“What?”

Her anger fizzled, but the worry in her eyes had returned. I would have to choose my words carefully. If I seemed like the old Josh, she was going to bolt. If I told her the truth, she was going to bolt too.

“No,” I said with a sigh. “I’m trying to tell you that I … I’m just going to fucking say it. I care about you, okay? And that is new to me and fucking terrifying. And I’m not really sure what to do if you don’t feel the same way.”

Her lips parted and she sucked in a tiny breath. After an eternity, she finally spoke. “I do. Feel the same, I mean.”

“Yeah?” I asked, relief making my shoulders sink.

She nodded. “It scares me too. But something about us is different. I want this. I want you.”

My eyebrows pulled together and I exhaled. My mouth crashed into hers, as if she were the only source of oxygen in a burning building. I wanted to be consumed by the inferno now raging between us.

The fabric of her dress fell away, and I scanned every soft curve of her skin. The only sound in the room was our breaths; the only movement was the reflection in her eyes as she watched me reach for her. I lifted her effortlessly, wrapping her legs around my waist. She kept her mouth on mine as I walked across the living room to the bedroom doorway. Reluctantly, I lowered her to the ground, until she was standing on her toes.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Something new for me.”

“Which is?”

“A bedroom.”

Avery bit her lip and giggled as I slowly slipped a hand behind her, fumbling with the small clasp of her bra before it snapped free and slid down to her waist. She broke her hold on me just long enough to toss the lace to the floor before pressing her body tight against mine.

My dick was painfully hard against the rough fabric of my jeans, but I didn’t want to rush things with Avery. Her hands slid tentatively over the ridges of my abdomen, and they involuntarily flexed under her touch.

“Josh,” she whispered against my lips as her fingers slipped under the waistband of my jeans. I quickly undid the button and zipper before shoving the denim to the ground and kicking them off my feet.

Giggling into my mouth, Avery gripped my shoulders. I lowered her back onto her bed, our bodies tangling in the mass of fluffy comforter beneath us.

There was no urgency between us. I wanted to savor every taste of her skin, from the valley above her collarbone to the soft curve of her breast.

I kissed my way down her stomach as it dipped and raised with her ragged breaths, her long, elegant fingers lost in my hair, guiding me lower.

Pressing my lips to the pale pink lace adorned by a small matching bow on the front of her panties, I felt her body tense. My rough, calloused fingers tugged at the edge of the fabric, sliding it down over her hips and the widening of her thighs. I dragged them down to her painted toes and tossed them into the darkness. I considered kissing the apex of her thighs, but I climbed my way back up her body, desperate to feel her beneath me.

Even though Avery was significantly shorter than I was, her legs seemed impossibly long as they crossed behind my backside to hold me tighter against her. Her soft lips, still sticky from gloss, settled on a patch of skin just below my ear. I grew harder as I rocked my hips, moving my length along her inner thighs.

She breathed in and then let out a sexy, soft moan.

I tensed. “You keep that up, this will be over before we even start,” I joked, and she rewarded me with one of her soft giggles, a whisper’s breath blowing against my ear.

Pressing my cheek against hers, I closed my eyes. I needed a moment to calm myself before I lost control and flipped her ass over to take her in one of the many dirty ways I’d dreamed about since we’d spoken at JayWok. Avery deserved better than that. With her, I wanted more than just a quick, dirty fuck. I wanted to look into her eyes. For the first time, it was just as important to see the expression on her face when I slid inside her as the sensation itself.

“Don’t move,” I said, more begging than warning. I crawled from her body and fumbled with the button of my jeans at the side of the bed.

I said a silent prayer, followed by a thank-you when a small foil packet fell from my pocket into my hand. It bothered me that it had been placed in my wallet with the intention of being used on any random girl I took home. Now, I couldn’t imagine this moment with anyone but Avery. I couldn’t have predicted us being there, in Avery’s bedroom, but it didn’t stop the guilt from consuming me. Even watching me behave like the kind of douchebag she hated, Avery Jacobs was somehow lying beneath me, completely naked and impatiently waiting for me to make love to her. Everything had somehow fallen into place, even though I knew the truth: my life had been a series of bad luck. It was just a matter of time before Avery walked away.

I teared the corner of the packet with my teeth, and Avery’s hand wrapped around mine, stopping me. My heart sank, as if she could see through the façade. Did she just now realize she was making a mistake? That she was settling?

Taking the small packet from my hand, she pushed gently against my chest, guiding me back onto her pillow. Her smooth thighs straddled mine as I watched in awe, willing myself to be patient. Eager women didn’t require a lot of self-control. I knew the purpose and the end result, and I’d always accomplished that. Letting Avery set the pace was so different from what I was used to, and arousing in itself.

I couldn’t help but run my fingers along her silky flesh as she took the condom from the packet and rolled it down my length. I didn’t think it would be possible to be any more turned on, but Avery smiled in a way I’d never seen before, her mouth only half turned up, mischievous, ready. She skimmed my stomach with her lips, tasting my skin in a dozen small kisses. As soon as protection was in place, I grabbed Avery’s waist and flipped her onto her back, settling in between her thighs. I couldn’t wait any longer. I needed to be inside her.

Without looking away, Avery sucked in a sharp breath. I pressed against her entrance, painfully slow, allowing her to adjust to my size. The bite of her fingernails into my flesh let me know this moment was real, and this girl I had dreamed of was now mine. The room was quiet, aside from the mattress shifting with my movements, our ragged breathing, and small whimpers from Avery’s lips as I filled her completely.

“Are you okay?” I asked, already breathing hard.

She nodded as my lips found hers. Relief washed over me, knowing she wanted this as much as I did and feeling the trust we had given each other. For the first time—at least, for me—sex was more than just sex. I’d never allowed myself to be that vulnerable with anyone. It was terrifying, and exhilarating, much more than any one-night stand I’d ever had.

I eased back and then filled her again. My movements were slow, matching the pace of our kiss. I wasn’t used to being so gentle. I was afraid the perfect image of Avery would break and dissipate beneath me, leaving me in a crumbled heap of regrets and past mistakes.

Her pelvis tilted to meet mine as she mumbled my name against my lips. With my forehead resting against hers, I saw the only thing still between us: a small penny pinned between our chests.

Our panting mingled and became deafeningly loud in the small space as Avery shook beneath me, our bodies coated in a thin layer of sweat.

I leaned down, kissing her hard, feeling the build. My intended lovemaking was turning into fucking, and Avery welcomed the pounding rhythm.

Her soft cries of pleasure pushed me over the edge, and I thrust into her one last time before growling my release. We both stilled, struggling to catch our breath.

I brushed her slicked hair from her face, tracing my thumb over the arch of her eyebrow. I slowly eased out of her, seeing the disappointment in her eyes mirror mine.