“You can’t be serious.” No way would he really tie me down.

“I’m always serious, darlin’. Now close those gorgeous blue eyes and let me finish. I promise you’ll thank me later.”

“You seem to be confusing the term thank with kill,” I muttered as I closed my eyes. I only agreed because the soothing sensation had returned and I wanted more.

“No moving.” The command in his voice touched me in all the right places. I had no doubt he really would tie me to the bed, and a depraved part of me wanted to see him try. The rational part of me, however, rolled her eyes.

“Yes, sir,” I replied sarcastically and regretted it immediately. His chuckle filled the air between us as his fingers returned to my face.

“Oh, I do love the way that sounds.”

“Don’t get used to it.”

Sharp teeth sunk into my bottom lip, shocking the hell out of me. “You’ve said those sexy words twice in my bed this week, gorgeous. I will hear them again, and with less sarcasm.”

“Twice?” I repeated, incredulous. “Try once.”

“You said them the first time you were in my bed, after I told you not to move, while we were discussing your adorable stockings.”

“I don’t remember . . .” Okay, actually, I did recall those words coming out of my mouth. “But if it happened, I didn’t mean it.”

“So you say.” His fingers moved to my cheeks where the stinging was less prominent. The burn on my forehead must have been worse. “Are you regretting losing your hat yet?”

My nose scrunched as he applied the lotion there. “It was too hot on my head.”

His chuckle was low and warm. “That’s the city girl in you talkin’, but we’ll get you there.”

I snorted. “Trust me, the cowboy look works much better on you.”

“Does it?” His thumb traced my jaw, massaging the ointment in as he went. I couldn’t tell what I enjoyed more—his touch or the way it soothed my sunburn. When he pulled away, I nearly groaned in disappointment, but then I heard the cap pop again. I peeked up at him through my lashes and found him studying my shoulders.

“Next time I’ll remember sunscreen.” Amusement flirted with his features. “Since you have an aversion to hats.” He squeezed a healthy amount onto his palms and rubbed them together before reaching for my neck. I flinched when his thumb touched my throat, a place I associated with weakness thanks to Ryan. Will lifted his hands, his eyes searching mine intently. He’d obviously felt my reaction. Damn it.

“Too much?”

I swallowed and shook my head. “No, you just caught me off guard.” A truth mingled with a lie. “Sorry.” God, I hated Ryan. He’d trained my body to react to the dumbest movements. I knew Will wouldn’t hurt me.

You used to think that about Ryan too.

But no, that wasn’t exactly true. My ex had swept me off my feet, made me feel like the luckiest woman in the world, but the signs were always there. In the possessive way he handled me, the control he exuded in every situation, the way he alienated me from my friends and family . . . He never let me win arguments and always found a way to place the blame on my shoulders. Will’s dominance felt different. Protective.

He studied me for so long that I worried my emotions were showing on my face. Then, ever so gently, his touch returned. But rather than go for my throat, he started at the back of my neck and massaged the lotion into the base of my scalp. His clever fingers pressed deep, making my jaw go slack.

Oh. My. God.

That felt amazing. My head fell forward against his abdomen, eliciting one of those alluring chuckles from him. I couldn’t bring myself to care. All my tension seemed to melt away as he continued his ministrations along my shoulders and down my arms. He paused every now and then to add more lotion, but by the time he was finished, I felt like Jelly.

He swept my hair over my shoulder and traced my upper back. “Lie down on your stomach for me.”

I groaned because that required moving. My forehead had created the perfect pillow against his six pack, and I planned to stay here forever. It wasn’t the softest pillow, but I rather enjoyed the heat radiating from him.

His fingers brushed my jaw before gently taking hold of my chin. He tilted my head, forcing me to look up at him. My mouth went numb at the fierce emotion emanating from his gaze. Tension sizzled in the air between us, burning a path straight to my center. I couldn’t look away. His expression hypnotized me, leaving me powerless to his will. My hands went to his shoulders when he grabbed my hips and lifted me. His movements were effortless as he repositioned me in the center of the mattress, with one of his knees between my legs on the bed. “Roll over, darlin’.”

