Page 34 of Stolen Summer

His dark chuckle warmed behind my ear, and I turned my head a fraction, seeking out his lips, but then his gaze captured mine, and I blinked.

How did I get here? Wrapped around Cole Riley like a sex-crazed monkey?

His tone went smoky, desire thick in his eyes. “Do we have a deal, Killer?”

Chapter Twelve

Looking at Cole with his sinister eyes, disheveled hair from my handiwork, and an expression of cavalier certainty, I decided he needed a lesson in patience and humility.

Cole was used to getting what he wanted. He wouldn’t expect me to say no, an infuriating fact that made me feel caged into a corner, and the only way out was to barrel through him. Not an easy feat when the obstacle had a foot on you and probably close to a hundred pounds.

I clenched my jaw. “I don’t like making rash decisions.”

A flash went through his eyes, but he banked it a moment later. “Take a few days. Think it over.” The hands at my hips fell away as he took a step back.

Wait, what? That was it? He wasn’t going to insist I give him an answer now? Why wasn’t he frustrated? Or pissed?

A chilly draft hit me where his warmth had been, followed by this empty feeling inside me I couldn’t fathom. It made no sense that my body missed him when I’d only met the guy a few days ago.

Maybe it wasn’t Cole per se that my body missed but the idea of being connected with someone on an intimate level. It had been too long since I’d had anything substantial with a guy.

“We should go to bed,” he said roughly, shoving his hands into his pockets like he was preventing himself from reaching for me.

Was he? Or was my mind stretching?

“Which room should I take?” I asked, my feet dangling over the edge of the table. I tried not to think about what we’d been doing on the table or how far things could have gone. Frankly, I was shocked my clothes were still on.

I couldn’t get a read on his mood. He seemed to have slipped on an invisible mask, leaving me to guess what he was thinking. “Doesn’t matter, just not the one across from mine.” Cole reached for the bottle of forgotten wine on the table.

I glanced at my empty glass and silently cursed, wishing I’d snatched the bottle before he had. If I had any hope of sleeping tonight after that fucking mind-blowing kiss, I needed booze or a cold shower. Preferably both.

“Here.” Cole offered me the bottle after taking a drink, noticing where my gaze had gone. “I’ll open another unless you want to share this in bed.”

My eyes locked on his. He was asking if I wanted to take what we started on the table upstairs. Did I?

I sucked in my lower lip, contemplating.

Fuck yes, my body screamed, the familiar ache between my legs reminding me of what Cole could offer. Sleeping with him would only complicate our agreement, and although I hadn’t told him I accepted his proposal, I needed this money.

But I didn’t need Cole.

At least not in the same way.

Sex wasn’t a necessity. But food, a house, an education? Those were things I required.

Scooting off the table, I took the wine. “Goodnight, Cole.”

He didn’t follow or stop me, and I left him in the kitchen to either clean up or get wasted. I should have offered to help with the mess, but I needed space from him, or my wine-fuzzy brain would strip his clothes off and devour every inch of him with my mouth.

That was the current state of my thoughts.

Dangerous and naughty.

Flicking on my flashlight, I meandered toward the stairs, taking them to the second floor. Each step, it grew harder to ignore my need, the persuasive voice within me coaxing me to run back into the kitchen. I forcibly picked up my feet, moving one in front of the other as I climbed the stairs. My fingers trailed over the polished wooden banister, griping the wood harder until I reached the top.

A bit unsteady, I wavered down the hallway, passing the doorways until I got to Cole’s room. Temptation enticed me, the little devil inside me whispering. Stumble inside. Don’t you deserve a night of blissful pleasure? She lured me with thoughts of what might be. My head swung to the other door—the forbidden one.

What made it off-limits?