“Ali! Wait!” The sound of Liam’s voice hit me like a sledgehammer.

Closing my eyes, I swore under my breath. I didn’t want an apology, I just wanted to get out of here before I embarrassed myself even more than I already had. The ground could open up and swallow me, and I would be glad.

I rushed toward my car, my keys slipping through my shaking fingers and rattling uselessly in my pocket. Dammit!

“Ali, c’mon,” Liam said. He was standing right behind me.

Flinching, I bit my bottom lip and finally managed to grasp my keys. Finding the unlock button on the fob, I pressed it, and the indicators flashed.

“Ali.” This time, he grasped my arm and turned me around, using his super cage fighter strength against me. I had no chance.

“Don’t,” I said, my gaze meeting his.

His eyes narrowed, and he stepped forward, his body forcing me backward. The moment my back pressed against the car, he slid his hands over my waist while capturing my mouth with his.

Melting in his grasp, I moaned, my lips parting in surprise. His hands fisted in my hair and held me in place while he devoured, tasting my lips as my tongue slid greedily against his. Somehow, my hands found their way underneath the hem of his T-shirt and stroked his lower back. He felt warm, and his muscles tensed and rippled as I explored further, our kiss never breaking.

All coherent thought flew out the window as we stood there on the street and kissed like it was our last moment. I was drowning, and he’d reached out and pulled me back up, filling my lungs with air.

I trembled in his grasp, overcome by the emotions tearing through my body. Moving against him, I whimpered, the motion not doing anything to calm the ache between my legs. It only seemed to make it worse.

“I can’t promise you anything,” he murmured against my swollen lips. “But I can give you tonight.”

“So I’m just an itch that needs scratching?” I asked, my fingers tracing the curve of his spine.

“I…” he started, but he swallowed back his words. His cock was hard against my hip, and it was all I could think about.

“I’ve never been anyone’s itch,” I murmured. He frowned and began to pull away, but I grasped his shoulders. “You have to promise me something.”

His gaze lowered to my lips. “What?”

“I’m not an idiot, I know you only want a one-time thing, but…”

“But?” His eyes were hooded, and it was hot as hell.

“I… I’ve only…” Suddenly, I became shy, my cheeks flaring.

“What do you want me to do to you?” Liam asked, his big hands cupping my face. He kissed me again, pulling back before we became lost and couldn’t stop. “Tell me.”

“I… I want to be on top. I want…you from behind. I want your mouth…” I squirmed against him. “I want…”

“I can give you anything you want, little mouse.”

“I’m not a mouse,” I complained, shoving my hands down the back of his jeans. I had no idea where any of this was coming from, but I was determined to go with the flow.

“You’re right,” he murmured. “I’m definitely discovering that.” His fingers traced my lips, and he smiled. “I think I’d better do the driving.” He plucked my keys from my jacket pocket and eased me away from the car. “Where do you live?”

“St. Kilda.”

He drove me home in silence. Apart from a few words to direct him, we didn’t talk about what was about to happen or what had led us there. My awful day at work was forgotten, the air thick with desire. I was entirely sure it’d been building for a while, mainly on my side, and it was either this or a lifetime of unrequited misery.

When we reached my apartment block, he parked my car in its usual spot, and we went upstairs.

I lived on the top floor at the back, my bedroom window overlooking the neighborhood. It wasn’t a bad place to live, just expensive. The rent in St. Kilda was sky-high, even for studios. I’d wanted to move closer to work to avoid catching the train every day, but I soon realized I’d become trapped when I began struggling to budget for groceries.

I let us into the apartment, and as soon as the door closed behind us, Liam wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close.

“Nice place,” he said, not tearing his gaze from mine.

“There isn’t much to look at anyway.” Laughing, I dragged him through the lounge into my bedroom. Five steps and we were there.

Reaching behind his head, he grasped his T-shirt and pulled it up and over, throwing it onto the floor. Without uttering a single word, he fisted his fingers into the hem of my top and wrenched it off, causing my hair to spill down my back.

