She quirked a brow at him and wiggled from his arms. “Well, why don’t I make something happen?”

Chapter Twenty

T.J. watched Cassie saunter from the darkened hall and didn’t let her walk out of view. He followed after her, his pulse increasing the more adamant her steps became.

“Are you okay?” Shay straightened from her position against the back of the sofa closest to the bar and didn’t flinch when Cassie continued toward her, sliding against the other woman’s body before brushing their lips together.

“Fuck me drunk.” Leo’s words rang heavy in the room. “What the hell did you say to her?”

T.J. ignored the question, too transfixed with the sight before him. Cassie glided her hand into Shay’s hair, the long strands of dark silk brushing through his wife’s delicate fingers. They were mesmerizing. Captivating. The two of them making out as if they were long-lost lovers, not women who were sharing their first kiss. At least he thought it was their first.

“Have they done this before?” T.J. slumped onto the stool next to Leo and pounded the bar. “Bourbon. Straight. Now.”

“Make that two,” Leo muttered. “And I fucking hope not. The way those two look together, I’m starting to think Shay might leave me for a better offer.”

She wouldn’t get the chance. T.J. grasped the glass Travis slid in to his hand and threw the liquid back in one gulp. Cassie had made her point. In her mind, she was testing boundaries and taking a chance. And no matter how inviting her so-called risk currently was, he’d had his fill for the night.

He needed her. To claim what he’d been missing for too damn long.

He slammed his glass down on the bar, giving his wife a warning before he strode for her. “That’s enough, ladies.” He moved in behind Cassie, slid an arm around her waist and flung her around to stand before him. “What was that all about?”

Her chest was rising and falling, her gorgeous lips kiss-stained. “I’m not going to return to a marriage where I’ll be scared to take chances.”

“That wasn’t really taking a chance, my love.” He prowled toward her, his dick pulsing at the way her pupils dilated.

She backtracked, bumped into the sofa and straightened as she kept distance between them, fleeing toward the back of the main room. “How was I to know she was going to kiss me back? She could’ve just as easily slapped me or pushed me away.”

“Really?” He quirked a brow. “From what I witnessed earlier, it seemed more like you were finishing what you’d already started.”

Her lips rose at the edges, and she snaked her tempting tongue out to moisten her lips. “Well, okay, maybe it wasn’t much of a risk…” She beamed at him. “Baby steps, right?”

A growl formed in his chest, the warmest, richest sound he’d ever made without conscious thought. Behind him was loneliness and safety. Before him stood pain and pleasure. The sweetest mix of everything volatile and risky.

He’d obsessed over Cassie’s protection and happiness—past, present and future. It was the way he measured his worth in the world. If this gorgeous woman was smiling due to his words, his touch, his love, he was a satisfied man. But he had to sever that addiction. He had to step back and let her find her own happiness. Make her secure her own safety.

“Does this mean you forgive me?” He was so close, yet so far. He could reach out a hand and touch her, to brush her smooth skin, to drag her against his body, only her smile faltered, piercing him in the chest with sorrow.

“You need to do more than growl at me to earn my forgiveness.” Her grin returned, washing away the hurt and replacing it with hope.

“Make a list. Whatever you want is yours.” He’d make it up to her somehow. With every day for the rest of their lives.

He continued for her, her retreating steps approaching the back wall. “How come you’re running from me?”

“I have no clue.” Her words were whispers. “You’d think I wouldn’t be nervous after all the chasing I did to try and get you back.”

“Nervous?” He stopped, unable to move another inch. “Well, why don’t I start things off myself you can come to me when you’re ready?” He didn’t want her apprehension. He needed excitement, love, passion and hope for their future. Baby steps.

She frowned, cocking her head in the cutest confused expression as he strode to the king-sized bed in the corner. He slid onto the mattress, resting his back against the headboard and crossed his feet at the ankles.

On the outside, he was relaxed. Calm. Inside was a different story. The pulse of his heart was heavy, a pounding ache in his chest. His hands were shaking, sweat slicking his palms, but his cock was the worst offender. He was hard as granite, the length of his shaft pressing against his zipper with incessant force.

Cassie sauntered forward, her steps measured and slow. Her gaze raked his body, focusing on the bulge at his crotch, then rising to his face.

He cleared his throat and wiggled his shoulders, settling into his position. “I haven’t had a chance to ask you what you think of the club.”

“It’s more than I ever imagined.” She glanced over her shoulder, taking in the room. “The bar, the rooms, the furnishings—it all fits together perfectly.”

“We try and keep security to a maximum. Not only on function nights, but during the vetting process.”

“I know.” A smirk curved her lips and she broke their stare to focus on the bedsheet.

She was breathtaking. Her hair loose, her curves tightly caressed by the dress she wore. He wanted her legs wrapped around him, her high-heel-covered feet crossed around his back.

“Of course you do.” He placed his hands behind his head, the picture of leisure. “You experienced the entry process for the masquerade party.”

She nodded, still looking down at the sheet.

“Do you have any idea what the memories of that night do to me?” They were vivid. A crystal-clear recollection continuously playing in the back of his mind.

“I’d take a guess that the effect isn’t nice,” she murmured. “From the anger you showed toward me when I told you, I can only assume you’re still horrified.”

Far from it. “At first, yes. It was brutal. But when I got home and went over those moments with fresh eyes, knowing it was you instead of a stranger, it was the most erotic memory I’d ever had.” He stared at her, mentally begging her to look at him. “You seducing me. Here. In front of all those people. I’ve been haunted by an insistent hard-on that can’t be assuaged.”

Her head shot up, the tops of her cheeks turning a light shade of pink as their gazes collided. “You’re not mad anymore?”

Only at himself. He’d still cheated on his wife, and that was unforgivable. “Mad?” He chuckled. “Do you have any idea how many times I’ve had to jerk off to gain some semblance of relief?” His cock had been punishing him ever since. “I still remember your voice and the familiar way you said hi at the bar.”

“I hadn’t thought to school my tone.” The nervousness in her features began to settle, the apprehension in her eyes softening with comfort. “Well, I had, but I was too flustered to remember. I even forgot to take off my wedding rings until Zoe asked me about them in the change rooms.”

“I can’t believe you had me fooled.” Although, in hindsight, his eyes were the only things that had been misled. The rest of his senses had known—touch, taste, sound. Even her presence was familiar. The way he’d closed his eyes and pictured Cassie instead of the dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty. “But it was when you asked if I wanted to watch you that lust mixed with confusion. I didn’t stand a chance.”

She nestled on the foot of the bed, the dress slipping higher up her thigh.

“I guess I should return the favor,” he murmured.

Her eyes widened, her brow furrowing in the sexiest way. “What do you mean?”