Page 5 of The Players We Hate (Rixton U #2)

I stared at him, heart thudding, something tightening low in my chest. “What makes you think I could ever forget this?” I whispered.

He froze, his expression flickering with surprise, as though he hadn’t considered this could matter to me too.

“I’m not asking for everything,” I added, voice quieter now. “All I want is you to make me feel… something. Anything.”

He didn’t understand that this was the first time in as long as I could remember that I’d felt alive. Talon studied me again, gaze dragging slowly over my face, and deep down, he already knew the answer.

Still, he asked, “What do you want, Wren?”

My chest tightened. My voice was small when it came out. “I want you to touch me.”

His gaze darkened. He moved with a careful patience, as though I might break, but he knew I could take the weight of him anyway.

He eased me back onto the mattress, his hand behind my shoulders as he lowered me. I felt the soft give of the bed beneath me and the warmth of his body as he settled between my legs, bracing himself with one hand planted beside my hip.

“Tell me if you want to stop,” he murmured.

I nodded. “I will.”

The slow grind of his hips, the firm drag of denim over my center, sent a gasp spilling from my lips, and I arched into him. His mouth found mine again.

His hand slipped beneath my shirt, unhurried, exploring.

He broke the kiss to trail his mouth along my jaw, lower still, his breath warm against my skin.

Then his fingers caught the hem of my shirt, tugging it up and over my head.

The top landed somewhere on the floor as his eyes lingered on me for a beat before his mouth claimed mine again.

When his hand dipped under the waistband of my jeans, he paused.

I met his gaze, breathless. “Please.”

He bent to press a kiss to the inside of my ankle, then slowly worked my jeans and underwear down my legs, his knuckles brushing my skin. And when his mouth replaced where his fingers had teased me moments ago, I forgot how to breathe.

Talon’s tongue parted me gently. The first stroke made my hips jolt. My fingers clutched the sheets, and my other hand tangled in his chocolate-brown hair as I moaned his name.

I didn’t even realize I was grinding against him until his palm pressed flat against my pelvis, holding me in place.

“Don’t move,” he murmured, voice low and rough.

When I glanced down, my breath caught. The sight of his lips glistening with me sent a tremor through my body.

His mouth curved into a slow, wicked smile before he dove back in.

Tension coiled low in my belly, sharp and electric. I gasped when he pushed my thighs toward my chest, opening me to him completely. A low growl vibrated from his throat as his tongue worked deeper, more deliberately. My mind blanked. There was nothing left but sensation.

“Oh God. Holy sh—” My words dissolved into a breathless moan, my eyes squeezing shut.

“Eyes on me, Wren. ”

The command was all gravel and heat. My eyes flew open, locking on him—on the hunger in his expression—and it unraveled me all over again.

Then his tongue was replaced by the slow, purposeful push of his finger. The slick sound was obscene. Heat flooded my cheeks, but the embarrassment burned away the instant his gaze caught mine.

“You have me so fuckin’ hard,” he muttered, voice rough and low. “I’m grinding against my own bed, fighting the urge to come just from tasting you.”

I reached for him, desperate to touch him, to give him something in return. He shook his head.

“Not tonight,” he said. His tone was firm and final. “Tonight’s about you.”

The question formed on my tongue. I wanted to ask him when it’d be his turn. But before I could speak, he curled his finger and found the spot inside me that sent another jolt through every nerve in my body.

I arched off the bed with a strangled gasp.

“Let go, Wren,” he said through gritted teeth. “Give it to me. I want all of it. I want to walk back down to that party with the taste of your cum on my tongue.”

That was all it took before I broke.

A gasp ripped from my throat as my entire body tightened and finally let go. My whole body jerked beneath him, trembling with a release I couldn’t stop if I tried.

He didn’t pull away right away. He lowered me slowly, his mouth trailing from my thigh to the curve of my hip. His hand held me there, strong and unyielding, making sure I felt every second of it .

When I could finally breathe again, I realized he was making his way up my body. He kissed across my stomach, over my ribs, and along the center of my chest.

When he reached my face, he paused.

I blinked up at him, dazed and breathless, my chest rising and falling as if I had just run a mile. My body felt weightless, but my heart pounded with something heavier—something I didn’t have words for yet.

Talon leaned over me, his touch impossibly gentle as he brushed a few strands of hair from my cheek. “You okay?” he asked, voice quiet, careful not to break whatever this was between us.

I nodded, swallowing hard. “I’ve never felt anything like that,” I whispered. “I didn’t know I could.”

His lips tilted into a faint smile, but his green eyes stayed serious, searching mine.

Then my phone vibrated against the floor. The sound was distant but insistent, a reminder that the world outside this room still existed.

I sat up slightly, breathed shakily, and leaned over the side of the bed. I found my phone and turned it over in my hand.

A single message lit up my lock screen.

Mother: Wren, let us know you’re safe. Where are you?

My stomach twisted.

Before I could even react, another alert buzzed through.

Alisa: Where the heck did you disappear to? ?

Alisa: Are you okay?? Please tell me you didn’t leave without saying anything.

Talon shifted beside me. “What is it?”

“My mother,” I said quietly, holding up the phone. “And Alisa. My parents have my location. If I don’t text back soon, they’ll freak. I wouldn’t be surprised if security shows up here.”

His brow furrowed. “Seriously?”

I shrugged as I bent to grab my underwear and jeans. “Last year, my phone died during a charity gala I helped run. They sent an entire security team to a five-star hotel. I was in the middle of eating dinner when they barged in mid-speech.”

He huffed a quiet laugh. “Damn, that’s intense.” His gaze shifted to me, softer now. “Still… I get it. If you were mine, I’d want to know you’re safe too.”

The weight of his words hit deeper than he probably intended. I reached for my blouse, trying to quiet the tremble in my hands as I got dressed. His eyes followed every move, not possessively, but like he was committing the moment to memory.

I typed quickly to answer my mother.

Me: Hanging out with a friend at her dorm. All good. Love you.

Then I sent another to Alisa.

Me: I’m still here. Meet me downstairs by the door. My mother keeps texting, and I need to get back .

Talon straightened, and for the first time, I was eye level with the hard length straining against his jeans. He extended a hand between us. “Give me your phone.”

I bit my lip, my gaze flicking from his face to the outline in his jeans and back again. My fingers itched to touch him, to take care of him before I go.

“Wren,” he said, his voice low but firm. “Not now. You need to get back to your place.”

I blinked, then placed my phone in his palm. He typed quickly and handed it back.

“My number,” he said. “Use it.”

I glanced down at the screen, my heart thumping hard when I saw his name saved in my contacts. Before I could overthink it, I leaned in, brushing my lips over his in a kiss meant to say everything I couldn’t put into words.

He groaned when I pressed against him, heat sparking between us all over again. But he held still and didn’t deepen it. His breath shuddered against my skin as he let the moment linger, then slowly pulled back, eyes dark and unreadable.

“You want me to walk you back?” he asked, voice rough.

I shook my head. “Actually, it’s better if no one knows. Promise me you’ll keep this between us.”

He nodded, jaw tense. “Then text me when you’re back.”

I smiled and started toward the door. Before leaving, I looked back once more. “Thanks… for tonight.”

“You don’t need to thank me,” he said. “ But I won’t forget it.”

The door clicked shut behind me, sealing it away. The hallway felt colder than before, sending a shiver down my spine.

Whatever happened next, this wouldn’t be a regret. And it sure as hell wouldn’t be something I forgot.