This was happening.

This was really happening.

And that was all she could think on the rather short, almost too-short drive to her apartment. Taylor had driven what was obviously a rental car. At least she hoped so, because it was way too clean for any human being with a soul to have owned it. He chattered the whole way, obviously at ease with what was about to go down.

Even so much so that halfway to her apartment complex, he reached over and placed his hand over hers, stopping her from fidgeting with the edge of her dress. He didn’t address it, but he curled his long, warm fingers around hers and he held on.

The hand-holding was nice, and it reminded her of first dates and that sweet anticipation for everything that was to come, but this wasn’t a date. It was a hookup—a hookup with a man who looked like he belonged on the silver screen.

As they walked across the parking lot and up the stairs, he did so in a way it was obvious that he slowed down his long-legged pace. He walked beside her with one hand on her lower back while her hands trembled.

They actually shook.

There had only been a handful of moments in her life when she had been this nervous, this excited. Her emotions were all tangled up in a knot that was clamping down on her chest.

At the door, she missed the slot for the key on the first try, jabbing the key into the metal.

“I got it,” Taylor offered, easily taking the key from her almost numb hands. She stared at his fingers as he slid the key in, but didn’t turn the lock. “Julia?”

Drawing in a shallow breath, she dragged her gaze to his. “Yes?”

His eyes searched her. “I don’t have to turn the key. You can. And we can say good-night. Or I can turn this key and you let me in. And we make it a really good night. It’s your choice.”

Her choice.

Of course it was.

And Julia wanted this—wanted whatever would happen beyond those doors, but she’d never done this before. Ever. There had only been her ex. They’d gotten married young, in college, and she’d never done the one-night stands or gotten a chance to explore casual sex. Not that she hadn’t wanted to since the divorce, but she hadn’t thought really long and hard about it, she hadn’t given herself the opportunity to do so.

Sex . . . sex was a big deal.

She was sorely lacking in the experience department, and it didn’t take a porn star to realize that Taylor was very well versed in all of this.

Julia knew she was way out of her league with him.

But she didn’t want to say good-night. She didn’t want to let him go right then, because she would never see him again. She was leaving tomorrow and he was going wherever he was going. There wasn’t going to be a second chance and she . . . she didn’t want to add tonight, add him, to a list of things she wished she could do over.

So she pulled her shit together and reached out, wrapping her hand around his, and turned the key. “I would like for you to come in.”

Taylor’s chest rose under the dark thermal. “You’ve made my night.”

A smile tugged at her lips as she opened the door, stepping aside. “Um, most of the stuff is packed up. Except for obviously the furniture.” She gestured at the couch as she closed the door. “The furniture will go into storage.”

Taylor walked a few feet ahead, scanning the small apartment. There wasn’t much to it. A living room and small eat-in area in front of the galley kitchen.

“My dad is actually going to handle the whole storage thing since the movers couldn’t come until the weekend,” she rambled on, stepping past him. “The bathroom is right down that hall.” She dropped her wristlet on the island and started to turn around. Did she have time to change her panties into something sexier? Most had been packed and shipped ahead, but maybe she had something nicer in her luggage? “I don’t have a lot of stuff to drink, but I’m sure . . .”

Julia trailed off as her gaze connected with his. She watched Taylor reach and wrap his fingers around the collar of his thermal. Without saying a word, he tugged that piece of clothing over his head and down his arms. Tossing the thermal onto the back of the couch, he lowered his arms.

“Oh,” she whispered, her gaze roaming over him. “Oh my . . .”

Taylor was beautiful.

His skin was a tawny gold color, and there was a whole lot of that skin on display, from broad shoulders all the way to these fascinating indents on either side of his hips and the popped vein that disappeared under his jeans. His chest was extremely well-defined like his biceps were. And his stomach? While he wasn’t overly muscular, he had a legit six-pack.

Julia dimly realized that this was the first time she’d ever seen one in person.