Right. He wanted me on my stomach.

He shifted as I moved, and straddled my thighs. His finger traced a line down my spine, over my tank top, and stopped at the hem. When his thumb slipped beneath the fabric, I shivered. I expected him to try to remove it, but instead, both hands slid under my shirt and began massaging my lower back.

“Oh . . .” I couldn’t hide the moan as he worked magic over muscles I hadn’t realized were sore. All those hours outside had affected me more than I expected. Pruning was an exercise my daily runs had not prepared me for, not to mention I hadn’t been on one of those daily runs in a few weeks thanks to the long office hours. I pressed my face into the pillow and used it to muffle my groan.

“Mmm, I think that might be my new favorite sound.” He pressed a kiss to my shoulder as he moved his palms higher. I didn’t even care that my tank top was sliding up with his hands. As long as he continued touching me like that, he could strip me bare. I never wanted this to end.

“Your hands are magical.” The words slipped out of their own volition. Whatever. His ego couldn’t get much bigger anyway.

He nuzzled the back of my neck. “I think you’ll find my mouth to be just as pleasant.” His hot breath against my sensitive skin scattered goose bumps down my arms. Excitement and exhaustion fought for purpose inside of me. On the one hand, I’d never been more comfortable in my life. But, on the other, I’d never been this turned on before. My condition worsened when he tugged the straps of my tank top down, exposing my upper back. The fabric felt heavier than I remembered it being, and I had the sudden urge to rip it over my head.

But Will had other ideas. He pulled the bottom back to its rightful place before pressing the heel of his hand into my shoulder blade. I squirmed beneath him, unable to handle the conflicting sensations rallying inside me anymore. Heat pooled between my legs as the tension unfurled along my spine. It was a delicious mix that left me shaking. If this was his version of foreplay, I approved.

“How do you feel?” he asked.

Hot. On edge. Needy. None of those answers sufficed, and neither did the one that escaped my lips: “Good.” Oh, I could do better than that. “Amazing.” Still not enough. “I’m never leaving.”

He returned my straps to my shoulders with a chuckle. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like, darlin’.”

When I felt his thighs tense, like he was about to leave, I rolled beneath him. He stared down at me in surprise, as if he hadn’t expected me to be able to move that fast. Well, that made two of us. But my body required me to act. I felt like I was going to explode. He set me on fire in a way I never thought possible, and I needed him to extinguish the flame. There was only one way to do that.

I went to my elbows, eyes locked on his. “Kiss me.” When he didn’t immediately react, I cocked an eyebrow. “Isn’t this what you’ve wanted? Me willing and begging in your bed?”

He brushed his thumb over my lips and tracked the movement with his eyes. “Is this you begging?”

“Is that what you want?” Because I wasn’t above it at this point. The man had me all sorts of hot and bothered. It took considerable effort not to shift my hips upward and seek the friction I so badly needed. “Please, Will.” I tried to grab his shoulder and found my wrist caught in his big hand. He lowered it to the pillow beside my head as he stretched himself out lazily over me. When his arousal settled between my thighs, I nearly wept with joy.

“You’re not ready for me yet, Rachel.” The words against my ear did not match the actions going on below.

“Oh, I’m more than ready.” I rotated my hips upward to show him what I meant and sighed when his hard length touched the place where I needed him most. I already knew from our interlude on the balcony that the man was well endowed, but to feel him throbbing so intimately against me really drove the point home.

That’s going to be inside me . . .

“No, darlin’.” He placed an open-mouthed kiss against my pulse. “We’re going to do this right.”

“Safely.” I agreed. “Condoms.” Ryan never allowed them, but I always wanted to use them. I shoved the memory away with an inner grimace and refocused on the moment. “You have one, right?” Because I didn’t pack one.

He chuckled against my neck. “I do, but you’re not listening.” His free hand went to my hip, stopping me from rotating them upward again. “We’re not having sex tonight.”

What? “Are you serious?” Wasn’t that his end goal? To get me in his bed?

