She would be the first? Bollocks! How was she supposed to resist now? “You’re serious? Never?”
“Never. I took what I wanted and left . . . or forced the women to leave.”
“And they put up with you?” she asked, incredulous.
“Of course. They even tried to come back for seconds and thirds.”
“Of course,” she mocked. “But . . . why now? Why me?”
He shrugged, unabashed. “You smell too good, feel too good, and I’m going to want you again very, very soon. Might as well have you nearby and save myself the trouble of having to hunt you down.”
She should resist. One sexcapade had nearly killed her. No telling what a second go-round would do. And what if she actually enjoyed the whole snuggling thing? She’d start craving it—and when it came to Blue, she couldn’t afford any more cravings.
Who knows, maybe you’ll get lucky and hate it.
True.
Her silence must have provoked him, because he said, “Don’t make me caveman-up and club you over the head to get what I want.”
She rolled her eyes. “Okay, all right. Fine. We’ll do a little snuggling.” She draped herself over his chest, and he enfolded her in his arms. His heart pounded against her ear, fast and hard, pleasing her mightily.
She wasn’t going to hate it, was she?
“We can do this for an hour, and maybe, if you’re lucky, I’ll get a little handsy,” she said. “But after that we need to go our separate ways, okay?”
He combed his fingers through her hair. “Nope. Not okay. I need at least six hours. And definite hand play. No maybe about it.”
They were bargaining about this? Seriously? “Two hours,” she said. “And I won’t beat you to death.”
“Eight. And you’ll caress.”
Bloody hell. “That isn’t how you negotiate, Blue.”
“My bad. Ten hours.”
Just to be contrary, she twisted his nipple.
“Ow!” He pried her fingers loose and kissed her knuckles. “Just for that, I’m not going to tell you how I ranked you.”
She jolted upright and met his gaze. “You do not rank your women.” A pause. “Do you?”
“Not usually. But this time I made an exception.”
“I don’t think you know how close you are to having your spine pulled out through your mouth,” she said, waving her fist in front of his face.
He tried to bite it. “Did I ever tell you how sexy it is when you threaten me with bodily harm?”
“No. Because that would be ridiculous.”
“It’s not, and it’s true.” Expression serious, he said, “Now, back to your ranking. I’ve decided to tell you, despite the titty-twister.”
She shook her head, dark hair dancing around her. “I don’t want to know.” After all, she’d lost herself in the pleasure of his mouth and his hands, and then his body; he’d had to do all the work.
“Too bad. Baby, there is no question, no doubt in my mind, that you are and forever will be . . . number one. Seriously. This,” he said, waving a hand to indicate her slender curves, “should be outlawed.”
She tried to maintain a neutral expression—encouraging him was wrong—but she couldn’t suppress a smile. “Two compliments from you in one day. You must be losing your edge.”
“Of course I am. I just blew a major load.”
Her eyes widened. Can’t believe he just said that.
He gave another wave, this one imperial. “Go ahead. Laugh. You know you want to.”
She slapped a hand over her mouth, but it was too late. Laughter escaped.
His gaze met hers with a mix of pleasure and awe, his features softening. “I will never get tired of seeing you lit up like this.”
Getting too serious! her mind screamed. And, just like that, her amusement drained.
He frowned, as if her mood change upset him. “What are you thinking about?”
“What’s going to happen tomorrow? With Tiffany?”
“Don’t want me to make a move on her?”
“No,” she answered honestly. And crap. Too serious again.
Now he grinned, pleased. “Don’t worry. I won’t. You have my word. I will flirt with her to make it believable when she leaves with me, but it will never go any further than that. When I get her alone, I will use compulsion to get her to fall asleep.”
“All right,” she said with a nod.
“Wait. No making me promise? Or sign a contract in blood?”
“No. I believe you. I need no more assurance than your word.”
Something bright bloomed in his eyes as he kissed her temple. “I don’t know what to say. Evie . . . thank you.”
If anything, she should be saying those words to him.
“Are you hungry?” he asked, switching topics with a speed that left her floundering. “I’m starved. So why don’t I make us something to eat? Afterward we can shower and clock a few more hours in bed before we go to sleep.” His voice went husky with desire when he added, “Then, come morning, I’ll wake you up in the best possible way. Promise.”
Wait. He expected to stay the night in her room? The entire night?
“Stay here. I’ll be right back.” Naked, he padded into the hallway, leaving her alone with a growing sense of panic. At last it had arrived.
Eighteen
HE HADN’T WORN A condom. To be honest, Blue hadn’t even thought about wearing one. On some level, he must trust Evie more than he trusted any other woman. He knew she would never make claims about a false pregnancy as Pagan had. As countless others had. She was honest to a fault.
And now that he knew she hadn’t complained about the lack because she had been as caught up in the moment as he had been, he only wanted her more.
He was grinning as he carried a tray of sandwiches into the bedroom, nearly let-the-world-crumble eager to see her splayed out, dark hair splashed over the pillows, pale skin flushed with the pleasure he had just given her, lips red and swollen from his kisses.
He’d never been a possessive guy. Today, that had changed. Evie Black belonged to him, and he wasn’t letting her go. He was already addicted to her taste—the honey she smelled of. But now he knew her warmth, and her inner softness, and the sounds she made as her excitement built. He knew the feel of her nails in his flesh and her body moving against his, surrounding his, knew her smile afterward, the huskiness of her voice.