The lopsided grin was back by the time she managed to drag her gaze back up to his. “This is going to sound cliché as hell, but I’m glad you like what you see.”

“Who wouldn’t like this?” she asked, genuinely curious.

The grin spread. “I don’t know. All I care is if you do.”

“You just know the right thing to say, don’t you?”

“Not really.” Taylor came forward. He didn’t just walk. He stalked. “I’m just honest.”

“Really?” Stepping back, she bumped into the island.

“Really.” He stopped in front of her, his gaze burning into hers, searing her skin. A moment passed while she focused on breathing evenly. “You can touch me if you want,” he said. “And I really hope that’s what you want.”

Julia nodded. Or at least she thought she did, because he reached into the small space between them and curled his fingers around her wrist. He brought her hand to his chest. Her breath caught.

Pressing her palm against his chest, he then slid his hand down her arm, his finger reaching under the sleeve of her dress. Her hand flattened against his warm skin. She felt dizzy as he guided her hand down over the dips and planes of his chest.

“How?” she blurted out before should stop herself.

An eyebrow rose. “How what?”

God, what was she thinking? Her hand tingled as her fingers curled against his skin. “How . . . how did we end up here?”

“Well,” he drawled the word out as he glided his hand back down to hers. “We left the bar, got into a car, and drove here, but I’m guessing you don’t mean that.”

“That would be a good guess.”

He dipped his head, resting his forehead against hers. “We got to here, because I saw you and I wanted to get know you better. Then I did. And as I talked to you, I decided I wanted to really get to know you.” He started moving her hand again. The tips of her fingers brushed over his belt. “That’s how we got here.”

A flutter started deep in her chest as her eyes drifted shut. “And you didn’t see any other women and thought they’d be better to get to know?”

His forehead dragged over hers as he tilted his head to the side. His nose brushed hers. “I saw other women.” He paused, and her head fell to the side as his mouth dragged over her cheek. “Women I normally would’ve been interested in getting to know better. Women that are nothing like you.”

She stiffened, her eyes flying open. “Wow. That may be a little too honest.”

“That’s not an insult,” he said, folding his other hand around the nape of her neck. “Trust me.”

“I . . . I have no idea what to say to that,” she admitted.

His chuckle caused her to shiver. “Maybe you don’t have to say anything?”

“Maybe.”

Taylor was on the move again and she felt his breath first just below her ear and then his lips. He kissed her pulse and then he nipped at her skin. His tongue darted over the bite, soothing the skin. A moan bubbled up her throat.

Heat blasted her veins, sending out a bolt of pure need that nearly took her legs out from underneath her. Then he was guiding her hand down again, beyond the belt.

Julia gasped.

Goodness, she could feel him, hard and thick under his jeans. There was no faking that kind of response he was having. Maybe she wasn’t normally the type of woman he went for, but he was into this.

He drew back. “Do you feel that?”

Unable to speak, she nodded.

“So you get how we got here now? Why I’m here?” he asked. “My dick is hard for you. Not anyone else back at the bar.” He pressed her hand against him, folding her fingers around the length. “That’s all for you.”

Her entire face flushed red.

Taylor stilled, looking down at her. Surprise flickered across his face, followed by understanding. “You really haven’t done this before, have you?” He drew her hand away from his cock, bringing her palm back to his chest. “The whole hookup thing?”

Shaking her head, she wondered if her face was going to burn right off. “I really haven’t.”

“I see.” Sucking that bottom lip between his teeth, he trailed a fingertip down her neck. “You really are a good girl. I like it.”

She stared up at him, her heart trying to claw its way out of her chest.

“But do you know what I like even more?” Lowering his head, his lips brushed along her cheek as he said, “I know there’s a very bad girl in there who wants to come out and play.”

There was a good chance that she did, she really did.

His lashes lowered for a brief moment and then that unnerving stare locked on to hers. “I’m going to do something that you’re really, really going to enjoy. Okay?”

