Page 57

You need a grand gesture, baby? No problem, here it is.

I pulled the tie on my robe, the bow coming loose and parting the silken fabric to reveal my matching set. Sheer fabric hugged my every curve, the light padding and underwire in the bra putting in the work to lift my chestjustright.

“Don’t you think we make a great pair?” I asked, allowing the tie to slip through my fingers.

There was a beat of silence.

Two.

Three.

Vi stared at me, her eyes roving over every inch of exposed skin like she was trying to commit it to memory.

It didn’t matter that girls were running around us to get ready. Our world had shrunk to just us.

The gift box hit the floor with a dull thud as she grabbed the front of my robe, the gauzy material taut in her fingers as she drew me against her chest.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” she breathed, her free hand cupping the back of my neck as she guided my lips to hers in a demanding kiss that left me feeling dizzy.

We traded kisses like breaths of air, her lips soft and warm against mine.

God, Vi was a good kisser.

Something I wanted to explore for hours, preferably not in the middle of a room full of my coworkers but…whatever, they could watch it if they wanted. I wasn’t ashamed to be seen with her.

In fact, I was thrilled by the idea that this beautiful, caring creature looked around this room full of girls and wantedme.

I gripped her hips as her fingers left my robe to trail along the thin fabric of my bra, her warm fingers against my cold skin making me shiver.

Vi’s hand tangled into the hair at the back of my head, pulling a little from the pinned rollers as she controlled our pace. Her free hand cradled my face, thumb stroking the soft skin near my cheekbone, teeth digging into my low lip in a soft nip that turned my knees to jelly.

When the lights flickered from behind my closed eyes, announcing the next act, a frustrated groan slipped from Vi’s lips as she pulled away to rest her forehead against mine.

I wet my lips with my tongue, earning another taste of the vanilla lip gloss she’d left behind. “Vi, I?—”

“When do you have to be on stage?” she interrupted, her hand sliding from my face to toy with the open front of the robe, the silken belt gripped tightly in her fingers.

I groaned internally. As much as I wanted to go upstairs to the apartment, I knew there would be hell to pay from Dana if I bailed. Tonight needed to go off without a hitch if we were going to have any hope of making the money we needed to pay off Garrett this month.

Loser.

Dana absolutely owed me one for being such a good covenmate right now. I looked behind Vi to the clock, thebutterflies in my stomach throwing a rave as Vi’s fingers traced patterns along the bare skin of my hip, dipping to run her fingers along the band of my panties.

“Twenty minutes,” I breathed, tipping my head back to give her wandering mouth, moving along my shoulder to the crook of my neck, access to my throat.

Maybe never, if you keep looking at me like Juniper looks at a bowl of spicy ramen. Rather get devoured by you than anything else.

“It’ll have to do,” Vi said, grabbing hold of my wrist. The feathered hem of my robe tickled my skin as she led me toward the darkened entry of Dana's old office, glowing faintly red with the computer’s screensaver.

We were inside, and I had my back against the door before I had time to think, Vi’s lips meeting mine with renewed need. I grabbed her ass, fusing our hips together in a bid for some delicious, satisfying friction. I’d been soaked from the second she’d first kissed me, and if she didn’t touch me soon, I wasn’t above begging.

Honestly, it usually made things more fun.

Vi made quick work of my robe, sliding the fabric off my shoulders and down my arms to pool on the floor in a mass of pale pink. She broke our kiss, a whispered moan escaping her throat as she took me in.

“Stunning,” she murmured, hands reverently roaming my exposed skin. She kissed down the side of my neck, dull human teeth scraping at the skin and making me shiver. “Have you been running around in this all day?”

“Maybe,” I whispered, my breath hitching as she teased my nipples through the fabric of my bra with a roll of her pointer finger and thumb. “Vi, please. I want you.”