The truth hit her. She swallowed—hard. Oh god... “You’re serious. All these years, you’ve wanted...” She gaped at him, trying to reconcile everything she thought she knew with the dark thunder of desire pounding across his face, charging up the air between them. “Me?”
“Every fucking hour of every goddamn day. Do you have any idea how insane I was when I found out you’d given your virginity to that piece of shit, Zak? He won’t be back. Ever. I made sure of it.” Something dangerous and lethal flashed in his eyes.
Pieces of the puzzle started snapping together. “I know you’ve made everyone who ever touched me go away.”
“That’s right. And I always will. I’ve wanted you almost since I took you in that hot August night six years ago. You weren’t quiet eighteen yet, and I called myself every name in the book: pervert, pedophile, dumb fuck. None of it stopped me from wanting you.”
God, she didn’t understand this complicated man. “I’ve been here all this time. I’m not a teenager anymore.”
“I noticed. When you grew up on me and blossomed into the incredible woman you are now…” He stopped and trailed his thumb over her bottom lip.
Raine found it hard to breathe. His information was almost more than she could absorb. Reconciling it in her head was like suddenly hearing that the sky wasn’t actually blue.
He. Wanted. Her. The shock of that just kept rolling through her system. After hiding it for years, why admit how he felt now? Because he was drunk enough to finally be honest?
The way his thumb kept brushing her lip and his stare lasered in on her mouth made her insides jumpy, her folds turn damp.
“Wait. You’ve always treated me like a child.” Remembering all the hurt and anger, she jerked out of his embrace. “Like your sister. What’s changed? Did you watch Liam fuck my ass and suddenly decide I’m grown up and, therefore, fair game?”
“You’ve been grown up in my eyes since you turned eighteen. In some ways, even before then. As for Liam…” He curled his lip in a condescending sneer. “He can’t handle you. You’re going to walk all over him, precious. You need a strong Dom who can keep you under his thumb and your sexy ass in line. I’m the only one who could ever give you those boundaries you crave. Don’t kid yourself. He’ll be a fun play toy, but that’s all. You’ll always hunger for me to be firm with you and push your limits.”
Oh, she understood now. Same song, different verse. “Before, you told me that I wasn’t mature enough, good enough, strong enough. Now you’re going to dangle that cock in front of me because I’m taken, so I still can’t have you. Then what’s the point to this dazzling truth?” she spit at him. “You’re never going to touch me. Malign Liam if it makes you feel better, but he’s tender and wonderful and has the guts to treat me like a woman.”
She stalked over to the bar, grabbed the bottle, and guzzled from it. The tequila burned going down, and she welcomed the fire as she slammed the bottle aside and fastened her stare on him again. Her blood sang. Her body buzzed, and not for anything would she admit that to him. “And you never will. So take your boundaries and shove them up your ass.”
Before she could draw in another breath, he pursued her, pressing his hot body against hers. His bare chest heaved and his lips were drawn in a tight, angry line.
He glared down into her eyes. “I never said anything like that. You’re the one who conjured up self-depreciating reasons, not me. If I were going to dangle my cock in your face, I’d sure as fuck instruct you how to suck it. Trust me, it’s not my ass that’s going to get reamed, and it’s not boundaries I’ll be shoving up yours.”
Grinding his heated arousal against her, he closed his eyes and moaned, making her shake all over. When he opened them again, she saw savage hunger blazing there. “Hammer, I…”
“Not another fucking word, Raine.”
He slanted his mouth over hers, his lips seizing her own, taking, claiming, demanding everything from her. Shock pinged through her. Raine’s head spun. Her heart roared. Her pussy wept. And she opened her lips to him, couldn’t help but kiss him back.
He grabbed handfuls of Liam’s robe in his big fists and dragged her even closer. She hadn’t known that was possible, but every inch of her was covered by him. His brutal grip parted the silk, and she felt nothing but his trousers against her swelling folds as he all but inhaled her, stabbing his way into her mouth like he owned her.
Raine melted, her head swimming, dizzy. She moaned and opened wider to him, arching against him in a silent pleading for more, just like she always had...