31. Emmett

Chapter 31

Emmett

Fuck me.

Fucking fuck me.

What was I doing? Why did I grab her?

How had I already undone three of the buttons on her blouse?

Because you want her. You want to kiss those lips, rip those clothes off her, and taste every inch of her. Fuck her against the wall until she screams your name.

Because you’ve always wanted what you can’t have.

I held her hands steady over her head, ghosting my free hand along her arm, down the side of her breast, and stopping at her waist. I pulled back only far enough to see her face.

Jenn’s wet, swollen lips parted. She knew what she wanted, but hadn’t planned on asking, had she? Or she didn’t think I’d take her up on it.

Raw need slammed through me as my fingers traced her hip, keeping a razor-thin space between our bodies. Blood pounded through my veins. My body screamed to consume her. My cock demanded I claim her. But my brain?

It was the only part of me that realized I had to stop.

Scarlett had been right to warn me away from her. I wasn’t what a good, smart woman like Jenn needed. I was little more than a con artist.

I was a man whose father betrayed his country.

You’re no better than him. You used Jenn to get close to the De Rosas.

I was a man who froze at the sound of Enzo’s voice.

He kidnapped you . What did you expect to do when you heard him?

“It can just be physical, Emmett.” She swallowed, the sex kitten growing apprehensive. “I don’t need any promises of what comes tomorrow or next week or when we get home.”

“You deserve more.” Like a man who could tell her the truth, who wasn’t hiding an entire career she didn’t understand. Who wasn’t hiding his sister’s lies. I’d told Jenn a few truths to win her trust, but the rest of it? How would she react?

Her voice dropped, and she flexed her wrists under my grip. “I deserve to be happy.”

I couldn’t make her happy.

“What you’re asking for…” The words were bitter on my tongue, but I forced them out, anyway. “It’s not something I can give you. Not now, not ever.”

She flinched, hurt flashing across her face before she masked it with determination. “You can. We’ve always been friends, and I know you.”

“You don’t know the real me.” I took a step back, creating distance between us. It was for her own good, even if it felt like tearing out a piece of my soul.

She stared at me, easing her arms down and blinking as though trying to understand what I was saying.

“You do deserve to be happy, but I’m not the kind of man who’s capable of giving you that.”

“That’s a shitty excuse.” Her chin lifted defiantly. “One night, Emmett. Not forever.”

Fuck. One night? It would be too easy to give in, to lose myself in her for a few hours. But one night would never be enough, and I’d only end up hurting her more in the long run.

“Jenn, listen to me. You don’t understand. There are things about me, things I’ve done… You wouldn’t want me if you knew the truth.”

“It’s not me, it’s you? Seriously?” Her gaze dropped, cheeks flaming as red as ever. Tears welled against her lids. “What’s wrong with me? Why do I always?—”

“Stop that, right now.” My gut twisted. Every dream I’d had of her over the years came rushing back. She was the pure fantasy, always out of reach. If I told her how long I’d wanted her, she’d never buy it.

“My god, I can’t believe I…” She pulled her gaping shirt closed, curling her shoulders in. “Just go to bed and pretend this never happened.”

She was crying.

Because of me.

Because I was letting every little voice into my head. Her father’s. My sister’s. Rav’s.

Goddamn Noah and Enzo for showing up and making this fucking trip worse.

“It’s not…” Fuck. Fucking fuck. I stood there, pathetic, as her tears fell. Every instinct screamed at me to pull her close, to wipe away those tears. But I couldn’t.

‘You’re not good enough for Jenn. You never will be,’ her father had said.

My hand slipped into my pocket, fingers closing around the poker chip. The weight of it, the memories it carried, anchored me. I’d been running for so long, hiding behind lies and half- truths. I couldn’t keep doing it, not with her. She deserved… something—some kind of explanation.

Tell her the truth. For once, tell someone the truth .

I took the chip out of my pocket. Holding it lightly between two fingers, I let someone else see it for the first time. “I’m damaged goods, Jenn.”

Her shoulders heaved with her quiet tears. She tried walking away from me, but I put a gentle hand out to stop her.

“At the end of April, I was at a poker game in New York City with Malcolm.” I rolled the chip over my knuckles. Its blue face and white edge spots flashed with each turn. I could have done it blindfolded. Described every millimeter of the chip without hesitating. “Three masked men broke in and took us.”

