Collide (Collide #1)(105)

Tossing his hand through his unruly black hair, a grin tipped the corner of his lips. "And you're simply exquisite."

The drowsy cadence of his liquored voice nearly left her in ashes in the middle of Manhattan. Still trying to regain her bearings, she stared at him, her breath hitching in the back of her throat. As disheveled as he looked standing in front of her - his suit jacket off, tie loosened around his neck, and his sleeves rolled up haphazardly - she had never known a man to be as breathtaking in every possible way as he was. Not just physically either - because Lord knows she found him to be the sexiest man on the planet - it was beyond that. His very presence manifested itself into a thrum beneath her skin.

Slow and unsteady, he inched toward her. "You're exquisite...and engaged now," he said softly, reaching for her left hand. He lifted it and studied the ring on her finger. Although she wanted to, she didn't pull away. Essentially frozen by his touch, she couldn't move. "Mmm, with as much money as I have, I don't think I would've gotten you something so gaudy looking - not for a beautiful hand like this. It deserves much better. I would've aimed for something more elegant."

Streams of pedestrians dodged them on the sidewalk as they stood with her hand in his, but neither of them noticed. The blaring mixture of car horns, laughter, and music from a nearby club thrashed and echoed around them, but still, neither of them heard the noises.

Simply lost in one another in that moment, nothing else existed.

Emily tore her gaze from his, and as quickly as she did, Gavin caught her by her chin and lifted it so she was staring directly into his blue eyes. A soft gasp was the only sound that made its way past her lips.

"After the brief encounter we shared, I never thought Dillon would be the lucky man slipping a ring onto that pretty finger."

Breathing heavily, Emily swallowed hard and continued to stare at him. His raw, unrelenting, sexy determination hit her with a force strong enough to rock the ground beneath her. "I was drunk," she whispered, not taking her eyes off his, her voice stammering. "I...I just needed to get you out of my system."

Still cupping her chin, he slid his thumb slowly across her lips, his tone as low as hers. "Doll, you're going to get me out of your system as much as I'm going to get you out of mine. It's impossible."

Before she could process his words, he bent his head down and grazed his mouth against hers, catching her bottom lip between his teeth and sucking on it gently. She pulled back slightly, but the fight would go down in history as mild at best. Sliding his tongue against her lip, he tightened his hold on her chin just enough that she couldn't move. Gavin let out a long groan and gave her lip one last mind-blowing tug between his teeth. Emily might have seen it if her eyes weren't closed, but a reverent smile broke out across his face. He then turned, pivoting gracefully, and walked away, leaving Emily fighting for air. Reaching for the door, she watched breathlessly as Gavin slipped into the passenger side of his car, and before she knew it, he disappeared into traffic.

After the fog of euphoria and the shock pulsing through her system lifted, Emily found herself hazily walking into the restaurant with dampened panties, added confusion, and a heightened need for quite a few shots of sake.




Emily convinced herself that she was mentally prepared for this evening; however, she couldn't have been more wrong. As she and Dillon greeted their guests the night of their engagement party, she found her head becoming dizzy with literal fear. Looking down at her watch, a frantic string of emotions raced through her mind, knowing she would soon face Gavin. The heavy weight of it all had her feeling as though her nerves were beginning to fray like a rope one fiber at a time. Her spinning thoughts slowed when she felt Dillon's gentle touch brush against her arm. For tonight, she needed to focus on him - and him only - no matter how difficult she knew it would be.