Cam

 

“Reese, wait!”

She just increased her speed again, so I increased mine. Why was she running? She acted as if she were escaping me, running from me, and not from what happened back there. She reached the door to the stairwell and darted inside, I’m guessing because she knew she wouldn’t make it to the elevator before I caught her.

I’ve got news for you, sweetheart. You won’t escape me in there, either.

She was on the landing between the first and second floors when I grabbed her arm and spun her around. “I said stop.”

She wriggled around, struggling to release the grasp I had on her. I wasn’t letting go, though. She wasn’t getting away from me this time.

“You said not to run from you,” she snapped. “You didn’t say anything about walking…hastily.”

I shook my head in astonishment. “Do you ever stop being a smart ass?”

She shrugged. “One of my many talents.”

Enough of the wordplay. “Why were you trying to get away from me?”

She pursed her lips, refusing to meet my eyes. “I wasn’t running from you.”

“Why were you running at all?” When she still wouldn’t answer, I backed her into the corner, pushing forward until her body was pressed against the wall. “Tell me, Reese.”

She threw her hands up, obviously frustrated. “I just didn’t like what happened back there, okay? I was…” She vigorously shook her head. “I don’t know. I was embarrassed!”

Oo-kay. That made zero sense.

“What were you embarrassed about?”

Sensing she needed some space, I released her arm. I wouldn’t give her enough space to get away but just a little. When she rubbed her temples, I had the bizarre impulse to put my arms around her and pull her close. Comfort her. Huh. That was new.

Then a dark thought occurred to me. Something that might explain her upset.

“They didn’t…” Shit. I wasn’t sure if I could even say it. “They didn’t…touch you or anything, did they?”

Not even God would be able to help them if they had.

She choked out a groan. “Oh my God, no. Don’t even go there. They were just being rude jackasses. I was about to leave when you guys walked in. I just felt…exposed. I didn’t like the fact that you had to come in and basically threaten the guy for me.”

My hands clenched. The mere mention of that asshole made me want to go track him down and punch his teeth into next week. The way he’d been looking at Reese when I’d walked in. The manner in which his body had been poised. What the hell had he been about to do?

I couldn’t think about it.

“The prick deserved to be threatened.”

“That’s not the point,” she said, blowing out a heavy breath. “I can take care of myself, Cam.”

For some reason, the way she said my name softened all the fierce emotions coursing through me. She usually called me Donovan, especially when she was pissed. Other times, she had far more colorful names for me. But I liked the way Cam rolled off her tongue.

A tongue that I very much wanted to taste.

I lifted my hand to push a strand of hair that had fallen out of her bun behind her ear. “I know you can take care of yourself, sweetheart.” I laughed. “Hell, I have no doubt you could easily emasculate even the toughest of men. I basically put my balls on the chopping block every time I face off against you.”

Laughter bubbled out of her sweet mouth, easing more of my anger.

“You have no idea how lucky you are to still have those,” she said.

I grinned. “What happened in there has nothing to do with you not being able to handle yourself. That was just us looking out for you. You’ve become like a sister to most of the guys”—except for me—“and they feel like it’s their responsibility to have your back.”

Her hazel eyes pierced mine. “Do you? See me as a sister?”

Not in a million fucking years.

“Do you really have to ask?” I rasped. I heard her breath hitch, so I pushed. Even though I knew I shouldn’t. “Since the day we met, I’ve felt many things toward you. But not one of those has been brotherly affection. Not for a second.”

“Then what would you call them?”

I leaned forward and braced my hands on the wall beside her head, boxing her in. “Aggravation. Confusion. Anger.”

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Gee, I’m flattered.”

My mouth twitched. “Also fascination. Anticipation. Curiosity.”

Her eyes searched mine. “Is that all?”

So she was pushing, too? Game on.

“Do you want me to say it?” I whispered, bringing my face closer to hers.

“How do I know what you mean if you don’t?”

She asked for it.

“How about…lust? Arousal. Desire, sweetheart. Is that what you wanted to hear?”

Her breathing turned shallow. “Only if it’s the truth.”

I slowly shook my head. “Unfortunately, it is.”

“Why unfortunately?”

Oh, if you only knew. “Because I’ve had so many…ideas. And I can’t act on any of them.”

Confusion marred her features. “Why not?”

I couldn’t tell her about her father’s warning to all of us, though he’d never exactly said not to. But something told me it wouldn’t go down well if she found out. Plus, I didn’t want her thinking I was afraid of her dad. I wasn’t. There was just more to consider in this particular equation.

“Let me rephrase that,” I said. “I shouldn’t act on any of them.”

Her eyebrows drew together. Damn it, she looked both sexy and cute at the same time. “I don’t understand, Cam.”

