“Not tonight,” Nora interjected, voice more firm than Matisse was used to hearing.

“We resolve this thing now,” Cai argued.

But she stood her ground. “Cai—” Tugging her hair, she sighed. “It’s late. You’re falling asleep on your feet.”

“Nora…” Matisse would have had a hard time denying her anything she asked in that tone. Cai wavered. “Tyler.”

“If you’re going to bat for Tyler, you need to be on your A-game. Please go to bed.” She cupped Cai’s face in her hands and kissed his chin. “Please?”

With his hands resting on her shoulders, Cai kissed the top of her head and stepped away. “Okay.” He stayed there for second, lips dragging across her hair before he let go. Matisse watched him go. It seemed to him Cai wanted to stay. He cast a longing glance over his shoulder, but forced himself out of the room.

I don’t want to leave, either. Not tonight. Tonight, after everything he’d learned, he needed to be close to her, watch her sleep, whisper in her ear. Whatever it took to assure himself that she was alive and whole, and Dr. Murray hadn’t managed to break her.

They all had similar ideas. Apollo held tightly to her hands, whispering in her ear as he trailed upstairs after her. Breath held, Matisse waited for Nora’s answer, sure she’d give his friend whatever he wanted. But she paused. A quick glance at Matisse, and she stood on tiptoes, whispering back.

Head low, Apollo nodded and left without looking back. Seok and Ryan, intercepted the exchange between their friend and Nora. However, they said quiet, and thankfully, brief, goodnights at Matisse’s door.

The door shut with a soft snick, and then Nora strode to him. Matisse shifted onto the bed, pushing his back against the headboard. Gracefully, she slung a leg over his lap, and folding her arms against her chest, leaned into him. She stayed there, silent, the only sound her breathing.

It was exactly what he needed—her weight, her smell, her presence. It centered and calmed him. He stroked her back, trailing his fingers along her spine, lingering on each bump, and she burrowed into him a little deeper.

“How much did you read?”

Fighting to hold onto his calm, he shrugged.

“Most of it?” she asked. “You know about the interviews and testing?”

After he sucked in a deep breath and held it, he finally answered. “Yes.”

“You have questions.” She wound her arms around him.

“Just one.” It really only came down to this important question. “Are you all right?”

Her hair tickled his chin and caught in his stubble as she nodded. “I am. I got out of this intact. But I wonder what would have happened if it hadn’t been for you.”

The fear was well founded. The experiment didn’t work if the subject had a support system, and Dr. Murray’s next step was to isolate Nora.

He’d wanted to take her away from them.

A wave of desperation swept through him, and he pushed her back. Surprised, she jerked, but then his mouth was on hers. He wasn’t able to be gentle. Lips firm, tongue demanding, he ravaged her. Her nails dug into his back, pinching his skin as she grabbed a handful of shirt and ground into his lap.

The tight hold she had on him was everything he needed. “Cher.” He moaned when her mouth left his to suck in a deep breath. He kissed her neck. Light, pecking kisses that started from her ear and went to her shoulder then back up again. Her head tipped, like it was too heavy for her to hold up. He was so hard he could feel his pulse pounding in his dick, but he didn’t want to push her too hard. Their relationship was special, and he had plans for their first time.

Right now, though, he needed her.

“Let me touch you,” Nora whispered, and he groaned. She was going to make this difficult for him. Shirt pushed out of the way, she skimmed his back, and cupped his shoulder blades to pull him closer.

Her lips found his, tongue teasing, lips sucking at his. She tasted sweet and spicy, like Korean barbecue, and he chuckled. “Bulgogi.”

Ripping her head away, Nora covered her mouth and stared at him with wide eyes. “I need to brush my teeth.” She swung her leg over him and lurched toward the door. He stopped her.

“Don’t go. I don’t care,” he assured her and tugged her back so she landed sideways on his lap.

She stared up at him, eyes narrowed in disbelief. “But—”

The gold and brown in her eyes entranced him, and he found himself exploring her face. Brown and green and gold swirled in her eyes, and along her cheekbones was a perfect rose flush. Keeping his eyes on her, he bent at the waist. He touched his lips to the tip of her nose, then her forehead, and finally her lips. “All I want is to keep you close tonight, Nora. You center me. I can breathe with you.”

She threaded her hands through his hair, dragged his longish locks behind his ears and smoothed them over his forehead. His eyes closed, and she tugged him closer to her mouth.

The tip of her tongue touched his upper lip then his lower lip, and he opened his mouth. Grazing his tongue across hers with the lightest of contact revved his pulse more than racing his bike. He’d never been this gentle before, never been as in tune with a partner the way he was now with Nora.

When her breath hitched, he filed away the exact movement he’d made so he could do it again and elicit the same response. Her fingers tightened in his hair, a pinch of pain with his pleasure, showing him his kisses had the power to make her lose control.

A second later though, he was the one fighting for control. Turning her head, her lips brushed his pants and his hard length forced itself against the zipper. She hadn’t touched his skin, but she didn’t need to. Watching her eyes close, her swollen lips pucker against the material of his pants, burned him.

“Cher…” he warned. Heat crept up his neck. Sweat rolled down his back.

All he could see was her profile, but the edge of her mouth turned up. Sly girl. She knew exactly what she was doing to him.

But he was in control of his actions, and this was not how he would make love to her. Flowers, candles, music—he wasn’t really sure yet if those would play a part, but he did know he wouldn’t make love as a way to counter his fear.

If he had his way, she would be the last woman he made love to, which was fast, yes, but that was the way his brain worked. All his life he struggled to compromise. Once he made a decision, he stuck to it. When he decided to enter into this relationship with Nora and share her with the friends who were closer than family, a door had closed. He wasn’t searching anymore. He found what he needed, what he never knew he wanted.

Slouching, he scooted down the bed while lifting Nora to the pillow. He stood and pushed back the sheets to encourage her to burrow beneath them. She did as he wanted, getting comfortable and angling her body toward his. He ripped off his t-shirt in time to see her eyes widen and rake his chest, and he smiled smugly.

“Pants off?” He let his fingers linger on the button. “Cher?” he prompted when her mouth opened, and she got a dazed look in her eyes. This girl was good for his ego as well as his heart.

“Yes,” she squeaked, face flushing.

Slowly, he unzipped the pants before hooking his fingers in the waist. “Baby, these hips don’t lie,” he whispered, shoving the pants down his legs, and Nora barked out a laugh before burying her face in the pillow. Knee on the bed, he crawled toward her. With each motion he made sure to flex the muscles in his arms. She blushed, and he lunged, kissing her loudly before burying his face at the place where her neck met her shoulder.

Her laugh turned into a moan. “Matisse.”

He held himself over her for a moment, then eased down and sucked gently on her skin before pushing off to curl around her back. “Go to sleep, Nora.”

She stilled, glancing at him over her shoulder. Her eyebrows were drawn together, lips turned down. “Matisse. I’m confused.”

“Be patient,” he whispered, gathering her curls and flipping them over her shoulder. “I’m waiting for the perfect moment.”

The change was immediate. Her body relaxed, becoming heavy in his arms. She kissed him before settling back into the bed. “Okay.”

One more kiss was all he allowed himself. Nora’s sound and scent surrounded him. Her heat and weight comforted him, and in seconds, he was asleep.