Risking the Crown (The Crown 2)

I reached forward, cupping her cheeks between my palms, and brought my lips down over hers with sudden force. She moaned with surprise, but I moved my mouth until I felt the slight part between her lips and slipped my tongue inside, twisting and flicking, sucking and tasting. The kiss was filled with lime and the sweetness of the rum. Her bag crashed to the floor when her arms wrapped around my neck. My hand slid to her lower back, making a leisurely path to her bottom. I gripped it roughly in my hand.

“Oh God,” Ava whimpered.

“I want to take you upstairs.” It wasn’t a question.

I didn’t give a shit if it was like a sauna in here. I wanted Ava. I wanted to make her mine all over again. I wanted her so badly I could taste it.

Her eyes lifted toward me for the first time since I planted that kiss on her lips. We could both savor the flavor of the drink lingering on our tongues. I still had her firm ass in my hands. I wasn’t letting go.

Her body went rigid in my arms. She flattened her palms against my ribs, pressing her fingertips into my skin.

I knew what was coming before she even said it.

“Bloody hell, Ava.” I sighed.

“Thanks for the interview.”

“Why don’t you thank me in the morning, over brekkie?” I winked.

“Like last time?” The anger in her voice flared again.

She wasn’t going to let me forget I ran out of my hotel room like a roo on fire. I couldn’t tell her the real reason. I couldn’t tell her how a night like that affected me.

I had to clear my head. I had to breathe. I had to get ready for the final qualifying swim. If I had spent another second tangled up with her I would have lost. Everything about her was intoxicating and exotic. How the hell could I stay when my legacy was on the line?

I looked like a dick in her eyes when I snuck out before she awakened. I had hit the pool that morning, trying to push through the water like a champion and not a man with his head out of the game. It wasn’t in the pool—it was back in that hotel room with a sleeping Ava.

“Won’t happen again.” I eyed her. “Aussie word.” I held up my hand.

She crossed her arms. “It doesn’t matter. There’s nothing you could do or say to get me to make that mistake again.” She collected her bag from the floor. “Thanks for the interview. I’m sorry if you thought things were going in a different direction. I’ve got to go. I’ll do my best to get your story in front of my boss.”

She turned for the staircase.

I shoved my hands in my pockets. My good-time-girl just walked away. Fuck.

6

Ava

I remained calm all the way until the third floor, but once I was in my room I felt my knees shaking and stomach rolling. I rattled the chain lock into place before throwing myself on the bed with a gro

an. My lips felt chapped from the rough kiss. It was an amazing, earth-shattering, forget my name kind of kiss.

Everything about it was like the first time. The heat. The fire. The passion.

He could be with me right now. Taking his time to undress me. Rubbing his strong hands across my body. Whispering all the things he wanted to do to me. But I rejected him in the lobby before things were any more out of control.

I closed my eyes. This was an impossible situation.

I knew before I touched down Blaine would be in Rio. The entire world knew he would be here. But I never thought our paths would cross. With ten thousand athletes in the city we never should have run into each other. The odds were in my favor I would never set eyes on that sex machine again.

I wasn’t covering swimming and I knew better than to go near the aquatics center. But I wasn’t stupid enough to think I could coast through the games without hearing his name every other second.

The Americans hated how Blaine had stolen the spotlight from their team, but it didn’t stop us from covering him on every sports show and news magazine. The world had fallen in love with his good looks and charming grin.

The fact that he had broken every world record and was on course to break his own during the games made the interest in him more intense.

And I was sitting on the biggest story. Blaine Crews needed to swim. And there was nowhere for him to go. No pool. No lap lane. No place for the world’s greatest swimmer.