Read Online Glass Ceilings by A. M. Madden - Free Book Online Page A

her in my arms and kissed her until we both couldn’t breathe. I could so easily see being with her, just as we were at that moment. It felt so natural and easy, like we’d known each other years and not merely days.
    “Are you tired?” I asked when I caught her yawning.
    The clock on the microwave said it was barely six a.m. I wasn’t the least bit tired, instead feeling high, wired after coming so hard.
    “Yes, but I don’t want to waste precious time with you sleeping.” I frowned at her admission. “What’s wrong?” she asked, concerned at the sudden change in my demeanor.
    “So, this will be the one and only night between us? You decided to be with me, to have your one-night stand, knowing this was going to be it?” She looked away, confirming my suspicions. “Look at me.”
    She leaned up and kissed me desperately. I pulled away, annoyed at her for trying to build a fence, a perimeter around what was happening between us.
    “Nick, can we please just enjoy tonight?”
    I looked over her shoulder, focusing on Eve’s stupid contract where it hung from a magnet on the fridge. I removed her arms from my neck, and walked over to it reading the list of rules. I could feel her standing behind me, but she waited a few seconds before she spoke.
    “I wasn’t planning on seeing you again.” She turned me around and searched my face.
    “Why the fuck not, Angela?” I asked, unable to hide my anger.
    “Because…”
    “Because what?”
    “Nick, you don’t understand. With just one kiss you managed to make me feel more than I’ve ever felt in my adult life.” She took my hands and wrapped them around her waist, holding them on her lower back. “After that kiss I was scared you’d hurt me.”
    “I’d never hurt you.”
    “Not physically. After that kiss I knew that you had the power to hurt me more than anyone has ever hurt me before. I’m leaving; what would be the point to start something I couldn’t have? Yet, in spite of all that, when I saw you at my door I just knew being with you for even one night would be worth every tear I’d shed after losing you.” She placed her hands on my chest, her eyes pleading for me to understand where she was coming from. The problem was, I didn’t. I didn’t get it at all.
    “And now, even knowing we’re both heading to New York City, you can honestly stand here and tell me this thing between us doesn’t deserve a chance? That after tonight, it has to be over?”
    She shook her head as emotion swelled in her eyes. “No, I can’t…because now I’m scared you’re killing my resolve. With every minute that I spend with you, you’ll make me want you more than I already do.”

Chapter 8
    Nick
    “That’s a bad thing?”
    She sighed and turned away. “I need to figure out
me
before I can give myself to anyone.”
    Desperate to kill her so-called resolve one way or another, I decided to change my tactics and just let our chemistry navigate our time together.
    For whatever reasons, something was holding her back. It most definitely had to do with her ex, but I’d make sure he wouldn’t get near her again.
    The thought of someone hurting her infuriated me. From the moment I saw Angela, I wanted to protect her, know everything about her. Sure, she was gorgeous, but she had a light that shone from within that was impossible to ignore. The shy girl, the secrecy only added to her allure.
    That night, we sat, talked, kissed some more, and finally fell asleep wrapped in each other’s arms.
    I woke first, and watched her sleep for what seemed like hours. Every so often her long lashes fluttered against her cheeks, making me wonder what she dreamt about. When her phone chirped with a text, she stirred in my arms stretching adorably beside me. A moment of alarm caused her eyes to fly open, confused as to where she was and who with.
    “Hey,” I said with a smile.
    “I’m so sorry.”
    “What for?”
    She tried to sit up, but I held her where she was. “For