Page 151 of Deacon

I closed the distance again. “No, Princess, I ain’t gonna lie and say I was a saint. A man’s got needs.” I leaned closer, watching irritation spark against the heat already building in her eyes. “But mine were all one-night stands. I never went back to the same person so they could think there was a chance.” I jerked my thumb toward where Mason had disappeared. “That man there? That is not a man who thinks he’s just a friend. That is a man still preyin’ after you.”

Her lips parted.

“But you.” I moved closer until the next words belonged only to the space between us. “You. Are. Mine.”

Then I kissed her again.

She moaned into my mouth, and every reasonable thought I had scattered. My hands moved over her waist and hips before I lifted her. She came willingly, legs wrapping around me as her body settled against mine, and the sound we both made should probably have embarrassed us.

It didn’t.

She grabbed my hair and tugged. The kiss turned hotter, her hips rolling once against me, and that single movement brought back enough sense to remind me exactly where we were.

I broke the kiss.

Her eyes were glassy when she looked at me. “Why did you stop?”

That almost undid every good intention I had left.

I dragged my tongue over her bottom lip and felt her shiver. “Because if I don’t stop now, I’ll rip your clothes off and take you in the middle of a construction site.” My voice came out rough enough to scrape. “And it’s been way too long since I’ve been to Heaven, baby. But that ain’t what you deserve.”

Something softened in her face. I lowered her carefully, stole one more kiss because apparently restraint had limits, then rested my forehead against hers until both of us remembered how breathing worked.

“Let’s go finish the tour,” I said. She nodded, still flushed.

I smacked her ass when she stepped past me. “But make no mistake. We’re finishin’ this later.”

The glare she threw over her shoulder would have scared a smarter man.

That evening, I walked into Lila’s apartment to find Jade sprawled across the couch with homework spread around her and one leg hooked over the arm. Lila stood in the kitchen with her hair twisted up, stirring something that smelled good enough to make the whole place feel warmer.

She looked over when I came in, and something in my chest loosened. “You can stay for dinner,” she said, casual enough to pretend she wasn’t giving me exactly what I wanted.

I dropped a kiss on Jade’s head on my way past. “Lucky me.”

She kept her eyes on her book. “That depends on whether you plan to be normal.”

“No promises.” I kept moving toward the kitchen.

Jade turned a page without looking up. “Thought so.”

I laughed and joined Lila in the kitchen. She moved around the stove with practiced ease while I found reasons to stand too close.

She handed me silverware. “Set the table.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Her eyes cut toward me. “Don’t start.”

I was absolutely about to start when her phone lit up on the counter. Mason.

Because the screen was directly in front of me and because I possess the self-control of a raccoon near an unlocked trash can where Lila is concerned, I saw the preview.

Hey, just want to check in with you. That guy that was at the construction site today was pretty intense. The possessive way he stood over you was a bit worrisome. Are you okay?

I stepped behind her, wrapped my arms around her waist, and read it over her shoulder.

She glanced back. “What?”