Not breaking stride, his mouth covered mine in a blistering kiss as the clasp on the back of my bra loosened, his fingers deftly unhooking the little clips. It slipped off my shoulders, and I wriggled until it fell to the floor, exposing my breasts. Cool air tickled my skin, my nipples tightening the moment they brushed against his chest.

Liam sucked in a sharp breath as he rested his forehead against mine, his gaze devouring the swell and curve before him. He massaged me in his palms, sending sparks of pleasure racing between my legs.

Rubbing my hands over his shoulders, I arched into his touch, grinding my clit against his thigh. Wanting to see more of him, my fingers moved downward until I managed to unzip his jeans.

“Is this what you want?” he asked darkly, taking my hand in his and guiding me over his cock. It felt thick and long through the material of his boxers as he pressed into my palm.

I muttered something, completely fixated on coaxing him alive.

“You’ll get it,” he whispered, pulling my hand away. “Don’t worry about that.”

Easing me back onto the bed, I lay completely at his mercy as he peeled off my leggings, pulling my underwear with them. Ridding himself of his jeans and boxers, my gaze fell, studying every inch of the man before me. The fighter known as Blade.

Cut from marble, his body was coiled with power, and I could see why he dominated in the cage. Probably in bed, too.

I watched, my core aching as he rolled on a condom. He climbed over me, his impressive length hot against my thigh.

“Usually, I would savor you a little longer,” he murmured into my ear. “I’d lick your clit and suck on it until you begged. I’d finger you until you came, and before you had a chance to ease, I’d bury my cock in so deep and hard you would scream as you came again.”

I whimpered as he rubbed up and down my wet seam, desperate to feel the moment he pushed into me for the first time. I ached for the pressure, the force, and the slickness of his body bringing my sex alive.

“But…” he said, his voice husky.

“But?”

“I want to be selfish…” he muttered, his palm covering my breast as he teased my clit with his cock. “I just want to…” He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. “I just want to fuck you, Ali. Just how you described.”

I allowed my legs to open and spread wide as I hooked my heels around his back. I was completely open to him, and all he had to do was…

He pushed into me with a moan, his cock sliding through my wetness slowly. Grasping my thigh, he opened me wider, and I took him right to the hilt, my body trembling as we joined.

He held still, relishing the sensation of being deep, and his lips closed over my right nipple and sucked. I jerked against his tongue, my core tightening around his cock, and he moaned in encouragement.

Stretching my arms over my head, I arched against his lips, thrusting my breasts upward. His hands pinned my wrists in place, and he bit softly, sending a bolt of pleasure straight through my body and into my clit. Writhing against his hold, I felt his lips curve into a grin.

“You like that?” he asked, his voice rasping.

“Yes…”

He drew his cock out and stroked in once more, hitting just as deep.

“How about that?”

I thrust my hips up, grinding my clit against him. “Yes.”

“How do you want me next?”

I was no longer embarrassed to speak my mind, not when he was over me, naked, hard, and deep inside me. If I shied away now, I would probably regret it. This may be my only shot at living out every fantasy I’d ever had while touching myself.

“Hard,” I whispered. “I want to hear your body slap against mine. I want to feel… I want to feel you driving into me.”

He raised his head, his gaze meeting mine. He looked like he’d just won the lottery, and when he kissed me, his lips almost bruised mine with the force. I met him halfway, wrapping my tongue around his greedily.

“Then I want you to flip me over and do the same from behind,” I muttered, lost in a haze of passion. “Then, right before we come, I want you back on top, covering me as you pound against my clit.”

“Bloody hell,” Liam said through a moan, swirling his hips and driving his cock deeper still. “This was in you all this time?”

“What are you waiting for?” I asked, squirming against him. “Scratch my itch.”

He didn’t wait another second. Rolling his hips back, his cock slipped free until the crown was the only part of him still inside. Then he thrust hard, pounding into me with a satisfying slap.

