He smiles. That smile. The ring in his lip glistens in the light that’s streaming through the window. It hits the metal just right, making the ring look like a gem. Shiny and new.

“Perhaps,” he responds with his eyes twinkling mischievously. “I wanted to make it more romantic, you know, ask Preston’s permission and all that shit.” His words make me laugh, the sound trickling through the space, and I can’t help leaning in closer to him.

“You don’t need to ask anyone’s permission, Ryder. You just need me to say yes,” I tell him, planting a kiss on his neck, suckling the skin into my mouth, causing a growl to rumble in his chest.

“Baby girl,” he warns. “If you keep that up, I’ll have to carry you to the bedroom.”

“Mmmm, and what will happen if you carry me into the bedroom?” I question, moving my lips higher, finding the piercing in his ear, gently tugging it with my teeth.

“Fuck,” Ryder grunts when I roll my hips while trailing my tongue over the shell of his ear. “I’m going to fuck you, Butterfly.” It’s another warning. One that makes me tingle between my legs, and I can’t help a soft whimper that tumbles free from my lips.

“Then you better show me, Ryder.”

Swiftly, he lifts me up as he rises from the sofa and we’re heading down a long hallway toward a door that’s slightly ajar. Entering the space is like walking into Ryder’s bedroom back home. With jet color curtains and a black carpet, along with charcoal bed sheets, it’s indeed filled with darkness, but it makes me feel safe.

“Stay,” he tells me, setting me on the edge of the mattress, leaving me in his bedroom. I hear him stroll back down the hall, then the sound of glasses, or at least, I think it’s glasses, makes its way toward me. When Ryder returns, he’s carrying a glass, a can of soda, and some ice.

“What is that for?” I question, watching him set the items on the nightstand. He doesn’t respond, merely opens the can and takes a long swig.

“Now, little lady.” The corner of his mouth kicks up into a sinful smirk. “It’s time for me to devour you.” The look on his face is positively ravenous. “I want you to take that pretty top off for me,” his husky voice orders, and my fingers have a mind of their own, obeying him. Once I’m in my bra, his gaze darkens.

“Anything else you’d like me to get rid of, Mr. Kingsley?” I tease playfully.

“All of it, baby girl. I want you on my bed, naked, spread open so I can look at how beautiful you are without anything hindering my view.” Ryder steps back, watching me intently as I toe off my sneakers, then slowly pushing the jeans I’m wearing to the floor. My bright pink socks hit the carpet, and then it’s just me in my white panties and matching bra.

“You know,” I tell him, rising from the mattress, “I think it’s unfair that I have to get undressed, and you’re standing there in your T-shirt and sweatpants.”

Another wolfish smile tilts his lips. He reaches for the material of his shirt and tugs it from his tall, lean frame. His chest, down to his torso is toned, chiseled with dips and peaks I’m dying to tease with my tongue.

There’s a dark trail of hair below his belly button that dips below the waistband of his underwear. Ink adorns him. Beautiful intricate patterns of black and color, all over his smooth, tanned flesh. When I meet his hungry gaze, I offer a sultry smile. I’ve never flirted before, never been in front of a boy, correct that, a man, in my underwear. But the way Ryder looks at me makes everything south of my belly button tingle.

He silently discards his pants and soon we’re leveled on the playing field. Him in tight black briefs, and me in white. A contrast. But together, we match perfectly.

Reaching back, I unclasp my bra and allow it to fall at my feet. Ryder’s heated stare trails over me, down to my chest, then he meets my gaze.

“You’re far too perfect for me.” His words are warm, affectionate, and I want to refute him, but he shakes his head. “But, I’ve come to the conclusion that perfection is all mine.” He steps forward, gripping my hips, pulling me closer. “And I’ll never let it go again.”

He leans in. His lips find mine, warm and demanding, and I allow him control of the kiss. His tongue gently snakes into my mouth, tasting, licking, as if he’s savoring me with every movement.

His fingers dig into my hips, eliciting a whimper from me, which he swallows in the kiss. My arms wrap around his neck, pulling him closer. His hands find my ass, lifting me against him as he turns to sit on the mattress.

“I want to fuck you,” he tells me, “but I have a better idea.”

“Oh?”

He nods, shuffling up the bed and leaning against the headboard. I’m still straddling his lap when he reaches between us with one hand, shoving my panties to the side. His fingers find my entrance.

“You’re so wet, Butterfly,” he groans as he circles my clit, his index finger dipping into me, teasing me as he finger fucks me. It slides into me so easily and glides back out, over and over again. My hips roll against him, making him harder beneath me.

“Please, Ryder.” My plea is unanswered as he continues his ministrations on my body. The glint in his eye is pure devilish as he taunts me, his thumb pressing my clit, teasing the hardened nub, and then he pulls his fingers from my core and his cock is there, ready, hard, and he gently slides into me.

It takes a moment for me to acclimate to his thickness, the metal of his piercing rubbing against my inner walls, making my toes curl as pleasure rockets through me. I’ve never been so turned on, so needy. Ryder’s mouth finds my nipple, suckling the bud, grazing it with his teeth.

It feels as if my body is electrified, every nerve sparking, every synapse firing, and I’m crying out as he continues to drive into me. Faster, harder. His body rigid, mine purely putty in his hands.

“That’s my baby girl,” he coos, his voice drenched with desire, my body his instrument as he plays me like a maestro in an orchestra. There are no fast beats, only gentle, loving melodies, and I cry out as his fingers tweak my clit, his cock hitting that spot inside me, and I see stars burst behind my eyelids.

“Ryder.”

“So fucking perfect.”