already pooled between my legs, and I don’t know what to do with myself. “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not,” Eric replies with a cool grin. His breath is ragged, his chest rising with every inhale. “In fact, I’m down for round two. I think we can do better.”
“Oh no, this is wrong,” I manage, panic rushing to take over and ruin everything. “No, you’ve been nothing but kind and welcoming, helpful and… no, I can’t. I don’t want you thinking that I’m taking advantage.”
“Halle, wait—”
It’s too late. I’m already rushing up the stairs and straight to my room, my heart thudding painfully in the merciless clutches of anxiety. Where did the bubble burst, exactly? Have we been struggling with this sexual tension from the moment we met?
It doesn’t even matter.
I’ve got two kids to take care of, an abusive ex-husband to keep hiding from, and a new life to rebuild from the ground up. Again. I don’t have the energy or the bandwidth for something like this. And even if I do let Eric in, the day will inevitably come when I will have to take Luna and Sammy, and leave. It’ll be better and safer for everyone. Colby has a way of always finding me, of hunting me down and haunting me.
I need to focus.
3
Eric
Icouldn’t help myself. Halle was surprisingly responsive, though. My instincts guided me to her lips and she didn’t see it coming. She wasn’t ready for it.
Her body screams for me and she doesn’t even know it yet.
Maybe I should’ve given her more time to settle in first. Who are we both kidding, though? Her eyes beckon me. Her lips part slowly, begging for mine whenever I get close. Just remembering that kiss stirs things within.
“Earth to Eric,” Wyatt drags me back into the real world.
“I’m here, I’m here,” I promptly reply.
Chase and Wyatt know about the kiss. We’re still processing the whole thing. Then again, we process pretty much everything together. Ever since we were kids, my brothers and I have shared every detail, every aspect of our lives, mainly because we are considerably stronger and better together.
We went to war together. We share women. Ideas. Dreams. The house we live in. It comes naturally to us, though few people would understand.
“No, you’re not. Not really,” Chase chuckles dryly. “Get your head out of the gutter for a second. This is serious.”