She was going to go into cardiac arrest. “Okay.”

A smile appeared on his mouth and then vanished. His hands were suddenly on her arms and without warning, he spun her around. She gasped once more when he drew her back against him, fitting his hard body against hers.

Before she could question what he was doing, his mouth was on her neck. He trailed a blazing path of tiny, hot kisses down the length as his hands drifted off her arms. Her eyes were wide, fixed on the dark cabinet doors across from her as his palms crested over her breasts. They immediately swelled, the tips tightening to almost painful points. Julia’s hips tipped back, into his, and she bit down on her lip at the sound of his deep, throaty growl.

God, she never heard a man make that sound before. Not like that. Not like he was about to devour her.

Those hands kept moving, sliding down her sides and then over her hips. His fingers bunched, dragging the skirt of her dress up. Then his fingers were slipping over the bare skin of her outer thighs as he nipped and licked at the skin of her neck.

Her heart was pounding all over the place when his mouth left her neck and then he was suddenly dipping behind her. At first she had no idea what he was doing. She started to twist toward him, but stopped when those fingers caught the hem of her panties and dragged them down.

Oh God.

“Step out them,” he ordered, his voice harsh in the quiet apartment.

Julia obeyed, placing a hand on his counter to balance herself as she lifted one leg and then the other. Within seconds, the panties were forgotten on the floor and he was rising once more, dragging those hands up her legs. His stomach was to her back once more. One hand stayed at her bare hip and the other made its way to the collar of her dress.

“How pissed are you going to be if I ruin this dress?” he asked.

“Not . . . a lot.”

“Perfect,” he murmured, and then he gripped the front of her dress. Her body jerked.

Julia could barely breathe as her entire body pulsed in response to the sound of the material tearing. She looked down as cold air washed over her chest. Her bra was exposed between the gaping material. Thank God it was cute, a lacy black one that gave her amazing cleavage.

And he seemed to like what he saw over her shoulder. “Damn, these are beautiful, Julia.” He let go of her dress and the material gaped even more. “You’re beautiful.”

Her head fell back against his chest as his hand slipped under the cup of her bra. She watched through narrow slits as he pushed the cup aside, baring one breast.

Taylor’s groan sent another bolt of lust through her. “You watching?”

She didn’t want to answer.

“Julia?”

She wet her lips. “Yes.”

“Good.” His hand folded around her breast. “I don’t want you to miss a second of this.”

No way that was happening.

She couldn’t look away as his thumb dragged over the rosy, puckered skin and then over nipple. There was no stopping the moan this time, and the sound turned into his name. She was beyond reason as he stroked her breast before he moved to the other cup. He did the same, pushing material aside and baring her breast.

His arm curled over her stomach and this time his fingers found one aching nipple. He caught it between his thumb and forefinger, then did something that caused her entire body to jolt and a rush of wet warmth to pool between her thighs.

“Oh God,” she gasped.

“Mmm.” His mouth coasted along the skin of her neck again. “You liked that.”

She didn’t need to answer, because he knew. He did it again, and her hips moved on reflex as a whole different kind of ache blossomed. Taylor must’ve sensed it, because using one powerful thigh, he nudged her legs farther apart. Every muscle in her body tensed as his hand traveled off her hip and over her inner thigh.

“You’re holding your breath,” he said into her ear.

She was, she so was.

“Cute.”

A tremble rocked her body as his knuckles brushed against the very center of her. Then she felt the lightest touch, lazily trailing back and forth, teasing and taunting. “You’re very wet, Ms. Hughes.”

Beyond being embarrassed or shocked by the rawness of his words, she could only whimper out something that sort of sounded like an agreement.

“We’re going to have to do something about that,” he advised as his thumb got involved, circling a very sensitive part. “What do you think?”

Panting for breath, she got her tongue working. “I think . . . that we do.”

Taylor rewarded her answer by pressing down on the bundle of nerves. Crying out, she arched against his hand. He cupped her, hauling her back against him, and oh Lord, there was something so hot about that. She could feel him throbbing against her lower back, and she was drenched, drowning.