I cried out, throwing my head back against the pillow as sensation pulsed through my clit. “More.”

He buried into me over and over, hard and fast, just like I’d always fantasized about. Sensation ripped through me, and I writhed against him, my hands palming my breasts. Just like that…

He pulled out abruptly and flipped me over in one fluid motion. Grasping my hips, he jerked my ass into the air and entered me from behind. Another scene from my dreams came to life, and I basked under his onslaught.

His cock filled me once more, and as he thrust, his palm cracked against my bare ass. I flinched, moaning softly as he soothed my stinging skin, his rhythm never slowing. He pounded into me again and again, his breathing sharpening, his grunts deepening as he chased his orgasm. I felt my own teetering on the edge of exploding, and I pushed up onto my elbows, working myself on his cock as he rammed forward.

“Fuck, Ali…” he said with a hiss.

His fingers dug into my hips, the thick scent of sex filling the air around us. It was intoxicating. Nothing else mattered other than what we were chasing. Solace, pleasure, escape… Whatever it was, it felt better than I’d ever had. No man had given me this much attention during sex, let alone an orgasm.

“I’m…close,” I muttered, and the moment the words left my lips, his cock fell away, and he flipped me onto my back, covering my body with his.

He filled me again and quickened his pace, pounding and stroking, forcing my orgasm to rise sharply. When I peaked, I felt like an explosion was tearing through the nerve endings in my body, starting from my clit and flaring outward. Liam didn’t slow. Instead, he continued to thrust, prolonging the fireworks.

Liam tensed above me and let out a long, guttural moan. He was coming, his momentum becoming more irregular as he spilled inside me. The sight of him unraveling over me spurred me on, and I quivered again.

Finally, he eased out of me and collapsed half on and half off my body, his lips resting against my breast. His breath was hot against my skin as our chests heaved in tandem, both of us lost in the overwhelming sensation that had been our shared orgasms.

I thought about all those other guys I’d been with and snorted. They didn’t know shit about making a woman come, the selfish pricks. Liam was an expert. He knew all the right places to touch.

Hm… Liam…

“Best,” he muttered through a heavy breath.

“Yeah?” I asked, feeling proud of myself.

“I haven’t come that long in ages.” He moaned softly, rubbing his cock. “Shit, that felt good.”

Pushing up on his elbows, his body slid along mine, and he kissed me on the lips, long and slow.

“You’ve got a way with words,” he said when he finally pulled away. “I don’t need the help, but it sure makes a difference if you can tell me what you want.”

“Cocky, aren’t we?” I said seductively, arching against his chest.

His eyes sparkled. “Damn, you look satisfied.”

I smiled, my eyes feeling heavy. I wanted nothing more than to curl up and fall asleep.

“Consider the itch thoroughly scratched,” he said, sitting up. Turning his back to me, I studied the long line of his spine and stroked my fingers over some old bruises he’d probably gotten from fighting as he rolled the used condom off his cock. He tossed it into the bin just inside the bathroom door before reaching for his boxers and jeans.

“You’re going?” I asked, sinking back into the sheets.

“Hmm,” he replied absently, standing and zipping up his fly.

I didn’t reply. I watched him get dressed, and when he leaned over and kissed me on the forehead, I pushed down a wave of disappointment.

“See ya, Ali,” he murmured. Then he left.

I stared at the ceiling for a long time, listening to the silence.

I felt cold, but I’d known what I was getting into all along. He’d been very clear about his intentions. Tonight had just been a bit of fun. I’d agreed to it willingly, knowing exactly what it meant. Nothing.

I could pretend all I wanted, but deep down, I knew I’d fallen for a man who wasn’t interested in more. It was bad news for all involved. It was going to implode sooner or later, and my bet was on sooner.

The only thing I could do, the only thing that would ensure I protected my heart was to stay away from him. Easier said than done. Liam had just walked out and taken my heart with him.

Great.