Page 57 of Strictly Business

Her mood instantly falls, “Josh will murder me if he ever finds out about this. And you…there would be no evidence. You’d be gone without a trace. He can never know.”

“So, what exactly are you suggesting because you’re giving mixed signals.”

“We—We can’t… We can’t do this.” She pushes up from the couch, her hand slipping through my fingers when I reach for her. “This was a terrible idea. I don’t know why I thought—”

Michaela reaches the door, but I place my hands on it so she can’t leave. Not until we have this conversation, even if it means putting this behind us for good.

“Finn,” my name a sigh on her lips, and it sends a jolt straight to my dick. I can’t help but think about her under me, my name the only thing on her mind as I fuck her nice and slow. Reminding her exactly who she belongs to.

Shit.

I am so screwed.

“Michaela…”

“I shouldn’t have come here. I’m sorry.”

“Shortcake.” The name stops her. Big blue eyes look up to meet mine, and I’m a fucking goner.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

FINN

I WRAP ONE HAND around her waist and cup the back of her neck, pulling her to me, my lips covering hers. She has to tell me to stop, I need her to. Tell me she doesn’t want this. I’ll end it here and now…even if it’s the hardest thing I’ll ever have to do, because I want her. There is nothing I want more than to push her up against this wall and fuck her senseless. I want to feel her body tremble underneath me as I worship her over and over again. “Shortcake,” I whisper against her mouth. “Tell me to stop.” She doesn’t. “Michaela," I groan.

“Finn–”

My lips lightly dusk along the skin of her jaw to her ear. “Tell me to stop, and I will, but fuck... You need to tell me what you want.” Shallow breaths fall from her lips as I nip softly at the sensitive spot where her neck and jaw meet. “Say it, Shortcake.” I pull away to stare down at her, cradling her burning cheeks in my hands. Her blue eyes darker than ever before. “What do you want?”

It feels like an eternity before she whispers, “You."

I grasp the back of her head and pull her mouth to mine. The kiss hungry and desperate, Michaela matches my intensity, like she's been craving it since the last time. She slips the coat from her shoulders letting it fall at our feet. An involuntary growl resonates deep in my throat when she twists her hands in my hair. My hands down her back and squeeze her ass lifting her feet from the ground and pushing her against the wall. Her legs wrap around my waist, and she grinds against me.

I pull away from her mouth and bury my face in her neck, the sweet scents of strawberry, raspberry, and rose fill my nose. She smells delicious. When I suck on the sensitive skin, a soft moan of approval shoots straight to my cock. Fingers slip beneath the hem of her shirt, skating across the skin of her abdomen as I tug lifting it over her head. She tosses her head back, fingers digging in my hair when my mouth meets her skin again. I trail down her exposed neck to the valley between her breasts. My left hand reaches behind her to undo the clasp of her bra but finds nothing.

A breathless chuckle, “Front clasp." Her manicured hands undo the clasp without hesitation letting the black lace article fall next to her shirt. My mouth waters at the sight. She gasps when I take her right nipple in my mouth, my tongue swirling over it. I gently tug on the peaked bud with my teeth, letting my tongue soothe over it before doing the same to the other.

"Where do you want me to fuck you, Shortcake?" I leave a trail of open mouth kisses up her neck. "Here?" I roll my hips into hers. "The couch?" A kiss against her collarbone. "The bed?" A lick along her jaw before a soft nibble on her ear. "The window?" I chuckle softly when she gasps at the suggestion. "What? Don't want everyone in the city to know who you belong to?"

"Are you saying I belong to you?"

The question sits between us – the mood shifting with each passing moment. I’ve backed myself into a corner without any idea how to get out of it. She doesn't belong to me, not yet, but fuck I can't help but wish she did. I’m not sure she wants that. Not sure she wants me the same way I want her. What am I supposed to say?

Michaela slowly drops her legs from my waist, the only sound is her boots against the wood floors as she finds her footing. This wasn't supposed to happen. We weren’t supposed to do this again, or at all. I'm not supposed to like her, but somewhere in the past few months, things have changed. I’ve changed. She’s not the annoying, bratty kid who gets in the middle of everything anymore. She’s not just Josh’s little sister. Just the thought of her makes me smile. “Michaela," I grip her wrist when she bends for her shirt, but she tugs away.

"Finn, don't." She pulls her shirt over her head. "I can't do this. I can't be some placeholder anymore." Finally, she meets my gaze, and the look in her eyes threatens to break my heart. "I get it, okay? You just needed someone to let a little steam off, and I was there... But, I can't be that for you. Not anymore. Not again."

"That's not–"

"I didn't mean for this to happen." Michaela pulls her coat back over her shoulders, "I should go."

Am I about to let her walk out after that? Feeling like she's only a placeholder in my life until something better comes along. Like some kind of toy that can be tossed aside. No, I can’t. I won’t.

Fuck, Josh is gonna kill me.

"I don't want this to be a one-time thing, Michaela." At my words, she freezes in the open doorway, her hand holding the doorknob. I grip her chin and force her to look at me. Confusion swims in her ocean eyes. Confusion. Fear. Hurt. Lust. It's all there. “I have no idea what this means, I am just as confused as you are, but I know I don't want this to be a one or two-time thing."

"Why now?"