Just as his teeth caught the lobe of her ear, he slipped one finger into her. A strangled sort of sound left her. One hand moved over her breast while the other slowly, torturously moved in and out of her.

Her heart thundered in her chest and she was breathless at how easily he’d taken complete control of her body with just his hands, his fingers. And she was astonished by how quickly she let go, how fast she stopped thinking.

Julia’s body moved, pushing back at his hands, and she gripped each of his wrists with one hand, hanging on and holding him to her. When he eased another finger into her, he groaned. The stirrings of release built deep inside her. Her hips were moving faster.

“That’s it.” His voice was a hot whisper against her ear. “Ride my fingers.”

Her heart rate skyrocketed as those sinful words carved their way in as deep as his fingers were going. Julia’s eyes fell shut as she did just that, grinding down and back against him. He picked up the pace as he tipped his chin down, burying his mouth in the crook of her neck.

Tension coiled, spinning tighter and tighter until it became too much. “Oh God, I can’t . . .” She pulled at his hand.

“You can.” He kept going, refusing her plea. “You will.”

It was too much, too intense, and there was no escaping the maddening rush. Julia was burning up inside. Lava was flowing in her blood, and just when she thought she would surely erupt into flames, he hooked his fingers deep inside her and the tension exploded.

“That’s it.” His voice was gruff and thick.

“Oh . . . oh God,” she cried out, her entire body shuddering as a startling release powered through her body. It was like bottled lightning in her veins, blowing out of every nerve ending.

It was agony of the sweetest kind and it slayed her, scattering her thoughts as the release rippled and eased. Sated and stunned, she slumped against his chest, breathing heavily. She might’ve fallen right to the floor if he hadn’t circled an arm around her waist.

Julia’s head lolled to the side and for a few moments, she was still, feeling the pounding of his heart against her back. His fingers were still in her and when he slowly eased them out, she felt another deep, pulsing throb.

She swallowed hard. “I . . . that was amazing.”

Taylor was quiet as he pressed a kiss to the side of her neck and dragged his hand out from under the skirt of her dress. Then he was still again, and she could feel him against her lower back. The realization there was more to come nearly bowled her over. If he could do that with just his fingers, what could he do with that?

Oh God.

He was going to kill her in the best possible way.

But then he did the strangest thing. He fixed her bra and then turned her around, facing him. Her eyes fluttered open, finding those peculiar blue-green eyes focused on hers. “Taylor?”

Lifting his hands from her body, he cupped her cheeks. A thumb tugged over her bottom lip as his gaze flickered over her face. He leaned in, his warm breath following the path of his gaze, dancing over her cheeks and her eyes before settling on her lips.

Finally, he was going to kiss her. Anticipation swelled again and her eyes drifted shut. If he kissed like he touched her, she would combust right there.

“Thank you,” he said, and a slight frown pulled at her brows. He was thanking her? Then he kissed her—kissed the center of her forehead.

Julia’s eyes flew opened.

The lopsided grin returned and for several moments Taylor just stared at her. She had no idea what was happening, but he lowered his mouth to her ear and whispered something that she couldn’t have heard right, because it didn’t make any sense.

And then he was letting her go and he was backing away, his gaze trained on her, and Julia was still standing there—as he opened that door and walked out.

Gone.

Her brain still mush from an amazing orgasm, all she could do was stand there and stare at the space he’d been in moments prior. Taylor was gone without him, well, getting off. And he was gone without an exchange of phone numbers or a kiss, but not without goodbye.

Julia thought he’d whispered “until next time” in her ear, but that made no sense. None. He had to have said something else and her brain was too useless to decipher it correctly. Not that anyone could blame her for that, because—

Wait.

He’d said her last name. More than once.

Julia slumped against the counter, eyes squinting. Unless Anna had told him her last name, how in the world had he’d known it?