When I'm with You (Hope Town #3)(27)

“I’ll give you that one, but only that f*cking one, Ember.”

“I’m not yours, Nate. You had that chance, and you didn’t want it.”

Bending down so my eyes are level with hers, I give in to the possessive need to claim her. “You were f*cking born to be mine, little firecracker, and mine you will f*cking be.” My words coming out in a thick rumble, and I watch in satisfaction as her pupils dilate.

Check. Fucking. Mate.

Her shocked gasp works in my favor, and in the next breath, my lips are on hers as my tongue slides into her mouth and caresses the slick heat of her own. My hands hit her hips, and with a flex of my fingers, I pull her against me roughly.

The body that had been rigid in my hands goes weak the second our bodies press tightly together, and she kisses me back with a fervor that surpasses my own. Her arms, no longer hanging limp at her side, move up until her hand is pushing into my hair and the tie that had been holding it up behind my head is ripped out as she pulls me closer to her mouth by my now loose locks.

This kiss is all about domination, and at the moment, I’m not f*cking sure I want to be the one to win this war. Our moans are mingling together and the wet sounds of our mouths feasting drown out the dull thump of the music. Letting her own silky lips take the lead, I hum deep in my throat. My erection rubs against her belly as my hands slide down to the point where the fabric meets burning smooth skin.

The second my fingertips curl around her dress and begin to lift the fabric, she jerks in my hold. The hands that had been tugging through my hair drop to my chest, and with a strangled sound, she pushes me away.

We stare at each other, chests heaving.

When I move to take her back in my arms and give us both what we clearly want, her arm comes up and stops my movement with one palm against the center of my chest. I look down at the offending hand with a tilt of my head, trying my f*cking hardest to get my brain to turn back on. Or at least, will some of the blood that is currently lacking from my head to leave my hard-as-shit cock.

“No,” she whispers hoarsely.

“Yes,” I demand, my eyes snapping back to hers.

“This will not happen.”

Again, I’m struck dumb and I just tilt my head again like a confused puppy that just wants his bone.

“Nate.” She sighs with a small shake of her head. “This won’t happen. I have a boyfriend.”

I feel one of my brows go up as I continue to look at her.

“Not only that, but you had your chance … twice … and both of those times ended disastrously for me. I’m not willing to put myself through that again.”

Shaking my head, finally getting some sense back in my system, I clear my throat before speaking. “You had a boyfriend, Ember. But that’s going to change real quick. You’ve ignored me since dropping that bomb on me the other day, and trust me, firecracker, we will be talking about that. One thing you need to get through that pretty little head of yours, though, is that this will be f*cking happening.”

She’s silent but not for long. She comes up on the balls of her feet the best she can in order to level her eyes with mine, but she just ends up with the top of her head getting there before dropping back down with a huff.

“I handed myself to you years ago, Nate, and the only thing that was missing was the silver f*cking platter. You rejected me. Like a stupid little girl, I thought my crush on you was this big grand love, but you proved me wrong, and I was crushed. You get that? Then, when I had finally put that behind me, you treat me like a faceless slut YOU DIDN’T SEE as you almost took my virginity against a f*cking wall. So, no … this will not be happening.”

“You’re mine,” I grunt deeply. “Fucking mine.”

“I’m no one’s but my own, and I’m definitely not yours. I’ll never be yours.”

She storms past me and wrenches my door open before disappearing down the stairs.

“We’ll just see about that,” I mumble to the empty room as the door slams in her wake.





THE FUCKING NERVE.

My lips burn and I can feel the wetness between my legs with each step that pulls my underwear against my bare sex.

My core throbs with the climax I had in his arms from that kiss alone.

I should feel terrible that I just came apart in a man’s arms who didn’t belong to my boyfriend, but I don’t. That could be because my mind had already put Levi in the ex category, the actual breakup just being a formality.

The crowd seems to part as I push through the room and back to where the girls are still drinking and laughing as if Nate hadn’t just carted me off over his shoulder.

How embarrassing.

Not a word is spoken as I snatch my purse from the table and reach in to grab some cash before spinning on my heels and making quick work of getting to the bar.

I don’t look around, too afraid of what I’ll see on the faces I pass. My eyes go up to the black glass above me, and I know without being able to see him that those eyes are tracking my every move.

“What’ll it be, babe,” I hear, bringing my focus away from the wall of windows.

Babe.

I’m so sick of people calling me babe. I feel like that word alone is going to drive me to the edge of sanity.

“I don’t care. Just make it strong,” I yell, slapping the bill down on the bar.