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“Good night.”
He doesn’t look as I open the door, stepping out of the car. As soon as I do so, though, I feel a sharp stabbing pain in the soles of my feet that causes me to stumble.
“Ah,” I hiss, leaning on the car for support.
I hear the car door open and slam shut, and in the next breath Sterling’s standing in front of me, green eyes peering at me curiously.
“What’s wrong?”
His gaze moves down to my feet. I wave off his concern.
“I’m fine. I just don’t wear heels often enough so my legs are killing me after having being in these all day,” I say with a small embarrassed smile. “Lesson learned, though. You’ll be seeing me in ballet flats tomorrow at work.”
Sterling frowns. “Take them off.”
“What, now? My house is right there.” I gesture toward it with my hand.
“Can you walk?”
I make a face at his strict tone. “Of course I can.”
But I only need to take one step forward to disprove that statement. Sterling catches me when I stumble once again, his hands wrapping around my waist. My heart beats once, twice, and then it’s beating too fast for me to count. I feel my breathing stop. Everything around me simply stops.
We’ve never been this close before. His chest is pressed against mine and his face is right there. His lips are right there, and I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to kiss anyone more than I do right now, in this moment. His grip around my waist tightens like he can hear my thoughts. He moves in closer, his scent surrounding me as the air between us hums. I can’t stop staring at his mouth. I can’t help but imagine how it would feel against mine, on my body.
“You know, staring at me like that is a really bad idea, Emilia,” he rasps.
I stammer, trying to step away from his grip. “I-I’m sorry.”
Sterling’s eyes fall shut and he looks like he’s in pain for a moment. When they open, though, they’re clearer and I can practically see the intent behind them.
“Fuck it,” he whispers.
And then his lips come down on mine. Tingles shoot out like electricity through my body, sending sparks dancing, twirling across my skin. His hands are possessive, pulling me tight around him almost aggressively. His other hand reaches up to the back of my head, cradling my skull, and the kiss is soft, so soft, and filled with so much heat.
I shouldn’t be doing this. I really shouldn’t be kissing him right now. But sometimes doing the right thing is exhausting and you’ve just got to damn the consequences and live in the moment. Besides, kissing him feels way too good to be wrong.
I’m the one that pushes my tongue into his mouth. I step even closer to him, his hand sliding down to my ass. I moan when I feel the bulge in his pants rubbing against my thigh. Theknowledge that I’m responsible for it makes me wild. His thumb trails down the column of my throat as his silky tongue tangles with mine.
I squeeze my thighs together, feeling my core clench. A part of me wants to rip his clothes off right there and then. But we’re standing outside my house.
Oh my god, we’re standing outside my house.
I pull back abruptly, panting hard. My hands are clenched, fisting the front of his shirt, and our hips are lined up in a way that’s entirely inappropriate. Sterling’s breathless too, his eyes peering at me in a way that makes me feel naked.
I slowly take a step away from his rock-hard body, floundering for something to say.
“That was…” I start, then stop. Finally, I shut my eyes, the words rushing past my lips. “Good night, Mr. Harrington.”
I hurriedly walk past him, as fast as my blistered feet can allow. I make it to my front door and when I glance back, Sterling’s still staring at me with his jaw clenched. I enter my house with a relieved sigh before slowly sliding down to the floor. Thankfully, Anika’s nowhere in sight.
I just hope no one saw us.
Fucking hell. This really was a bad idea. We didn’t even last a day.
CHAPTER 14
Sterling