A single tear slips free, sliding down her face. “Not her.”
My chest caves at the sound of it. “What are you asking me, Es? What are you saying?”
She shakes her head, fiercely this time, like she’s already bracing for the war she just started. “She can’t have you. If you got to make that demand of me with Jones, then I get to make this demand of you when it comes to her. Not Malina.”
I reach for her mask, peel it away, and then do the same with mine until there’s nothing left between us. No disguises. No barriers. Just her and me, bare in every way that matters right now.
“Say it, Eslin,” I growl, my hands tight at her jaw. “Say it to me now so we can stop playing these fucking games.”
Her breath trembles against my mouth then I hear a faint whisper escape her when she says, “Fuck it. I’ll wait for you. I’ll wait for Marlow to get on her feet and then we can tell her. Everything.”
I kiss her, soft but claiming, a brand she can’t shake. “Say it again.”
She shakes her head. “I’ll wait for you.”
I tug her lower lip between my teeth, just enough to make her gasp. “One more time. Tell me. Promise me.”
Her eyes lock on mine, fierce through her tears. “I’ll wait for you, Grant.”
That’s all it takes. The words imprint themselves into me. A vow. A tether. The only thing I’ve been needing, starving for, since the moment she crashed into my life.
I cup her face in both palms, my thumbs brushing dampness away. I kiss her tear first, tasting the salt of her hurt.
Then her mouth. Soft, like she might break if I’m not careful.
Her arms slide beneath my coat, curling tight around me. I feel her nails drag down my back through my shirt, sharp and possessive. It’s not pain—it’s a claim.
And something in me breaks wide open.
I lift her, her gasp hot against my throat, and carry her deeper into the shadows where no one will dare interrupt. Where I can finally—finally—take what I’ve been starving for.
“Grant—what if—”
“Months, Eslin. Months I’ve been waiting for permission to taste you like this.” My voice is rough, cracking with restraint I’ve lost all hold of. “I’m not waiting another second.”
Each step I take, I hike her dress higher, until her thighs bare themselves to me and she hooks her legs around my waist.
And then I feel it. The slip of lace. A damn thong.
My groan shakes the walls.
“Does anyone touch you like this?” My hand slides between us, finding her already wet, slick and desperate.
“Never. No one but you,” she whispers, voice breaking just as my fingers part her heat.
I reach a stack of chairs shoved against the wall and set her on top, her body aligning with me at the perfect height. I drag her closer until she has no choice but to open for me.
“Spread your legs, Eslin.” It’s a growl, a command. This beautiful woman obeys.
“Such a pretty pussy,” I rasp, drinking in the sight of her glistening for me.
She lets out a shaky laugh. “Are you going to stare at it all night?”
“I’d love to,” I murmur, lowering myself, hunger sharp in every word. “But I’m a starving man, Eslin Saunders. And I was always taught never to play with my food.”
“Especially while it’s still warm,” she teases, breathless.
I don’t give her a chance to say another word.