My story must have confused her, because she stopped crying.

“They beat me—” I stopped when the words stuck in my throat, and I swallowed hard. You can do this. “They forced Scarlett and the team to do a job to pay the ransom.” I held the chip face out to show her the hole punched through the middle. “I was beaten regularly and shipped to Venice, where the team came for me.”

Jenn’s brows drew down. The pity look.

Great. What was sexier than that?

“After it was all over, I went back to New York for one of the chips from the game.” I wrapped it in my fist, pressing the textured face into my palm. “It’s been in my pocket for almost four months now.”

“What does that have to do with…” She let her hands drop from her shirt, fanning them as if to say, ‘All of this ?’

“I saw a doctor who said I’m dealing with post-traumatic stress, and”—I glanced down at the chip—“I’m having a tough time dealing with what happened.”

With trusting people. With my confidence. With sleep.

At least I wasn’t having daily headaches or jumping at every loud noise anymore.

Her brows shifted from pity to confusion.

There was too much else going on I couldn’t confess to. What the ransom had been, what Noah’s plan was, and that I’d only seen the doctor once. I’d thought I had plenty of time to get over the issues.

But then I arrived in my favorite city in the world, the men behind my kidnapping showed up, and the woman I’d wanted for as long as I could remember told me she wanted me, too.

“Noah was their ringleader.”

Jenn gasped, apparently forgetting how upset she was, because her hands landed on my chest. “Seriously?”

“That’s why I wanted you to stay here with me. They’ve—” I didn’t want to talk about Fenix. I wanted my life back.

Fuck. I wanted to be the man she thought I was. I dragged my hands through my hair, the weight of her gaze making my chest ache. There wasn’t a single part of me that could give her what she deserved .

But I could give her part of what she wanted .

I stuffed the chip back into my pocket and drove my fingers through her hair. “You’re right.”

She sucked in a quick breath. “What do you mean?”

“I do want you,” I whispered as I wrapped one fist in her hair, taking in her smooth skin, her dark blue eyes, and the little freckle by her right eye.

She’d grown more beautiful every year since we were kids. And she wanted to be mine for one blissful night. She didn’t understand who I was. What I’d been through. What I couldn’t do for her. Still, my lips brushed hers, and she sighed softly. She tasted sweet, like the chocolate souffle she’d enjoyed at the Casino’s restaurant.

The kiss deepened, our tongues tangling with a deliberate patience that made my body come alive. The desperate urgency from earlier melted into something more dangerous. Each gentle stroke threatened to unravel the careful walls I’d built, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop.

She moaned deep in her chest and pulled my shirt from my pants. Her hand circled around me, running up my back, under my shirt.

My fingers caressed her arms, guiding them upward until her wrists crossed above her disheveled hair again. My cock strained against my zipper. Patience was my forte, and this woman would come for me before any of my clothes came off.

Jenn’s soft whimper filled the air as she arched her back, breasts straining against the black lace bra she’d chosen with care this morning. For a fleeting moment, she’d held control, but now she was at my mercy, her body pleading for my touch.

I traced my tongue across her skin, marking her with wet heat. Her breath caught when I reached the swell of her breast, and I paused. “May I?”

“Oh god, please.”

I pulled the cup down, teasing my way to her nipple. Her heart raced beneath my lips, her quickened breath urging me onward. As my mouth explored her smooth skin, my hands wandered lower, deftly undoing her button and sliding her zipper down. I nipped at her flesh, eliciting a tiny gasp that went straight to my cock.

“Please, Emmett.” Jenn moaned and writhed, but kept her hands away, even though the restraint was obviously a challenge. “I need you inside me. Now.”

“Not yet, honey.” I kissed my way down her stomach as I peeled away her pants and underwear. I guided her to step out of them, then knelt and hoisted one of her legs over my shoulder. “I need to show you how much I want you first.”

Her pussy glistened in front of me, clit swollen and begging for my attention. I licked her seam slowly, savoring her flavor, committing every gasp and cry to memory. My tongue circled her clit before returning to dip inside her. She clenched my hair, holding me steady as I worked her closer and closer to the edge.

I slipped two fingers into her warmth, her slick heat enveloping me. Her hips bucked, seeking more, and I obliged. Curling my fingers, I found the sweet spot inside her that made her shudder, while my mouth continued its assault on her sensitive nub.

