My heart skipped a few beats, my whole body growing warm because he was here. Just his mere presence made me feel all these intense feelings that couldn’t compare to anything I’d felt with other men. I’d hoped he wouldn’t look around and see me, but I had no such luck because he didn’t even move from the door, searching around the restaurant for something... Until his eyes landed on me.

Damn. He moved toward our table, and the lack of surprise on his face told me he expected to see me here. He was looking for me.

“Good evening, Marissa,” he greeted me in his deep voice when he stopped next to our table. I’d missed his sensual voice.

He glanced at Jack with raised eyebrows, as if he couldn’t believe I was actually with someone like him. Then he scanned Jack’s suit, and I could discern the same reaction I’d had earlier. He didn’t like Jack’s taste in clothes either.

I didn’t bother with pleasantries. “What are you doing here?”

“I see that you don’t want to make things easy for me.”

“Why should I? You’re the one who disappeared off the face of the earth.”

Jack glanced at us, completely baffled with the sudden turn of events. “Guys? Do you know each other?”

I was close to rolling my eyes, wondering how more oblivious this guy could get.

“Obviously,” Daniel replied to him flatly, looking at him like he was a moron. “Look, we need to talk,” he told me. “I’m really sorry. I was a fool for not calling you sooner.”

“You think? Maybe I don’t want to talk with you now. And how did you know I was here?”

“I searched for you in the clinic, but you weren’t there. Luckily, I stumbled on your friend, Claire, in the hallways, and I asked her to tell me where I could find you.”

Ugh. Claire, that traitor. I couldn’t believe she’d actually told him my whereabouts, especially since she’d encouraged me to go on a date with Jack and give this dating thing a shot. I wouldn’t be surprised if Daniel’s looks helped her loosen her tongue. I needed to have a serious talk with her about this later.

“You didn’t have any right to ask her. You’re invading my privacy, and you clearly showed how you feel about what we had. Actually, we didn’t have anything, so you can turn around and leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere because we need to talk. I need you to listen to me. I have to explain some things to you.”

“I don’t need to listen to your explanations or anything. As I said, we’re nothing. So save your excuses for yourself.”

“Please, come with me, Marissa, and just let me explain, okay? If you still choose not to see me after that, I’ll respect that and leave you for good. You have my word.”

Jack didn’t say a word, growing more confused with each sentence exchanged between Daniel and I. I felt slightly ashamed that he had to witness this, angry that Daniel had to choose this moment to do this.

“Fine,” I said unwillingly, wanting to get this over with. “I’ll come with you. But that doesn’t mean anything.”

A sexy smile spread across Daniel’s face, reminding me of how much he attracted me, and I wished my body didn’t respond that easily to him.

“Sorry, man,” Daniel told Jack, not looking apologetic at all.

I let out a long sigh, finding something positive in this situation. At least I didn’t have to endure boring Jack anymore. This date had been a failure anyway.

“I’m sorry for having to end our date this way, Jack. Thank you for your time and for the lovely dinner.” It had been all but lovely, but he didn’t have to know that.

Poor Jack looked completely confused, still looking at Daniel and me as if he was watching a tennis match. “But we will see each other again, right?”

Daniel threw a smile of pity on his face, shaking his head at him, which invited redness to spread all over Jack’s cheeks.

“I’m sorry, Jack,” I repeated my previous words. “I think it would be better if we don’t see each other again. Once more, thank you for the lovely dinner.”

I wore a polite smile as I left the money for my meal on the table and followed Daniel out of the restaurant, relieved that the tedious date was finished at last.

“You really know how to pick ‘em,” Daniel teased me and motioned to me to enter his red sports car.

I assessed the sleek machine before I got inside, thinking how it suited Daniel perfectly. The interior exuded power and dominance, which stirred my insides and imagination. I could easily imagine him taking me right here, bringing me to the edge again and again as I rode him fast...

Stop, Marissa. Get a grip.

“I surely do,” I replied, glancing pointedly at him, and he grew serious, taking us away from the parking lot in a few fleeting seconds.

“You love speed?” I asked as I watched the speed needle move way above the limit.

He winked, preceding his charming smile that lightened his face. “I love everything that gives me an adrenaline rush.”

“Where are you taking me?”

“To the beach.”

I faced him, cocking my head to the side. “The beach? Why?”

“I have a favorite spot. It’s quiet and secluded. You’ll see.”

We spent the rest of the ride in silence, which allowed me to examine him from the corner of my eye. He looked devilishly handsome, his face covered with a short beard that enhanced his looks and made me crave him more. Why did he have to look so good?

