Reesa’s sides hurt, and her face ached with the laughter they’d shared all evening. “And how old were you?” she asked as Marc finished telling a hilarious story about his first fight.

“I was eleven. And I never knew what hit me. I had to get the details from my friend Bobby later. Needless to say, I learned at an early age that I’m no fighter, and I haven’t had a brawl since.” His eyes sparkled with delight, and she admired that he could share something most men would consider a weakness, despite his rather large ego.

They sat on opposite sides of her oversized loveseat, turned to face each other, the empty cartons of food long discarded on the heavy mahogany coffee table. The camaraderie came easily between them, almost easier than her friendship with Kylie at times. Her best friend’s energy could get a little neurotic and overwhelming. Marc remained calm and aloof, even when his expression constantly belied his intense passion for life.

“At least you know your limitations,” she commented.

“It’s a constant learning curve,” he chuckled. “What about you? Have you ever gotten into a fight? Clawed some girl’s face and pulled her hair over a boy or anything?”

Reesa froze, her chest paralyzed in mid-breath. This didn't feel right, and she answered quietly, "No, I've never had a girl fight." Lightening her statement before he could question her, she smiled and added, "I didn't exactly care too much about romance and all that in school. And I didn't have much time for it later."

Marc reached out and stroked her cheek, a soft but teasing smile on his lips. “I can’t imagine how any of the guys let you get away with that. You’re beautiful, Reesa, and you’re too much fun to be around. And if you don’t believe me, didn’t you see the way everyone ate you up today?”

She knew she was blushing fiercely, but she couldn’t bring herself to pull away from his touch, barely able to keep from leaning into it. Never had anyone caressed her face so tenderly, looked at her with such adoration. Even if it wasn’t real and it was all about breaking down her shields, it felt good for a change.

Not even Ethan had given her that.

The name rolled through her mind and brought her back to reality. Slowly, she backed away from Marc and got to her feet, starting to clean up the mess on the table. “What’s wrong, Reesa?”

“Nothing’s wrong. It’s just getting late, and I have to work tomorrow. I don’t want to wake up and have to clean first thing in the morning.”

“Reesa, stop. I don’t know what I did to upset you, but I’m sorry.” Reesa kept moving, not addressing his comment. She couldn’t, or she would explode with emotion. “Reesa, please.” He stood and touched her arm, but she shook him off.

When he touched her again, she whirled on him, fire in her eyes. “I’ve enjoyed our evening up to this point, Marc, but it’s time to call it a night.”

“You don’t want that.” His voice was low, could be construed as menacing if she didn’t know better. Marc’s eyes pleaded with her, begged her not to turn him away, though his face set into a demanding expression. “Whatever I did, I’m sorry. Just don’t push me away right now.”

The words were barely a whisper, and Jordan’s concern that she would hurt Marc slammed into her chest. What was she doing here? And why, even though they barely knew each other, did she hear the first vestiges of pain in his voice at her rejection? “You didn’t do anything wrong, Marc,” she told him with resignation.

He scoffed. “Let me guess. ‘It’s not you, it’s me.’” He shook his head. “I’m not falling for it, Reesa. Everything changed in a heartbeat. The air in the room went from warm to frigid. I did that, and I wish you’d tell me how so I could avoid it in the future.”

He stood too close, and she couldn’t gather her thoughts. Taking a half step back, she threw her arms up in exasperation. “I have a celebrity in my apartment, who seems genuine about liking me but can’t be trusted because he’s spent too much time convincing people he’s something else entirely. And no matter how I try to remind myself of that, my body keeps telling me it doesn’t matter, that I’m far too attracted to you to care if you’re going to call me again or not.”

Marc inhaled sharply at the last, and she watched his inner struggle pass over his face, his hands fist at his side as his eyes heated, turning a deep green. When he spoke, his voice was ragged, sounded almost tortured. “Tell me what to do to reassure you that I’m not here to use you.”

Reesa shook her head, not trusting her voice. She had no strength to brace against his gravitational pull, and she found herself leaning toward him. Just as she thought she would fall, he caught her in his arms and brought her to him, closing the gap as she let go of her inhibitions. The kiss was almost frantic, filled with a need she’d never possessed before, and he returned the gesture with the same fervor. He tasted of salt and soy sauce and, beneath that, the intimate flavor she already recognized as his from their previous night together.

Like an addiction, it fueled her, and she draped her arms around his neck, threaded her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck to pull him closer. Her resistance melted, and she pressed her body wantonly against his. To hell with romance and expectations, she thought. For once, she would take Kylie’s advice and live in the moment.

As the decision was made, her body came to life, every nerve ending sparking with sensation. Marc's lips and tongue plied her mouth, but it touched every inch of her, electrifying her reactions and bringing out a long-buried desire that threatened to spiral out of control and take over. Even now, as she let her tongue dance with his, Reesa knew she was already lost to the passion that flared like a wildfire through her veins, devouring all the oxygen in her blood until she thought she might pass out.

Marc caught her against him, becoming the aggressor as she lost her footing. Somehow, he held her up as his hands explored her body, cupping her breasts and teasing at the swollen nubs at their peaks. She panted into his mouth as she rubbed against the erection pressed to her belly, making him groan as his cock twitched in response.

Leaving her mouth, Marc’s lips traced her jaw back to her ear and then down the sensitive skin of her throat to the hollow beneath. She let her head fall back, reveling in the joy of his kisses and the warmth of his hands as he drew her sweater up and touched the bare skin of her sides beneath. Her own fingers trembled, splaying across his chest and then she shoved them under the thin material of his shirt to do what she’d wanted to earlier in the locker room. She teased at the sparse curls on his chest, traced the lines of his muscles.