“Very.”

His lack of an elaboration had me freezing beneath him. “I don’t understand.” This game of hot and cold needed to end. He either wanted me or not.

“You’re not ready,” he said, repeating his words from a few minutes ago. I’d mistaken them to mean something else entirely. This time I understood what he meant, and it sent a wave of rage through my system. I’d fought off male advances for almost two years, and now that I’d finally given in to one I actually wanted, he was rejecting me. Because he thought I wasn’t ready. Fuck. That.

“Who the hell are you to decide what I want?” I tried to shove at his shoulders, but he caught my hands with an ease that further infuriated me. When he pushed both of them into the pillows on either side of my head, I lost it. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me! You had your chance, Will. Now I’m not ready.” I knew on a mature level that my reaction wasn’t rational, that it was born of him rejecting me, but I couldn’t help it. “Get the fu—”

His lips captured mine in a kiss that stole all fight from my lungs. Holy hell, that wasn’t fair. He couldn’t just silence me with his mouth and expect me to cooperate. When I tried to tell him that, he took advantage and slid his tongue between my lips. For half a second, I considered biting him, but my body refused. Despite my claim, I still wanted him.

My hormones overrode logic, quieting the anger inside me and rekindling the fire deep in my belly. I shook with a need I couldn’t control and hated myself for it. Hated him. How could he be so hot and cold? Wanting me one minute, denying me the next, and then devastating me with his mouth? Because, Lord, the man knew how to kiss. He was right about his mouth rivaling his hands. He was a work of art, and he had me so hot and bothered that I couldn’t think straight.

I ground my hips against him, and he pressed down even harder. My back threatened to arch off the bed, but his big body wouldn’t let it. When I tried to free my hands, his grip tightened—a subtle control that left me conflicted. Part of me loved the idea of surrendering to him and letting someone take care of me for once. It was exhausting always being in charge, but that sense of control was what kept me sane, what kept me safe. And my hesitancy made me uneasy, took me out of the moment, and left me blinking in confusion.

Will pulled back, desire shining brightly in his gaze as he stared down at me. “You don’t trust me yet,” he whispered. “This is not a question of whether or not I want you, because it’s pretty damn obvious that I do.” He pressed his arousal into my lower belly to punctuate his point. “It’s a matter of how I want you. Trust, Rachel.”

I trembled. Was he right? Did I not trust him? I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. Everything I’d learned about him pointed to him being a good man. I’d so severely misjudged him in the beginning, but he’d slowly chipped away at all the stereotypes I’d unfairly assigned to him and showed me what lay beneath the hefty bank account.

“I want to trust you,” I said, realizing it was the truth.

His grin was sad. “I know, but you’re not there yet.”

“I might never be there,” I admitted.

He finally released my wrists and pressed his palms to my cheeks. “I’m a patient man, Rachel. And you’re worth the wait.” His lips brushed mine and lingered. I loved the way he tasted on my tongue. Like wine and peppermint. It tingled my senses, leaving me breathless and yearning. “But,” he continued, his mouth still touching mine, “I’m also observant. And I know someone hurt you.”

I stiffened at his words. He must have felt it, because he kissed me again, softly. His mouth coaxed mine into submission with tentative strokes that stirred emotions deep within my soul. When his tongue entered to dance with mine, I couldn’t deny him. This time he let me wrap my arms around his shoulders and run my nails over the smooth skin of his back. He felt so hot and hard above me. So safe.

“You will trust again, Rachel.” His words were a whisper against my lips. “You’re too strong not to. But we have to do this right. Because I want more than a night with you.”

I swallowed. “How many nights do you want?”

“Oh, darlin’, I want them all.” He kissed me again before I could react to that proclamation. Which was good because I had nothing. I’d only just accepted the possibility of a whirlwind affair, but something long term . . . Was I ready for that? How would it even work? Telling Ryan off tonight was only a temporary solution, a minor reprieve. He was still very much a part of my life, and I knew from experience that this little setback wouldn’t last long. He’d find a way to plow back into my world and ruin everything.