Her breath caught, her grip on my hair tightening. She was close, but I took my time, wanting her to revel in every moment.

“Fuck, Emmett,” she panted, her hips grinding against my face. “Don’t stop.”

Fuck stopping.

I kept up my steady rhythm, fingers pumping in and out of her, my tongue swirling and flicking. Her inner walls began to pulse around my fingers, her body tensing as she climbed higher and higher.

Suddenly, she cried out, her climax crashing over her like a tidal wave. Her body shook as she rode out the crest of her orgasm, and she held my head right where it wanted to stay. I didn’t slow until she went limp, her fingers slipping from my hair, her breath coming in shallow gasps.

I slowly withdrew, giving her one last, gentle lick that made her quiver.

Jenn’s eyes fluttered open, meeting mine. There was a satisfaction in her gaze, a contentment that made my chest…

What was my chest doing? It was more than my pulse pounding or the knowledge I’d brought her to ecstasy. There was something else.

Something warm? And happy?

No, no, no.

Jenn was the first woman I’d been with since?—

Stop thinking about the kidnapping. That was all it was. Not a feeling. My long dry spell was screwing with my brain. There were no feelings involved.

“Wow,” she breathed.

I stood, skimming my hands up her sides, over her breasts, until I cupped her face again. “You only asked for a kiss, but I hope the rest was all right?”

She lifted onto her toes, encouraging me to kiss her again. Her soft hum when our mouths met increased that strange feeling inside my chest.

Sneaking a hand around her as we kissed, I undid her bra, preparing for round two. “Stay here.”

Jenn nodded, her hair a mess, her lips thick from my assault. I strode into the bedroom, my dick hard enough to pound nails. I grabbed a few condoms from my toiletry bag. If this was going to be one night only, it was going to be an unforgettable one.

I returned to find her teasing her own nipples, the rosy peaks taut with need. I gave one sharp tug of her hair to expose her throat. My teeth grazed the length of her neck, drawing a desperate sound from her. Her spine arched, surrendering herself to my mouth. When I bit down lightly near her collarbone, her cry sent a jolt through my body.

I’d wanted to do that for so long.

My fingers slid down her stomach, over her silky skin, to the thatch of curls between her legs. She moaned as I played with her, then gasped when I pushed two fingers inside her again.

Her sex clamped around me, and she slapped one needy hand over mine. She rocked her hips, guiding my hand as I pumped my fingers in and out. Her pants and moans filled the room, and she let go of me to tug at my belt, fumbling with the buckle. “Get these off.”

I withdrew my fingers to help, unfastening my pants and shoving them down far enough to free my cock. I tore the condom wrapper, sheathed myself, and lifted her against the wall. “This doesn’t hurt your knees, does it?”

“They’re fine.”

“You ready for this, honey?”

“Yes.”

I held under her ass, letting my tip play at her entrance. She was so wet and ready. So easy to drive inside her. Her pussy gripped me like a vise. I wanted to take my time, to savor her luscious body, but my cock had other plans. I drove into her, again and again, taking my fill. “Fuck, yes, Jenn.”

Her head dropped back, and she latched one leg higher up my back to give me better access.

“Oh, god, Emmett,” she panted. “Yes, yes, yes.”

My lips found her throat again, and she mewled. Her inner walls spasmed, milking my cock, and I had to grit my teeth to hold on. I wanted to come, but not yet. Not until she came again.

“Emmett,” she gasped. “I’m—oh, god.”

She began shaking, gripping my shoulders to help slam herself onto me until she finally fell apart. And with a few more thrusts, I followed her over the edge, spilling myself into the condom.

I kissed her softly, then rested my forehead against hers. This was a mistake. A huge mistake. But it felt so damn amazing.

“Definitely better than just a kiss.” She wrapped her arms around me, holding tight as our breathing slowed.

“Jenn,” I whispered as I pulled out and put her down. “My Jenn.”

“I don’t suppose you have another one of those in you?” Apparently, the sex kitten had returned.

“Well, now that we’ve ensured Scarlett and Rav are going to kill me…” I bent, tossed her over my shoulder, and headed for the bedroom. “I’m going to take you to your room, splay you out, and feast on your gorgeous body until you beg me to stop.”

Her squeal of delight zipped around inside of me, almost making me think I could be the kind of man who’d make her happy.