CHAPTER 5
EVE
I want to act like he’s the same Vincent I used to know, but he isn’t. The Vincent I used to know wasn’t this dangerous looking, was he? I look down at his pants again, noticing the outline of his gun. God, help me. How can I be so afraid, but so turned on at the same time?
We get inside and I try not to let my jaw drop at his perfect apartment. It’s just as beautiful as I remember. We step into his open kitchen area, and he leaves his keys on the marble countertop. Grabbing two cold bottles of water from the fridge, he opens the cap before handing me one. I take a deep pull, letting the cold water wet my dry throat.
He said we’d discuss everything. Is that why he brought me here? To tell me about Daniela? I can’t handle it. I don’t think I’d survive if he told me he loves her. If he told me that I was a mistake. If he told me he never meant to hurt me, or some other bullshit. It’s bad enough to hear about Daniela through the gossip mill and it’s even worse to see them together. But to hear about their relationship from Vincent’s perfect lips? It would break me. I’d rather just pretend we aren’t at school together; move on and let what we had be a good memory. He can continue being the hot guy on campus, and I can keep my head in the books.
We stare at each other, time seemingly suspended. I’m desperate for him not to tell me more than I already know. How can I stop this conversation from happening? I notice his pupils starting to dilate and the quickening of his breath.
At once, we both step toward each other. I look up into his face when he lifts me in his arms. Before I change my mind, I press my lips against his. He pulls away, his eyes searching mine. I slightly nod my head. He starts by slowly kissing every piece of my lips as if I’m something to be savored.
When his tongue finally enters my mouth, I grab a fistful of his hair and moan. It must register with him how badly I want this because with that sound he finally starts to kiss me like his life depends on it. He consumes me with his mouth, moving to my neck as he nudges my legs wider to make room for his hips.
“You’re shaking,” he tells me between kisses. I feel out of my mind.
I’m hot. Cold. Soaked.
He moves his hands down my legs, pulling the shoes off my feet. They clatter like dead weights onto the wooden floor. I’m trembling like it’s twenty below. He presses my body against the wall while he pulls his shirt over his head with one arm. My heart hammers. His body heat is off the charts. My hands move on their own accord up to his massive shoulders and down along his sides. I pull in a hard breath as I trace the gorgeous V-shape of his back.
“Get this off,” he demands, tugging at my shirt.
I try to get myself out of my tank top, but it gets stuck on my arm. “There we go,” he says as he untangles the fabric and lifts it up. I groan in relief, grabbing his hair with my hands and pulling him to my mouth again. I can’t help myself.
He hums, and I feel the vibration straight into my core. His fingers graze over my nipples, up and down, until they’re hardened peaks. My bra is on, but the cotton is so thin I can feel the roughness of the calluses against my sensitive skin. I want to tear my clothes off. I want direct contact. My lower belly clenches in anticipation.
He finally unhooks my bra, roughly pulling it off my shoulders and stopping with a hiss, taking me in with his hooded eyes. “My memory doesn’t do you justice. Jesus Christ, Eve. You’re fucking perfect. Perfect.” His mouth lowers over my bare nipple and with his first hard suck, tremors instantly wrack my body. “Ahhhh!”
“Always so responsive to me.” He moves his mouth to my other breast and I try to contain the pleasure. It’s almost too much. I bite the side of my cheek, wanting to stay quiet.
“Moan for me, baby. I need to hear you. No one here but us.” As if I have a choice! I’m gripping the back of his shoulders as the fire inside me rages.
He lifts his mouth, letting his thumbs graze against my neck. “Tell me, Eve, has anyone other than me touched you?” I can’t manage a reply; it all feels too good.
He stops moving. “Answer me.”
“N-no.”
He moves his nose into my neck, scenting me as he pushes his hardness into my core. “You’re mine, do you understand?”
“Vincent!” I cry, screwing my eyes shut.