Page 75 of Trust Fund Baby

I wanted to hate him with every fiber of my being, to push him away and flee before I was once again lost in him. But reckless and wanting, my lips parted for him, a decision my body made before my mind could comprehend it.

It was at that moment I understood how simple it would be to vanish within him and be consumed by those familiar feelings again. Too easy. My chest heaved as I tore my mouth from his, my hands still tangled in his shirt.

As my breath caught, I whispered, “I can’t,” even though my trembling body screamed a different answer.

Before my words could fully escape, Sebastian’s mouth claimed mine once more, the kiss more urgent this time. My knees gave way, and his arms were around me, lifting me as though I were weightless.

The next thing I knew, I was on the corner of the sink, the cold porcelain biting against the back of my thighs. He pressed in close, the scent of his cologne filling my nostrils as his mouth devoured mine. His kiss was demanding, relentless, every brush of his lips staking a claim I had no business letting him have.

I clutched at him helplessly, my fingers tangling in his soft hair as I pulled him closer. His tongue danced with mine, a reckless heat spreading through me as I leaned into him. The door slammed with a muffled clang, sealing us in a suffocating silence, isolated from the world outside.

His hand slid down, gripping my thigh and pulling me against him. I could feel the heat radiating from his body, his cock already hard as he pressed against me.

For a breathless moment, I was right there on the precipice of giving in to what I wanted.

And then it hit me. The danger of it. The impossibility of it. What it would mean if I didn’t stop. If I let him in again, and he hurt me worse than he’d ever done before. I couldn’t let that happen.

With a strangled sound, I shoved at his chest, tearing my mouth from his. My breaths came ragged, my lips bruised, my whole body trembling.

“I—” My voice broke. I couldn’t finish. Couldn’t stay.

I slid off the sink before he could catch me, before my body betrayed me again. The air felt cold without him, my legs unsteady as I forced myself toward the door. My hand fumbled with the handle, and then I was gone, out into the hallway, the heat of him still burning on my skin.

With a glance back, I saw Sebastian, frozen, his chest rising and falling rapidly. He stared after me but didn’t move.

“Fuck,” I heard him mutter under his breath, but I didn’t turn around. I didn’t stop and didn’t look back again as I stumbled along the open hallway.

The bar’s chilly air conditioning following the stuffy bathroom stall and the heat of Sebastian’s body shocked me, bringing me back to reality.

I leaned against the wall, shut my eyes, and attempted to regulate my breathing. Even now, my lips were tingling from his kiss, and my body was alive with the memory of his hands, his weight against me, and his scorching closeness.

As I went back to where we’d been sitting, Hallie seemed to notice something in my expression. She started to leave her conversation with James, but I stopped her. My hands shook so badly that I couldn’t look composed, and her gaze only grew more worried.

“Roxie, are you okay?” she asked softly once I was close enough.

I forced a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “I’m fine,” I said, though even I knew it was a lie. Fine was a word that felt impossible to own right now.

Nate DeMarco was still perched on the barstool I’d left him on, nursing a drink he’d ordered in my absence. His eyes caught mine as I approached, and a smile spread across his lips at the sight of me.

“Do you want me to order you another drink?” he asked.

Initially, I was just flirting with him to annoy Sebastian, and sure, Nate might be a nice enough person, but there was no chance I was going to stay here any longer. Not with Sebastian likely to reappear at any second.

“I think I’m going to head out for the evening,” I told him.

“Could I at least have your number?” Nate asked, with sincerity in his warm brown eyes. Such a difference from Sebastian’s green ones. “I would love to take you to dinner.”

I reached for a napkin and rooted for a pen in my purse to scribble down my number. It was quicker for me to simply give in to his request rather than politely decline him, so I could get out of here as soon as possible.

Tonight, I just needed to get home and forget the feeling of Sebastian Whittaker’s hands on my body. The way his lips felt on mine. Because as much as I wanted him, wanted to be consumed by how I felt about him, I didn’t trust him. And without trust, there was no hope for us at all.

28

Seb

The gym smelled of salt and iron—James’s doing, not mine. He’d dragged me here before the city had even woken up, claiming we both needed “discipline” in our lives. Personally, I thought I needed sleep, but I wasn’t about to argue while he barked at me to hold the plank for another thirty seconds.

When we finally collapsed against the padded wall, sweat slicked my back and my lungs burned. James tossed me a bottle of water and gave me a sidelong look.