Page 176 of The Ruthless Note

His hand covers my stomach. It’s so big, that it spreads from my chest all the way to my hip.

I shift and soreness echoes between my legs. The sheet moves too and I realize that it’s stuck to my skin, baked on from all the sweating and the heat from Dutch’s embrace.

I’m no longer a virgin.

My breath gets trapped in my throat and I start to panic until I tune in to the steady rhythm of Dutch’s heartbeat against my back.

I watch the bare skin stretched over his muscular biceps and try to gather my thoughts so I can make the right moves.

What exactlyisthe right move?

I can’t think with Dutch touching me like this, reminding me of all the times he had me falling to pieces last night.

He snorts softly and I almost smile. When he’s sleeping and not flashing those amber eyes like a predator in the jungle, he seems almost innocent. No jerk of Redwood Prep vibes around.

“Dutch,” I whisper, pushing at his hand. “You need to go.”

He responds by gripping me tighter.

I chew on my bottom lip. The closeness between us is alarming, but I knew that opening myself to him completely would have some strings. The connection is different now, more intense.

But I can’t let it distract me.

“Dutch.” I shake him until he wakes up.

His amber eyes open and fall on me. I notice the marks on his neck, arms and shoulders. I don’t recall scraping him that hard, but it looks like I might have lost it a little.

“Are you okay?” he rumbles.

“Okay?”

He gestures to the sheets. “Are you sore?”

“Only a little.” That’s a lie.

But I’m not going to look weak in front of him.

Dutch rolls me over and kisses me deeply. I feel his desire growing and sense that if I don’t stop him now, he’ll have me trapped in this bed for hours, just like he did last night.

“My sister is coming back today,” I tell him, twisting my head away.

He stops, his eyes taking me in.

I bite down on my bottom lip. “That’s not an excuse. She really is going to be here any minute.”

He grunts. “Where’s your bathroom?”

I point.

He gets off me and saunters away, naked as can be. I take a peek at his body, marveling at the sculpted lines and wondering how on earth I managed to handleall of thatlast night.

My body flushes with heat again and I quickly jump out of bed to dress before I change my mind and tell Dutch the truth.

That Breeze has my sister until Monday.

That I want him again.

That my life is about to implode.