Twenty minutes later we arrived at one of the exclusive beaches, which was completely empty at this hour. The hypnotizing sound of the waves helped me cope better with my nerves. Now that we were here, I was dying to hear what he had to say.

We reached the place that was partly hidden from the rest of the beach with a huge wall of rocks and the dense palm trees. Without hesitation, he sat down on the sand, not caring at all that he was in a suit that was in no way appropriate for this setting.

“This is my favorite spot,” he said when I sat next to him, only several inches separating us.

The occasional gushes of wind brought his smell right to my nostrils, rewarding me with his enticing male scent. It was an amalgam of cologne, soap, and his own unique smell, which drove me crazy.

“Why this spot?”

His eyes wandered all around us, letting the quietness between us stretch. “It’s peaceful, and I like the sea. My life is hectic, and sometimes all those days spent in the office can make me stressed, so I like to come here when the things become too much for me to handle them. How about you? Do you have a favorite spot?”

“I thought you brought me here to explain yourself, not chit-chat,” I replied, my voice sounding harsher than I’d intended it to be. His eyes hooded, his whole posture turning rigid, and I reproached myself for speaking without thinking. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to be rude.”

“I guess I deserved that. Look, I’m sorry for not calling you. No matter what I say now doesn’t justify me being a douchebag, but I want you to know how I felt.”

I inched closer to him, finding a hint of something vulnerable when his eyes darkened. He looked away from me, crossing his arms over his chest.

“The thing is—I don’t trust myself. I had some self-doubt these days that was eating me from the inside out, and I didn’t want to drag you right into it. It wouldn’t be fair.”

Now, this was something I definitely hadn’t anticipated.

“What are you talking about, Daniel? Why don’t you trust yourself?”

“Isn’t it obvious, Marissa? I’m a sex addict. I’m damaged goods, you know? I won’t bring you anything good, especially since I have this addiction. That was why I backed off. I don’t want to hurt you.”

Oh. It all clicked now. Not even once had I thought about the way he could be feeling about all of this, expecting him to be nonchalant about what we’d had—whatever that was. Hearing that he cared enough not to hurt me moved me, and that intensified with each second our eyes rested on each other.

So, he did feel something for me. Despite knowing better, I let this information sink in and bring me comfort and warmth I’d missed these last few days.

“Why didn’t you talk with me, Daniel? I’m a therapist, for Christ’s sake. I’m the most competent person to hear you out and help you.”

“Because we crossed the line. This became personal, so we can’t just switch back to our previous roles. I thought I could handle it on my own. I thought I was going to leave you alone before things turn more serious and let you live your life.”

I didn’t even remember when I moved my hand, which was now tenderly caressing his cheek. “Then why did you look for me this evening? Why didn’t you stay away?”

He reached for the strand of my hair that was falling down my shoulder and took it in between his fingers. I watched mesmerized as he stroked my hair, feeling too turned on to breathe normally. I was aware of his nearness—of the way his eyes traced my face, my body... He wasn’t immune to this. He felt our connection too.

“Because you have something that makes me want to come back to you. You make me feel good. You make me feel, which confuses me because I’ve never felt this way before.”

His words were destroying my resolution to stay away from him, making me pliable. All of a sudden, nothing else mattered but this moment between us. His lips were inviting me to kiss them, helping me forget about my latest decision to give up on Daniel. Right now, nothing else mattered but this man in front of me, whom I wanted to kiss senseless.

Before I knew it, his lips were on mine—claiming me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me, my tongue clashing wildly against his. Our mouths took and received with fervor, all the feelings we suppressed coming to the surface through the hot contact of our lips.

The next moment, he was on top of me, pressing me into the ground as his lips consumed me once more. He moaned into my mouth, his hands feeling the curves of my body as they roamed all over me.

By the time he separated from me and sat up, I wasn’t able to think, looking at the starry sky completely dazed.

“I want to tell you something.” He wasn’t facing me, so I couldn’t see his expression. I remained on the ground, needing this slight distance so I could clear my mind.

“Okay.”

“I didn’t tell this to anyone before. You asked me about the reason for my addiction, but I wasn’t ready to talk about it because the story ends up to be really ugly.”

I didn’t respond, not wanting him to feel pressured or vulnerable. So I waited for him to let the words out at his own pace.

“I was a freshman in college when I fell in love for the first time. Up until then, I thought true love didn’t exist, but that girl was something special and made me feel new things. So when we started dating, it was pretty serious, and I was even ready to propose to her one day.”

I stared at his back, annoyed with myself for feeling jealous of someone from his past. It was absurd, but that that didn’t make this weight in my stomach any lighter.

“But then I found out that she’d cheated on me. It happened quite often and with various guys. It pretty much broke my heart, and I wasn’t the same after that. Ever since then, I couldn’t let myself trust anyone.”

