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“You feel protected and cared for right now,” he continued, trailing his kisses along the line of my jaw until, finally, he pressed a kiss to the corner of my mouth. “And that’s the way it always will be, even when we do, eventually, make love.”

Make love? My heart fluttered.

But that still meant—

He pressed his mouth against mine, not allowing my thoughts to finish—as he stepped between my knees and wrapped his arms around my waist. “You’re not going to think about it,” he was saying in between breaths, “because I won’t let you focus on the things that scare you. And then you’ll see the difference.” His words ended with a light growl as his kiss became more aggressive. There was nothing soft in the way his fingers curled in my hair, pressing firmly against my skull. And nothing gentle in how his lips pushed against mine, teeth nipping on my lower lip as he sought to dominate the situation.

The difference? The difference between what?

I wasn’t even sure what he was talking about anymore. The only thing that mattered was this feeling. It was strange—and it was only me. With Titus, I wasn’t being affected by anyone else’s emotions.

And I wasn’t freaking out. I couldn’t blame the others for this.

Did that mean it was still possible for me?

“You’re still thinking about them.” Titus pulled his mouth back slightly. “I don’t like it.”

I stared dizzily at him as my stumbling thoughts fought to stabilize.

But before I could even try to make sense of it, he’d renewed his attack. His hand moved to the small of my back, pressing me forward until the bulge in his pants was nestled against my crotch. There was no denying what the pressure against me was, but, right now, worrying about it was the furthest thing from my mind.

“I’m going to make you forget everything else,” Titus breathed against my ear. “Because when you’re with me, you’re onlymine.”

“What…” I sucked in a breath as he nipped at the hollow of my throat. It felt like he was everywhere, and my skin tingled in the wake of his movements. His fingers firmed in my hair, pulling at me until my neck was completely exposed. I studied the stars, my vision dizzy, as he began to nip his way down my throat.

“I thought you were a virgin?”

His movements halted at my question.

I’d been wanting to ask this for a while—since he’d so expertly played footsie with me during our lunch date and even more so, now. “How did you learn how to—”

“Julian insinuated that I had no idea how to please a woman,” Titus replied, his breath drifting over my neck. “So I did some light reading.”

“Light reading?” I wanted to laugh. This was some heavy, expert-level stuff. Maybe he really was as brilliant as Julian had said.

“Why, thank you,” Titus replied, not sounding at all embarrassed. “I tried really hard to understand. Do you think I’ve got it?”

“Yes…” My reply was pathetically girlish and breathy. He definitely got it.

“Good.” He pulled away, his forceful grip loosened, but only slightly, as he pulled my face back down until our eyes locked once more. “Then we’ll continue this another day.”

I was still dizzy from his assault, and his words barely registered. “What?”

Titus smirked and stepped back as he brushed his hands over my arms and shoulders, setting me straight. “We’re done.”

But…

“What?” I could only dumbly ask again.

This wasn’t fair! For the first time ever, I was totally into itandhad no mental breakdowns or anything. Why would he stop?

“You’ll appreciate it a lot more later.” Titus set me back to my feet, then he was no longer touching me either. My skin was still tingling in the places where he’d held me.

“But…” My words failed me for a completely different reason.

That was stupid! I wanted to make outnow. This wasn’t the deal at all. We were supposed to be followingmylead.

That’s what everyone had been telling me all along.