bothered him, but also by my own response to the hot fire on my ass zinging its way through me. When his hand traces the curve of my ass, his fingers sliding under my panties, I freeze. He strokes away the pain, kneading my flesh tenderly. Time seems to stand still, my heart thrumming at the sensation of his thumb sliding the edge of my panties back, exposing my cheek fully. I’m so turned on, yet I can’t decide whether to punch him or kiss him.
Another smack. “That’s for lying to me.”
My anger quickly ignites once more. This time I hammer my fist on his muscular arm, trying to break free, but he’s just too strong. “I haven’t lied to you,” I hiss. I don’t know you. I don’t trust you. I don’t trust anyone. I wish I did. I wish things were different. I wish my past was different.
He grabs my ass like he owns it, massaging my skin with enticing, possessive strokes. When he slides his hand lower to the back of my thigh and along the curve of my ass, teasing the edge of my panties, his fingers so close, but not touching me, I fight back the moan rising in my throat. As the sting fades, his sexy voice sends shivers down my spine. “You can call this quits whenever you want. Just say the word.”
Safe word. I get it now. His comment is so seductively intriguing, it’s hard to know if he’s seducing me, challenging me, or prepping me for more punishment of some other transgression. Sure I can say, “Rainbow” to make him stop, but there’s a part of me that wants to know what this is between us. What else have I done to elicit such heated intensity from him? Instead of playing by his rules, I decide to give his frustration back to him in my own way. Grabbing a fistful of his hair, I yank hard. “Screw you!”
Exhaling a harsh grunt, he digs his fingers into my rear, his piercing gaze narrowing to a sharp edge. I squeeze my eyes shut and tighten my butt muscles, preparing as he bends close to speak in a steely tone against my cheek. “And this is for waiting until fucking now to walk into my life.”
I gasp in shock when his mouth captures mine in a bone-melting kiss. The second he jerks me impossibly close, molding me to him like a second skin, my adrenaline spikes, setting me on fire.
His sensual spanking must have revved me up. Or maybe it’s just everything about Sebastian, from his seductive words, to his intense stare, to his thrilling, territorial hold on my body. What did he mean by that last comment? And why does he sound furious and regretful at the same time? I shake off my jumbled thoughts and clasp his neck, tugging him as close as I can. I’ve had eight years of build-up thinking about this glorious man, and I’m not letting him go yet.
Sebastian groans against my mouth, then slides his tongue aggressively against mine, provoking a response. Its electrifying effect zings all the way to the bottoms of my feet. Just as I twine my tongue with his, he starts to delve deeper, but then he pulls back, his face tense with frustration. “Give me something. Anything.”
The plea in his voice speaks to that same desperate feeling I’ve carried around with me since I was a little girl. Crossing paths with him when I was thirteen shined a tiny ray of hope in a life that was crashing down around me. In my heart and mind, he’s been “the one” for eight years, a fantasy I never expected to happen. I’d given him many names in my past imaginings, but Sebastian makes my insides burn.
I love it. The name fits him so well.
And now that my life is in an upward trajectory, I want the one man—whose brief appearance in my life meant more than any other—to be the person who helps me hold onto the belief he’d started all those years ago—that I was worth the effort. Until I met him that day, I’d always felt like no one cared. My aunt was the only one who loved me, because she had to. No one else had. Not my mother, not my father, not Walt, not Hayes. No one.
“Tell me your name,” he
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