Working off instinct like some animal without reasoning ability, she tugged at his shirt impatiently until he let go of her and yanked the material over his head. Reesa reached for him, but rather than continuing the assault with his mouth, he grabbed the hem of her sweater, drawing it over her head, and then he reached around her back and unclasped her bra so her breasts spilled out, heavy and greedy for his touch.

Marc made a strangled sound and descended on her once again, his kiss more demanding this time, and Reesa didn't resist. In fact, she delighted in the sensation of his teeth nibbling at her lip, his fingers tweaking her pebbled nipples, his hard-on thrusting hard against his jeans.

Her stomach clenched, and her pussy dripped with need, the hot moisture shocking against the cool material of her panties and leggings. “Marc!” she muttered against his lips. She didn’t know what she begged for, whether it was a moment to catch her breath or a need for him to smother her completely. But in response, he moaned into her mouth, and his hands slid down to cup her rear and push her tighter against his cock.

Reesa threw her head back and cried out wordlessly, her arousal so intense it was agonizing. Pushing at his shoulders and clawing him forward at the same time, she breathed, “Let’s go to the bedroom.”

Marc gazed down at her, his eyes hooded and cloudy with desire, and then he searched the room until his gaze landed on her closed bedroom door. She could feel his rapid heartbeat against her chest as he lifted her, forcing her to wrap her legs around him, and started toward their destination. Her position had him firmly settled against her, and she couldn’t help but rub herself along his hard shaft. He grunted and smacked her ass before opening the door.

“Patience, Reesa. I don’t want this to end too fast,” he growled at her, his mouth to her ear and his breath tickling down the back of her neck under her hair.

But she had no patience, wanted to feel his throbbing length inside her, sooner than later, and she boldly shifted to stroke him with her body again. Marc all but tossed her on the bed, looming over her as he fell on top of her. His skin glistened with a fine sheen of sweat, and she licked her lips, wondering what he tasted like.

Before she could make a move, Marc buried his face in her breasts, laving at them and nipping at her buds until she arched her back, desperate for him to continue. Instead, he moved down to her flat stomach, lingering over her navel as he traced a circle around it with his tongue. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak, and then the waist of her leggings was in his mouth as he drew them down, along with her panties. His teeth scraped over her legs in his efforts, and she whimpered at the blissful chills they caused as they heated her core, causing blood to rush to the folds between her thighs.

He slid back up her body, stopping as he found that juncture, and he pushed at the flesh on her inner thighs, forcing her to spread her legs. When his tongue flicked out along her moist lips, she shouted and writhed, a boiling pressure building and aching in her pussy, but he didn’t stop. He did it again, and then he sucked her clit into his mouth, causing an eruption inside and behind her eyelids as she squeezed them shut. The orgasm overtook her like a tidal wave, stealing her breath and balance, and she didn’t know anything but the incredible pleasure as he teased and tormented.

Finally, he had mercy on her, raising his head to meet her eyes over the flat plane of her stomach, between the swell of her breasts. His mouth glistened, and his eyes shone with triumph and need. She reached for him, wanting him inside her more than ever as her body quaked, begging for more. He shed his jeans quickly, and she gulped at the sight of his cock, thick and standing tall against his lower abdomen. He was perfect, large and ready, and she bent her knees, spreading wide in invitation for him to settle himself between her thighs.

Crawling up her body, his skin slid easily over hers, their sweat mingling to remove any friction, and he kissed her enticingly, the languorous motions of his tongue belying his obvious eagerness to burying himself inside her. If she had to plead…

But then his tip slid along her folds, and she shuddered at the contact, the anticipation eating her alive. “You’re so wet,” he spoke against her lips.

“And you’re hard and ready,” she countered, wrapping her arms around his neck, her legs around his waist. She dug her heels into his hips, urging him forward. “Stop teasing already.”

Her words triggered something primal in him, and Marc let out a low, rumbling growl as he thrust into her, deep and hard. Reesa gasped, his size almost too much, and she trembled as she adjusted to how he stretched her. It was delicious, and as he began to piston in and out of her with a carefully controlled rhythm, she lifted her hips to meet each thrust of his cock. Marc squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth, goosebumps raising on his skin as she drew her hands up and down his back, dragged her nails over his shoulders. Then, his eyes opened, his gaze capturing hers as he moved faster, shoved deeper, and their bodies joined to the deepest point.

The pressure built again, threatening to throw her over a cliff in a freefall to crashing waves below, and Reesa fought the desire to let it go. She wanted more, wanted to embrace an eruption the likes of which she’d never felt. If she only got one chance at this, she would milk it for everything she could.

But her body betrayed her again, too weak to hold on by a thin thread. She snapped, and spasms of complete ecstasy racked her body as her pussy tightened around him, her walls squeezing and releasing over and over until Marc lost his own control and sheathed himself fully with a scream, spilling into her as his body rocked and shivered on top of her. For one brief moment, they were interlocked, and Reesa thought she could hear his thoughts, feel what he felt. She shared everything with him for just a second, and then she came down from her high, exhausted and spent.

Her limbs fell heavily at her side, and her head lolled, her eyelids weighing a thousand pounds each. But somehow, the dead weight that was Marc on top of her was light and comforting, like a familiar blanket. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she noticed when he rolled off her and covered her with a blanket, but by then, she’d already found the peace of a deep sleep and couldn’t bring herself out of it.