She stared at me like a doe caught in the headlights as she let what I said sink in, and once it did she went from innocent to red hot in one second flat.

“You don’t talk to me like that.” Without hesitation, she poked me directly in the chest, her fingertip making a connection with my skin. I could practically feel the heat from her flesh imprinting on my soul. Anger shot through me and in no time I had my hand wrapped around her wrist, pulling her hand away from me.

“Did I touch you? Have I violated your space?” I tilted my head at her, my mind growing dark at the things I wanted to do to her. She took a step back, a sliver of fear filling her eyes as she did.

“No, but you have pissed me off in the most epic way, so do me a favor…” She leaned into my face, her eyes drifting down to my lips as if she was thinking the same thing I was, before coming back up to my eyes. “Leave me the fuck alone.”

She pulled herself from my hold and walked away, this time making certain she didn’t touch me. My teeth began to grind against each other, the grip on my cup hard as I could hear the cracking of the plastic. Liquid poured out the side, but I didn’t care. I couldn’t take my eyes off her swaying body as she made her way through my house, disappearing into the crowd.

Instead of chasing after her like she expected me to, I stood there. Anger washing over me in waves. Gia King had another motherfucking thing coming if she thought she could own me. Chase was never owned, it was always him doing the owning.

I slammed the remaining liquid in my cup back, allowing the burn of the whiskey to cover my deep rooted emotions for her. Then I made my way back into the kitchen to get a new cup and fill up.

I needed to remove this chick from my life, and most importantly from my mind.  That’s what I kept telling myself, but in all honesty she had weaved her way in so deep I was afraid she would never come out.

Three hours and one entire bottle of whiskey later, I found myself in an intense game of Beer Pong, my attention focused on winning, even though I wasn’t. I hadn’t had one thought about Gia, or whatever the fuck it was that she was doing, well up until now. I knew her and Chance had been studying upstairs, I also knew the moment they were done because they both came down, and I could hear Chance telling her to stay for a while as he made her a drink in the kitchen. Other than that, I didn’t know what she had been doing, nor did I care, or at least that’s the story I was sticking to. Then she walked back in and my mind grew hazy.

“You going to throw the ball, C?” Chance asked as he walked in behind her, an arrogant smile showing on his face. I shot him a grin as he maneuvered himself past the group of people that had formed in the kitchen and leaned against the table, watching my next move.

Throwing the small yellow ball into one of the cups on the far side of the table, I could do nothing but smile at the fact that I had made it. Was Gia my lucky charm?

“Of-fucking-course,” my words were slurred just slightly as I answered my silent question. My blood craved her, my mind wanted to explore her, and my cock had never wanted to sink into someone as much as it did right this second. I walked away from the table without even thinking, my feet carrying me straight to her.

“What the fuck, Chase?” I could hear my partner, Trenton bitching, but I ignored his complaint.

“You’re still here, I see,” I whispered into her hair, coming up right behind her. I was barely able to keep my body off of hers, but I did knowing that if I touched her I could make her uncomfortable, and for some reason that didn’t sit right with me.

“You’re still a jackass, I see.” Her breath came in fast as she turned around realizing just how close we really were. Two inches was separating our lips from touching. A zing coursed through me as I could feel the energy between us sizzle like the sun beating against the ground on a hot day.

“Am I?” I asked proudly.

“Get away from me.” She shoved against my shoulder as if she wanted me to move. Instead of doing as she asked I remained in my place. Seeing the look in her eyes as she stared at me with desires that only I could understand.

“Is that what you really want? Me to walk away, to turn a blind eye to the fact that you want me to fuck you right here and right now? You’ve been driving me crazy for months, that sweet ass temper of yours setting fire to my veins.” Had I just admitted that, even worse had I admitted it out loud?

She stared at me openly, as if she wasn’t sure what to say. Her eyes gave way to the real emotions that she was feeling. Didn’t she realize the power that she held over me? When it came to her, there was no limit.

“It is,” she finally said and fury engulfed me.

“Don’t lie to me. Lie to them.” I pointed out to the crowd. “Lie to my brother. Lie to your friends. Lie to whoever the fuck you want, but never lie to me.” I pushed my chest into hers. I was vibrating with anger. How could she lie when her feelings had been there for months? They damn near mirrored my own, and there was no way in hell I was going to let her get away with walking away from me this time.

“What I feel for you is nothing but lust, nothing but a desire for our bodies to become one.” She paused, a heavy sigh falling from her plump lips. “Yet, I know that crossing over into that threshold could be the very end of us. See we’re already on the verge of burning everything down, if we did, if we became one, even if it was for just one night− it could have the power to destroy everything. Us. Your brother. So let me ask you…” She leaned in closing the distance between our lips, her next words causing her bottom lip to brush against mine.

“Is that what you want?” This time she was questioning me, and I knew my answer, even if it was the one that I shouldn’t be saying.

“Yes, it is because it’s the honest truth. It’s the one thing that I should say no to, but that I can’t, so yes... my answer is yes, and it always will be.” I wasn’t going to give her a chance to say anything because I knew if she did I wouldn’t do what I was about to do. Slanting my face down towards her, her scent once again overwhelmed me as I leaned into her. My lips fell against hers softly at first and then deeper, until I felt nothing but the sweet, smooth, fullness of her mouth pressed against my own. Her lips moved back against mine as her walls began to crumble, and I could feel the heat underneath my skin wanting to unravel her, to strip her bare and claim her as mine. Even if it was only for one night, I wanted to devour her in the darkest ways possible.

Her hands small, but firm found their way onto my shoulders and then wove together wrapping around my neck. The cup in my hand dropped to the floor as I gripped her underneath her ass and placed her on the counter.

“You’re mine, even if it’s just for tonight.” The growl of words could barely be heard as I descended on her again. Her taste filled me, reminding me of cherries and lemons as we mingled together, our lips saying the words we never could. I knew there was no going back. She would be mine. Her pussy would clench around my cock, and my dreams of one night with Gia King would forever be met.

“Come upstairs with me?” I had to ask, pulling away to make sure this is what she wanted. I couldn’t take her kiss for an okay, even if I wanted her more than I had wanted anything else. I had told myself that if I ever got a chance to touch her, that I would make it worth my while. I would treat her differently, better than the other girls, simply because she was.

I stared deeply into her eyes, watching as lust filled them and a range of emotions filtered through. She bit her lip hard, nodding her head yes.