Page 72 of Worship

“Godparent stuff. We need to go over our toast. I’ll be right back.”

She pats his chest gently to reassure him, and he grabs her hand and kisses it. I’m going to break his goddamn mouth for touching her. My hands fist at my sides, and now I look at him. I know what I’m feeling is all over my face; the minute his eyes meet mine, he swallows, losing some of his bravado.That’s right, Mikey. You fucked with the wrong guy.

I keep my eyes on him.

“I’m going to steal your girl now, Mikey.”

My voice is laced with insinuation, and I can see he doesn’t trust me. He shouldn’t.

“Just bring her back,” he laughs.

I respond with a shrug, reaching out and taking her hand right out of his. I turn around, pulling her behind me into the house. We walk toward the bar, and I glance behind me and see Blair running some distraction with Mikey. I always liked her.

“Where’s your wife?” Gretchen snarks.

“I sent her home,” I answer, pulling her into the butler’s pantry and closing the door behind us.

“What the fuck do you think you’re—”

Her words are immediately cut off by my lips covering hers. It’s hard and aggressive, filled with a tornado of emotion.

“Kiss me back,” I demand to her unmoving mouth, but she doesn’t.

I pull back and look at her. She can’t hide from me. She’s on fire, wanting this connection, needing it. Even still, she won’t accept me trying to bulldoze her. I know better, but it doesn’t stop me from trying.

“Kiss. Me. Back,” I growl.

She shakes her head, her eyes narrowed.

I step away from her and put both my hands on the counter in front of me. “Fuck,” I breathe out.

“I miss you. I’m so fucking lost without you. Tell me how I stop loving you, Angel. Tell me, because you managed to move on and forget me, but I can’t… It feels physically impossible.”

I look to her for an answer, no bulldozing, no agenda—just me. Instead of saying anything, she closes the distance between us, places her hands on my face, and pulls me down, sealing her lips to mine. I groan into her mouth from relief, twisting my body to face her, and kiss her like she should be kissed.

Our mouths are fused, tongues swirling over the other’s. My hands tangle into her soft hair, and she wraps her arms around my neck. We stumble back into the opposite counter, my lower back hitting the marble, and I spin her around so she’s against it.

My right hand pulls from her hair and drifts down her cheek, then to her neck, and sweeps across her breasts. She lets out a small moan. Her body is so receptive to my touch.What about Mikey’s touch?

The unwelcome reminder of my replacement breaks me from our little fantasy in action, and I jerk back.

“Did you let him touch you?” I can’t control the anger in my voice.

The haze in her eyes clears, and she narrows them.

“You don’t have any right to ask me that.”

She pulls her arms from my neck and glares at me.She’s right, I don’t.

“Okay,” I say, nodding.

“Okay?” She looks surprised, a hint of a smile on her lips.

“You’re right. I let you go—I lost that right. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to punish you for what Ithinkyou’ve done.”

My hand trails up her thigh, skimming her center, and her breath hitches. My fingers rub gently against the fabric that’s hiding her clit from me, and her hips push forward.

“What do you think I’ve done?” she rasps seductively.