Temptation (The Hunted, #1)(58)

My heart was racing. His breath smelled minty. He was handsome, funny, and honest. This is what I need. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him. He immediately kissed me back, more passionately than he had at Grottos. I reached up and grabbed his hair, pulling him closer, kissing him deeply. He took a step forward and pushed my back against my bureau, pinning me in place. His hands moved to my waist. I could feel his erection pressed against me. He wasn't just what I needed, he was what I wanted.

I lifted one of my legs and wrapped it around him. He quickly grabbed my ass and lifted me up so I could wrap my other leg behind him. He pressed himself harder against me.

I moaned softly. He pressed his erection against me again. "Tyler," I panted and wrapped my arms securely around his neck.

He grabbed my ass tighter and carried me over to my bed. He placed me down on the edge of it and spread my thighs even wider as he leaned into me. I grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled it up his torso, revealing his abs. I swallowed hard. He quickly pulled his shirt the rest of the way off and tossed it on the ground. I let my hands slide down his muscles to the waistline of his jeans. I unbuttoned and unzipped them. He grabbed my hands. My heart was racing.

"Are you sure this is what you want? I don't want you to knee me in my junk again." He smiled down at me.

"Yes. I want you." My mind was confused, but my body wasn't.

He leaned over and kissed me again. His hands pushed my shirt up and over my head. He unhooked my bra and slowly pulled it down my arms. "Penny," he groaned. He leaned in and kissed me again, letting his hands wander to my breasts. I tilted my hips up to him and he pressed his erection against me again.

"You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this," he whispered in my ear.

"Me too." I grabbed the sides of his jeans and started to pull them down.

"Have you talked to James yet?" Melissa said as she opened the door. She placed her keys on her bureau without looking over at us.

Crap!

"Who is James?" Tyler asked.

Melissa's head snapped toward us. "Oh my God!" She was staring at Tyler's abs. I had already begun pulling my shirt back on, but Tyler had only zipped and buttoned his pants. I tucked my bra underneath my comforter.

"I can come back later," Melissa said, but didn't turn around.

"Please," I said, my face turning bright red.

"Wait," Tyler said. "Who is James?"

Oh my God.

I shook my head back and forth at Melissa and she just stared back at us. "He doesn't know about James," I mouthed to her as best as I could.

"James is...my dad," Melissa said slowly.

"You call your dad James?" Tyler asked.

"Always have." Melissa shrugged her shoulders. "He's just very businesslike. But that doesn't mean he's not a good father, because he is. He's great."

Tyler stared back at her. "So why is Penny talking to your dad?"

"Well," Melissa paused but only for a moment. "He's planning a joint birthday party for us and he needs Penny's invitation list."

Tyler looked at me. It didn't look like he believed a word that Melissa had said. And he shouldn't have. Lies on top of lies. "So, have I made the list?"

"Yes," I said quickly. Oh please stop talking, Melissa.

"Yeah, it's going to be a Halloween themed party, since both our birthdays are in October," Melissa added. "It's going to be a blast."

Tyler sat down on the bed beside me.

"So, does this mean you two have finally admitted to liking one another?" Melissa asked.

I looked up at Tyler and smiled. Despite Melissa's intrusion, I did feel like Tyler and I were in a good place.

Tyler winked at me and turned back to Melissa. "Actually, no. I thought Penny made all her male friends take their shirts off upon entering her dorm room. Is that not a thing?"

"Ugh," Melissa said. "I'm going to leave you two alone."

"Unfortunately," Tyler said and looked down at his watch. "I need to get going." He hopped off the bed and grabbed his shirt from the floor. After he pulled it back over his head, he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "to be continued, Penny." He grabbed my face in his hands and kissed me.

If my face could possibly turn any redder, it did.

"Bye, Melissa," Tyler said and walked out the door.

"Oh my God," Melissa said before Tyler had even closed the door. She sat down next to me on my bed. "Out of bed with James and into bed with Tyler, huh?"

"Melissa, we didn't have sex."

"Yeah right."

I needed to change the topic before it got any more awkward. "Thanks for covering for me about James."

"Well, have you talked to him? You really do need to clear the air before you move forward with Tyler. It's only fair to both of them."

"I know, I know. I'm going to."

"When?"

I sighed. I didn't want to think about Professor Hunter. "I'll do it this weekend."

"So how about Tyler's six pack?"

I laughed. "He is sexy, isn't he?"

"I couldn't stop staring. Sorry, awkward."