I placed my hand on his and gave it a reassuring squeeze, feeling for him. I was sorry to hear that he had to go through such an experience. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He looked at me over his shoulder, his unguarded eyes telling me more than his words, and I squeezed his hand once more in support. “Back then, I thought I could escape the painful feelings of her betrayal by screwing around.”

He exhaled a long sigh, raising his head to look at the sky. “It was pointless. I was just feeling worse—to the point of losing all my emotions. All women seemed the same to me, and I couldn’t even bring myself to ask them for their number. I went from one to the other, and soon enough I fell into a pattern I couldn’t get out of. By the time I realized I had issues, it was already too late.”

I got into a sitting position and cupped his chin, making him look at me. “Thank you for telling me this. Now everything makes sense.”

“I’m fucked up, Marissa.”

“It’s nothing that can’t be solved. Sex became a way for you to escape your feelings, your reality, and since you were highly vulnerable at that time, you reached for the seemingly obvious solution.”

He pulled my hand into his and pressed a kiss on my palm, never breaking our eye contact. “So that was before. Before I met you,” he said barely audibly, which induced a sweet pang in my chest. “I met you and I actually started feeling something, but I’m not sure what that is. I feel different when I’m with you, and I like it. I don’t want to lose it.”

“What do you want to say? You want to continue seeing me?”

“Absolutely. I don’t want to waste my time ignoring my feelings when I can spend it with you. You make me feel alive, Marissa. That’s why I want to see how everything will go between us.” His fingers grazed my lips before they continued to my neck. I let a small moan out, loving his sweet caresses. “Do you want it?”

I could hardly focus on the words when his hand was touching me so intimately, already under my blouse and over my breast. His thumb moved across my nipple, turning it into a hard bud, and my mound contracted in increasing desire.

“Yes,” I moaned and threw my head back, needing him more than anything. “Please, touch me.”

His smirk brought more heat to my pussy. “You love me touching you, huh?” he whispered into my ear and pulled me back down on the sand, lying right next to me.

“Yes. I love everything you do to me.”

“You make me so hard, Marissa.” He leaned away to look at my whole body, admiration written on his face as his gaze lingered on my bare legs. “You’re so beautiful. This dress is perfect for you.”

“You like it?”

“I love it.”

His lips covered mine, his tongue pushing inside my mouth roughly, as his hand traveled down my stomach and underneath my dress. Our hot kiss made my vulva swell, so when his thumb brushed against my clit, I felt like I was in heaven. This was exactly what I needed.

“Your pussy is something else.” He pushed my dress up and lowered my underwear, exposing my nakedness to him. “Look at it. So pink and beautiful. You’re amazing.”

“Daniel...”

His fingers moved tantalizingly slow, bringing me so little but promising so much. I bucked my hips, again and again, to meet his hand, silently urging him to accelerate his movements, but he went slowly on purpose.

“Daniel, please. Faster.”

“No, sweetie. I intend to make this extremely good for you.”

Just his words brought me ecstasy that bordered on pain. He circled around my hole, never actually probing it before he returned to my vulva and clit. He repeated this a few times until he finally thrust his fingers deep into me, making me convulse under the sudden rush of pleasure.

“Daniel! Yes!”

“You like me fucking your wet pussy?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want my cock deep inside of you?”

“Yes! Oh God, Daniel, I need it right now.”

His chuckle ripped through the air. “Patience, baby. You’ll get my cock soon enough but not here.”

“No?”

“No. I’ll take you to my place and fuck you in all ways possible. You’ll be sore by the time I finish with you.”

Another moan left my lips, my body burning with arousal. “Yes. I want you to fuck me, Daniel. I want you to fuck me long and hard.”

“Jesus.” He shifted on his side, fingering me faster. “You’re making me rock-hard, and it hurts.”

“You know the way to solve it. Enter my pussy, Daniel. Make me yours.”

My words had the same effect on him as his had on me, which prompted him to add two more fingers, fucking me with four digits now.

I couldn’t stop screaming, not caring at all that someone could hear us, as I squirmed frantically. He moved so that he could use his other hand and rubbed my clit at the same time, giving me double pleasure, which built up pretty quickly.

“Daniel! Yes! I’ll come!” I thrust my hips at his hands, completely engulfed in ecstasy, and let a scream out when I orgasmed. “Daniel!”

I called his name repeatedly as the ripples of powerful sensations coursed through me for a couple of blissful moments. After a while, I was finally brought down from my high, and I turned my head to look at him, feeling well spent.

“That was amazing,” I murmured, grinning at him.

“This was nothing.” He pecked a kiss on my lips. “Let’s go. The night has just started.”