18. Morgan

18

MORGAN

Sweet as honey, hot as fire.

Every harsh glare, snippy remark, admiring glance, and stare filled with longing that Dane and I have exchanged in the weeks since we walked back into each other’s lives has led to this moment.

This kiss is the culmination of pent-up desire and undeniable attraction. I am drunk on it. I’m drunk on Dane Larson.

Dane walks forward until my back hits the wall. His hands move up to cradle my head and his tongue thrusts into my mouth, making my center ache. I press my chest into his and run my hands over his wide shoulders, sliding down to dig my nails into his biceps. He growls in approval and deepens the kiss.

Our tongues dance. We breathe each other’s air. Now that this moment has come, neither one of us allows an inch of space to form between us.

One of Dane’s palms remains on my face while the other strokes over my body in wonton desire. I lean into his touch, panting, desperate to feel his strong hands without fabric in the way.

He grips the back of my knee through the slit in my dress and lifts my leg. I feel his arousal against my center. I moan at the delicious pressure. I want more. And I want it now.

“Ow! Ow!” A man shouts.

I gasp and pull my head back to see a man cheering at us, hanging halfway out the passenger window of a car driving by.

I mourn the loss of Dane’s lips on mine, but I appreciate the disruption. I’d lost myself in that kiss, and I was close to begging him to dry hump me against the wall. Though, with how wet my underwear is, I don’t know if you can really call it dry humping.

Dane and I are tucked against the hotel’s exterior wall, but we’re still in public. We shouldn’t be out here kissing like desperate teenagers who can’t make out in the privacy of their own homes.

Dane must have the same thought. He rests his forehead against mine and pants, “Come back to the condo with me.” His thumb caresses my cheek. “I’ll beg if I have to.”

My core burns with want. This could be a bad idea for so many reasons.

Sleeping together will change our work dynamic and complicate our fake dating arrangement. I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize the career I’ve worked so hard to obtain.

Not to mention, Dane clearly has unresolved issues with his ex.

I don’t think he’s still into Chelsea, but seeing his reaction to her presence reminds me there are things I don’t know about Dane. I’m not the kind of woman who sleeps with someone before I feel like I know their character—before I know I can trust them.

How did that work out with Aaron?

My ex was a master manipulator—and he still is. He made me think I was the center of his world, spinning stories of his life into a colorful and exciting picture I was desperate to be part of. Aaron is proof that no matter what you think, there’s a chance you really don’t know someone in the way you think.

With Dane, while I may not know everything about him or his past, what I do know is he’s a loyal brother. He’s a selfless teammate. And he’s the kind of man who steps up and helps shield me from my emotionally abusive ex by offering to act as my boyfriend.

So, while this may be a mistake, it’s one I’m willing to risk.

He’s worth it.

“No.” I tilt my head back and press my lips against his in a chaste kiss before disappointment has the chance to settle in his chest. “Let’s go to my place instead.”