Rush

“Manhattan right now is a pretty close second.”

Is the flirting session back on?

I glance over at him as silence fills the room. His mouth curves when our eyes meet. “I’m glad you made the trip here, Emma.”

Turning to face him, I murmur, “I’m glad you made the trip too.”

“You’re stunning in that picture.” He dips his chin slightly. “You’re beautiful. You’re so fucking beautiful.”

“So are you,” I say in an unsteady voice.

I don’t care if my words sound foolish. He is beautiful. He’s incredible to look at, but it’s more than that. He’s kind to me. Since I got to New York, he has taken care of me in ways that have touched me even if they were simple gestures from someone trying to help out his best friend’s sister.

With a short step, he’s closer to me. “This is a bad idea.”

The picture frame in my hand falls into his. “What is?”

I can’t take my eyes off of him even though I hear the frame hit the top of the desk with a thud.

Leaning into me, he circles one hand around my waist.

With my heart racing, I close my eyes as he whispers the one word that changes everything.

“ This .”

Chapter 32

Case

I claim her lips in a soft kiss.

I want more. Fuck, do I want more, but I work to control the need that has been building inside of me for days.

Emma steps into my touch. I tighten my grip on her waist when I feel her hand in the back of my hair.

Instinctively, I reach for her neck, tilting her head to just the right angle before I draw my tongue over her bottom lip.

The sound that escapes her ignites a fire in the base of my spine.

I’m hard. My dick is so fucking hard.

Tugging her closer, I groan when she slides her tongue against mine in a greedy kiss.

“Case.” My name has never sounded as sweet as it does at this moment, falling from the lips of this woman.

She feathers kisses over my jaw.

“Emma,” I say in a strangled tone that’s so full of desire it draws her eyes up to meet mine.

“That was…” whatever the fuck she was going to say gets lost in our need for each other.

I hold her against me, deepening the kiss until I feel her hand glide over my cheek.

Her touch is gentle. It’s soothing.

I pull back out of a sheer need to breathe.

Why the fuck is my heart hammering so hard?

“That was the kiss,” she mutters. “The kiss.”

From somewhere inside of me, I find the strength to talk. “The kiss?”

My question brings a flush of pink to her cheeks. “It’s nothing.”

Anything this woman does or says is everything to me. “Tell me,” I insist as I dig my fingers into the soft flesh above the waistband of her jeans.

She brushes her lips over mine in such a tender way that I swear my knees are about to give out.

“That’s a fairytale kiss,” she half-laughs.

I won’t laugh because I see caution in her eyes. I can feel hesitation in the movement of her fingers over my chin. She’s confessing something personal to me. “What does that mean?”

I slide my fingers over her cheek. I want her to feel safe with me.

Her gaze drops to my lips. “It’s the kind of kiss you only see in the movies.”

I take her mouth again in a slow kiss that ends with a draw of my teeth over her bottom lip.

“That’s what I mean,” she says breathlessly. “I felt that everywhere.”

“I did too.”

“It was a fairytale kiss for you too?” she asks with a smile.

It was a once in a lifetime kiss. I’ve kissed more women than I care to admit, but it has never reached inside of me this way.

Nodding, I inch a fingertip over her bottom lip. “You can kiss, Emma. Jesus, can you kiss.”

With hooded eyes, she bites my fingertip. “I can do a lot more.”

I close my eyes to ward off the mental image of her dropping to her knees to take me in her mouth.

Slow. I have to take this slow. She deserves that. Hell, I need that.

I’m a kiss away from blowing my load.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

“Was that too much?” She whispers with her lips pressed to my chin.

“Not too much,” I growl out. “I have to catch my breath. I need to think.”

Think about what I want first. I want to taste her. I want to fuck her. I want it all.

“Is it Drake? Do you need to think about him?” Taking a step back, she lowers her voice. “I know he’s your best friend. I know that he wouldn’t…”

I stop her with a deep kiss. I linger there, sliding my tongue over her bottom lip, breathing her in.

“Don’t talk about him,” I whisper, not finding the will to say his name. “Don’t.”