Page 13 of Allured (Love and Burlesque #1)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

EZEKIEL

Frenzy.

I feel I would have perished if my lips didn’t meet Alek’s the very second after he asked me to kiss him. There is nothing I could remember yearning for more than the feeling of Alek’s pillowy lips pressed against mine.

My hand tightens in his hair as all the frustration of this last week seeps into our embrace and our kiss. Mine, the frustration of trying to make myself pretend I didn’t want this, and his, the frustration at my perceived rejection.

I feel Alek’s desperation grow as his lips press more firmly against mine. His hands intertwine in the lapels of my jacket, tugging me closer as if our bodies weren’t already plastered to one another. I feed into the desperation, licking and pleading for entrance past his plush lips. My tongue meets his in a frenzy, our matching moans filling the quiet room with sounds of pleasure and agony.

My hands are gripping him tightly as I refuse to let him move an inch away from me. I’m afraid that the slightest release of my grasp will send him away forever.

It’s been ages since I’ve been intimate with anyone, and never with someone of my gender. As new as this is to me, and as many reservations as I had, everything in this moment feels right.

I would have been lost in my thoughts if I weren’t already lost in the feeling of Alek surrounding me and guiding me.

Tugging his head back by his hair, I take advantage of the angle and move my mouth along his jaw, down his neck, to the glistening muscles where his shoulder meets his throat.

My lips seal on his skin in a motion that is both a bite and a kiss.

“Fuuuck, angel, please, ” Alek begs, his hips incessantly seeking mine.

“No.” My voice has a quiet snarl as I command him. The hand I had previously placed on his shoulder moves down to his hip while I pin him in place against the door.

The lust doesn’t melt away as Alek squirms in my grasp and stares at me with curiosity.

“So it’s like that, huh?” he asks. At first, I’m unsure of what exactly he means, but the heat in his eyes and the submission in his body language enlightens me immediately.

“Yes, now listen , you brat.”

“Yes, Sir.” The grin that spreads on Alek’s face makes me want to continue to kiss him to tame that cockiness. The reply isn’t mocking, per se, but there’s a challenge in it that awakens something in me.

“You like saying that, don’t you?’

“Probably as much as you like hearing it, Ez. Oh sorry— I mean, Sir .”

Alek’s near giggle of a laugh lasts only a second before I stifle it with another hard press of my lips. ‘Bruising’ is the word I would use to describe our make—out session in all its ferocity. I am pleasantly surprised, and very aroused, at how rough this is. I love that I feel hard muscle, firm and unyielding, beneath my fingertips. I love the wholly masculine slew of moans that reach my ears. I’ve never had a partner test me in such a way.

Oh. My partner.

The thought causes me to slow my motions in our continued search of one another. Alek senses my retreat and calms as well.

While the physical distance between us doesn’t grow, it’s as if we both had a bit too much time for introspection. The meeting of our lips becomes slower, sensual, and lingering in opposition to our previous frenzy.

I would spend the entirety of my night cherishing Alek within my hold if it weren’t for two things. As a designated driver, I am responsible for a horde of drunken women. Also, I am unsure of what the next steps are for him and me.

With a few more gentle caresses of our lips, we slowly drift apart.

Warm hazel eyes find mine in a look that is so intense it nearly makes me turn away. But no, I have no choice but to stare and admire Alek in all that he is.

Does Alek want me as his, whichever form that may take?

Am I ready, at this point in my life, to be his?

“Ez, I can hear you thinking.”

“How does one hear another person think?” My head tilts, slightly confused and wondering how he knew I was overthinking.

“You look nervous again, angel.”

“Why do you keep calling me that?” I ask at the same time Alek removes his hands from my chest and instead softly cups my face. The roughness of his hands catches on my stubble and I have to resist the urge to close my eyes and lean into the motion.

“You think a face as beautiful as this ain’t got something divine to do with it?” A thumb feathers along my jaw until he’s brushing it against my bottom lip.

“These lips though—” Alek begins, applying more pressure to my bottom lip so that it drags slightly in his touch.

“They’re sinful as fuck.” He shifts down, his lips meeting mine in a soft peck and I am almost cajoled into slamming him back into the door so we may finish what we started.

But I know we need to take it slow. There are things he needs to know, things I need to figure out. And I have to remind myself that this is only the second time I’ve been around this man. This delightful, delectable, and devious man.

“Alek,” I groan in warning and step back to look at him, but still stay within arms reach. “I must get back to my group soon.”

“Oh, right. Yeah.” It pains me when I hear the dejection in his voice.

“Alek, we aren’t leaving things like this. I would like to talk, get to know you, and grow this feeling between us.” The desperation in my voice was just as strong as the dejection in his.

“You askin’ me out on a date?” Alek attempts to joke, but I see the hope in his wide eyes. It calls to the hope that blooms within me.

“Yes, I am.”

“You like burgers?” Alek straightens up my glasses and jacket as he asks.

“I love burgers.” I smile at him and he smiles back. Cheesy smiles. Excited smiles. At this moment it all feels so easy with him. I haven’t felt this comfortable with anyone in years.

“I’m only working the pre—show tomorrow if you wanna stop by and get a late burger with me. There’s a great diner down the road.”

“Nothing would make me happier,” I reply quickly, the immediacy of the response involuntary.

“Good.” Alek brushes my hair back into a presentable manner. “Don’t leave me hanging again, Ez. My poor little heart can’t take it,” he pouts but the playfulness doesn’t reach his eyes.

The brief thought of Alek in pain brings a lightning shot within my own heart. I am done trying to deny myself and, in turn, deny him.

“I wouldn’t dream of it, Alek,” I say sincerely, leaning on the tips of my toes to plant a small kiss on his cheek. “I will be here tomorrow.”

As I leave the safety of the costume closet, a place that will now forever be sacred within my heart, I take out my phone and dial a number I’ve memorized since last weekend. I barely make it down the hall and the phone only rings once before the call is picked up by him.

“I promise, Alek.”