He could hurt Will . . .

“Shh,” Will murmured against my lips. “Turn that beautiful brain off and just feel.” His tongue entered my mouth as he palmed my breast. The move was so unexpected that it tore me from my thoughts and threw me into the present. He tweaked my nipple with those skilled fingers, and my bliss scattered all my thoughts.

“More,” I moaned as my back came off the bed.

“Yes, ma’am.” He bent to nibble my hard peak through the fabric while his hand trailed down my belly to the apex between my thighs.

“Fuck,” I panted, eyes closing. “Are we . . . ?” My voice faded into another groan as he massaged a circle against my most sensitive point.

“I said no sex,” he replied, following the question I hadn’t finished. “I never said anything about fondling, darlin’.”

“Unfair,” was the only word I could get out as he increased his assault. Then he pulled his hand back, and I cried out in frustration.

“You’d like me to stop?” he asked, his tone deceptively innocent.

It took me a moment to catch my breath. All the foreplay and emotions had left me far closer to climax than I ever could have imagined. My panties were soaked, and my nipples ached with need. I palmed his cock through the sweatpants and squeezed, which earned me a hiss from him. Yeah, two can play this game, Mershano.

“Don’t start something you can’t finish, darlin’.” The warning in his voice sent a rush of heat through me. I liked that tone. And I showed him just how much by stroking him, hard, through the fabric. “Fuck.”

I grinned at his small slip in restraint. I managed one more caress before he caught my wrist in his hand and put it beside my head again. I expected him to hold it there, but he surprised me by letting go and palming my core again. He gave me no time to react before his lips captured my nipple through the tank top. My resulting scream was part surprise, part need. Because, oh my, he’d only been teasing before. Now he was touching me with purpose. His thumb found my sensitive nub through the yoga pants. I only had a second to recognize how impressive that was before he pressed down and sent pleasure racing through my veins.

He switched breasts, sucking my nipple hard into his mouth. God, how would that feel on bare skin? I wanted so badly to rip the damn tank top over my head, but my limbs were locked down by my mounting arousal. It built low in my abdomen, coiling so tightly it almost hurt, and I couldn’t help the whimper of need escaping my lips. This was so much better than my midnight sessions with my vibrator. Hell, it was better than any of my previous physical experiences. I’d never felt so pent-up in my life. All I wanted was to explode, and I could feel it, taste it, on the edge of my being.

Taunting.

Waiting.

So close.

“Come for me, gorgeous.” The words were hot against my lips and followed by a sharp pinch to my clit. It was so unexpected, and startling, that it snapped my restraint in half and sent pleasure spiraling through my lower belly and into my limbs. Will swallowed my scream with his mouth and continued applying pressure where I needed it to prolong my orgasm. It shook me so hard, so deep, that it almost hurt. And then I was kissing him. Hard.

My emotions took over, demanding I worship him, thank him, for whatever it was he’d just done to me. But as I tried to reciprocate with my hands, he gently grasped them and held them between us. His mouth was relentless against mine, returning my kiss with a fervor I felt throughout my being. I had no idea how long it went on—minutes, hours?—but eventually the urges subsided, leaving me more exhausted than I ever remembered being.

When I yawned, Will chuckled and nuzzled my neck.

“It’s been a long day,” he murmured, affection coloring his tone.

I curled into him, not wanting the night to end. “Just a little longer.”

“For as long as you want, Rachel.”

“Mm-hmm.” I settled my cheek against his shoulder, content to just be near him. Warmth cocooned me as he pulled the blankets around us. How he managed to do that while we were lying on them, I had no idea. I was too lost in the moment to care. Too lost in him.

He pressed his lips to my forehead, then to my temple. “You’re beautiful, Rachel.”

I smiled and tried to tell him we were past pickup lines, but it came out as a grumble instead.

He must have understood some of it because he replied, “You better get used to it, darlin’. ’Cause I’ll never stop complimenting you.”

Those words followed me into my dreams, where I entered a world of what-ifs and what could be. And for the first time in a very long time, I dreamt of a life without Ryan in it.