And she really needed to stop saying my name that way. Too many scenarios came to mind when that word reached my ears. Not to mention the fact that I could feel her warm breath caress the skin of my neck.

Then it hit me.

Her cherry vanilla scent.

Goddamn it. This was too much.

I pushed away, turning my back to her so I wouldn’t have to see her trapped there in that corner for the taking. I put my hands behind my head, sucking in deep breaths. I just needed to leave. Walk right out and not look back.

“Okay, you can’t judge me for this later, but…” She trailed off and I waited in silence for her next words. “Nobody’s looking right now,” she said in a soft voice. “Nobody’s around to see what happens here.”

Everything within me stilled.

Fuck. She couldn’t be serious.

“And I won’t tell if you don’t.”

I looked over my shoulder to see her standing there, eagerness on her face. She was killing me right now.

“You don’t even like me.”

She lifted a shoulder. “You don’t like me, either.”

Not true. I was beginning to think I liked her a little too much.

“We can forget all about it as soon as we walk away,” she added in a breathy voice.

Impossible. I would never forget it if I touched her.

“But I have to admit that some of those things you said you were feeling…I feel them, too.”

What the hell was any sane man supposed to do here?

“It may not be the smartest thing to do—”

“Not at all,” I cut in harshly.

Could she not see how hard I was trying to resist?

“But I won’t hold it against you if you don’t hold it against me,” she finished, her voice now shaking.

I turned back around to fully face her. My chest rose and fell with each measured breath I took. My control was splintering. And the worst part? The thing that pretty much sealed my fate? She was still wrapped up in that fucking towel, holding it to her body like a lifeline.

She was basically half naked underneath.

“Just one,” I said, my voice sounding as strangled as my dick felt.

“One…what?” she whispered.

“One taste. And that’s all.”

I surged forward and crushed her mouth with mine.

Sweet Jesus.

We both groaned as soon as our lips made contact. I roughly shoved her back against the wall, propping her up with my hips until her toes barely skimmed the floor. She didn’t even try to fight me. When my tongue grazed her lips, she opened right up for me, eagerly meeting it with her own.

Ah, hell. Our mouths were a perfect fit.

I was really hoping they wouldn’t be. That kissing her would be a disappointment. Yeah, right. Like kissing Reese could ever be anything but explosive. Deep down, I knew it would be like this. So much for that wall I’d tried to build between us. I’d just scaled it in a matter of seconds, like fucking Batman.

Things changed when she moaned. It was that sound of desperation that amped things up for me, like she couldn’t stand not having more than what I was giving her. She arched her hips into mine and rolled them forward.

Oh, sweetheart.

She was grinding her pussy right over my dick.

I let out a deep-throated growl and slammed my hips against hers, unable to stop myself. It felt so damn good. It wouldn’t take much to push myself inside her, either. It’s just one small step from dry humping to actual sex…

I cupped her head in my hands, tipping her face back at a better angle for my hungry mouth, twining her hair through my fingers. And I told myself to keep my hands there. Because the rest of her body was as soft and malleable as her mouth was, and if I got so much as a flash of her in that skimpy bikini again, she’d be stripped naked on the spot.

That was when the towel dropped to the floor.

Because of course it would. The universe really had it out for me today.

All I had to do was lower my gaze and this thing would most assuredly rocket to the next level. The way her nails dug into my arms, pulling me closer, I knew her body was on fire. Oh, I could make you feel so good, sweetheart. In that moment, I was positive there wasn’t anything in this world I wanted more than that. To give Reese so much pleasure, she’d instantly become addicted to my touch. I was pretty sure I was becoming addicted to her. And this kiss was only fueling that growing obsession.

I froze.

This was only supposed to be a physical thing with her. What was this talk of obsession?

She stiffened when she realized I was no longer reciprocating. But I was the one to actually break the kiss. She looked panic-stricken as I pulled away, something akin to horror etched across her face. Damn it, that wasn’t how this was supposed to end.

It shouldn’t have ever started.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered, stepping back. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

Wrong thing to say. You never told a woman you shouldn’t have kissed her, no matter what the circumstances were. I knew better. Why was I always fumbling everything around her?

She stared at me blankly for several seconds. Then she suddenly jerked to attention, scooping down to grab her towel off the floor and quickly wrapped it back around her.

“Yeah, um, you’re right.” She darted past me, heading toward the door, and I let her. What would have been the point in stopping her? “This was stupid. We shouldn’t have— But we said we wouldn’t hold it against each other, right?” She nodded, not waiting to hear my answer. “Right. So yeah, I’ll see you later.”

And she was gone.

I. Am. Such. An. Idiot.

For kissing her. For stopping the kiss. For making asinine comments. For ever speaking to her in the first place.

I stood there and banged my head against the wall for a few minutes. It probably wouldn’t help knock some sense into me. But all I could do was try.