I feel his presence behind me, stealing my attention from the photographs on the wall. The warmth of his breath on the back of my neck raises goosebumps on my skin, and I like it. It mixes with the electricity I feel from his fingertips barely touching my arms. His chest against my back lights an inferno deep inside, one that has been dead for almost a decade. My ache for him is familiar. I have suppressed it for so long. I don’t want to fight it anymore. I close my eyes and allow myself to feel him against me.

“Sophie,” he whispers. “God, how I’ve missed you.”

My breath catches. I look over my shoulder as he hooks his finger into the top of my dress, pulling the material down my arm. His kiss almost burns my skin when he kisses me there.

“Don’t deny me, Sophie.” He hasn’t lost his ability to seduce me. I am captivated. I don’t think I could deny him if I wanted to. It took me years to get over him, and only a few hours to pull me back into his world.

He buries his face in my hair and inhales deeply, then lifts it away, baring my neck. His kiss follows, causing an ache deep in the pit of my stomach.

“Cole.” I hesitate, knowing what I should say, knowing what is needed to be said, but nothing comes out. I could move away from him, lean toward the wall, but I don’t. “Should we do this?”

“Yes.” He doesn’t hesitate. He sounds confident. I wished I were.

“Cole,” I repeat again, not moving away from him.

“Let me fix this, Sophie. Let me show you I was wrong for leaving you.”

He spins me around and covers my lips with his before I can explain my apprehensions. My legs weaken when his arms close around me, but I push him away.

“I’m not sure.”

He steps back. I can see the effort in his restraint. His skin is flushed, and there is hunger in his eyes. “The ball’s in your court, Sophie.”

I stare at him. His expression is filled with desire, but he’s holding back. I know that this is entirely my choice.

My hands slide around his neck, and I melt into him.

He scoops me up, my legs dangling toward the floor. His kiss deepens, and his tongue pushes past my lips, invading my mouth and stealing my breath. A wispy moan comes out of nowhere and escapes my lips, scattering my thoughts into the air. He carries me across the room, keeping me in his arms until his bed is underneath me.

Someplace in the back of my mind, a voice of reason tries to break through.

This is it, Sophie. There is no turning back now.

If I allow myself to make love to Cole, I’ll be risking a lot. My heart is at stake, and I’m scared as hell.

But I crave him. I want to touch him like I used to.

He lowers me to the bed, and I look up at him, studying his face. I need to see something—anything that will reassure me he has changed. I look at him, remembering that look in his eyes—that devious grin, and his charisma that stole my heart in the beginning. My first time with him floods my mind. I can feel my heart beating faster.

He leans forward and crawls toward me. Why do I feel like this is my first time? My body trembles in anticipation. His hands peel my red dress up over my thighs, my hips, my stomach and then my breasts. He throws it onto the carpet.

He smiles, crouching down toward my stomach. A soft kiss leaves me pining for more. I look down at him, trying to steady my breath until I feel his teeth graze my bare skin. My steady breathing shatters.

My breath catches when he towers over me and looks down at my body. Do I still look good to him? His lips hint at a smile, and a devious squint covers his eyes.

He lowers himself onto me, his hands gliding up my sides, and the thought dissipates, leaving only a burning desire for him to be inside of me. I need to feel him against me. I raise my hips to meet his kisses, his fingers hooking into the sides of my panties. I feel them being dragged down my legs leaving me completely exposed to his eyes. I’m breathing heavily, my eyes glued to his face.

His grin disappears, his lips separate, and a hunger steals his expression. I know what is next. I remember it well—what he likes. He knows what I like, too. I tremble as I wait for it.

His hands push my legs apart. An unexpected whimper escapes my lips, and I open my eyes wide. I look down just in time to see his eyes consume my body, moving his glare down to what he is after, what he is hungry for.

His hands reach up and cover my breasts, pushing my bra out of his way, as he teases around my womanhood with the tip of his tongue. I take another big breath, but it’s getting more difficult to keep my composure. He knows the way around my body. The way he looks at me, the little noises he makes, intensify my arousal as it burns through me like a wildfire. His tongue plays a little harder, a little deeper, a little hungrier. His thumbs roll my nipples, increasing my desire for him.

I need him closer. I need him inside me.

He presses his body into mine, satisfied that he has made me utterly crazy for him again. “When I’m ready,” he growls. The buckle on his belt presses into my stomach, and the feel of his leather jacket on my bare skin almost throws me over the edge.

I love feeling vulnerable. He knows it, uses it, and always gets through my barriers. It was one of the reasons it took me so long to get over him.

He pulls my bra from my body and stares down at me. “You’re so delicious, Sophie. I screwed up bad when I let you walk out of my life.” He leans down and kisses my chin. “I promise to make it right if you let me.” He leans down again and kisses my cheek. “I want to make you mine again.” His tongue glides across his lip and trails along the side of my neck, drawing a shiver from me. “Tell me I can, Sophie. Tell me you’re mine again.”

“Yes,” I whisper.

“Tell me. Say it.”

“I’m yours.”

He pulls himself up and fumbles with his buckle. He doesn’t take his eyes off me as he pulls his pants down, lifts his shirt off with his jacket and drops his boxers. He kicks everything off the bed and pounces on me, imprisoning me beneath him. His mouth covers mine, and he kisses me hard. I feel the weight of his body push into me, his kiss deepening and his hands pushing underneath my buttocks.

He jerks my hips up and enters me. I force a breath in, trying to suppress the orgasm that threatens me. I feel my muscles tense, rigid with the feel of him deep inside me. He stops, wraps himself around me, and holds me there like he knows.

I gasp, feeling him pulsate, then forcing himself to wait until I can handle him.

The feeling he gives me wells my eyes with tears. Everything I felt for him, everything I suppressed and tried to extinguish since he left, comes flooding back with so much power that it overwhelms me.

My hands cascade down his back. I can feel the strong contours of his broad shoulders feed down to the small of his back, over his ass. I pull him into me harder, yelping as I convulse beneath him. I find myself crying out when he agonizingly, slowly withdraws from me and slips back inside.

He fucks me better than I can remember—slow at first, then increasing his speed as his breathing gets harder. His kiss almost bruises my lips. He pushes my mouth open and thrusts his tongue inside, invading my soul and making my desire for him turn to a need, a necessity I didn’t think I could live without. He fucks me with everything I remember and so much more.

Sex with Cole was always good, but this time, this night, something about the way he takes control is making me go out of my mind.

His hands are all over me, seducing every inch of me. He caresses my breasts, slides his hand up to my throat and encircles it, adding a little pressure as he leans up to watch my face. I struggle with the idea of being choked during sex, but he is playful, and never pushes too far.

I feel his hands slide into my hair, closing his fists and pressing my head into the mattress as he fucks harder, faster, with more intensity. His fingers intertwine with mine, and he pulls my arms up over my head, pinning them to the bed. My body trembles and I am panting like a dog, pushing into him each time he slams his body into mine, silently begging for release. He presses his thumb against my clit and moves it in fast circles to bring me closer to the edge.

I can feel my muscles start to tighten, a building orgasm threatening to spill over the top and drown me. He hesitates, looks into my eyes, and pushes in one last time. My body stiffens, stealing the ability to breathe, the ability to scream, the ability to move.

My orgasm crashes into me. I raise my head up, my hands clutching his. He pulls himself up, a guttural groan coming from deep within his throat. He slams into me, his body intensifying and shaking. I hear his heavy breathing over mine as he slides down beside me and nuzzles his face into the nape of my neck.

I roll toward him, a smile on my face. “Cole.”

“Shhh. Don’t say anything. Just lay here with me. I don’t want this moment to end.”