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“He listens to you,” Cassie says.

“He was going there anyway.”

“That’s what you’d say if you didn’t want me to know he likes you.” She grins as Murphy curls up on the sweater.

I turn back to her. “Does it bother you?”

“No.” She slips her hands beneath my jacket and pushes it from my shoulders. “It’s one of the few sensible decisions he’s made this week.”

I leave the jacket on the back of the chair beneath Murphy’s watchful eyes. When I face Cassie again, she’s moved close enough that her locket touches my shirt. She follows my eyes and lifts the silver heart between her fingers.

“My grandmother gave me this,” she says. “I always wear it.”

“I’ve noticed.” I touch the chain where it rests against her neck. “You’ve had it on every time I’ve seen you.”

“She gave it to me when I took over the bookstore.” Cassie closes her hand around the locket. “I haven’t taken it off since.”

I kiss her slowly. She leans into me, then pulls me closer with an impatience that makes me smile against her mouth. Her hand moves to the back of my neck, warm fingers pressing beneath my hair. I’ve wanted her since the night she stood in my pavilion and asked questions no one else would have dared to ask me. Now she’s here with her hands in my hair, waiting for me to kiss her again.

Cassie pulls back and focuses on my mouth. “You’re holding back,” she says.

“I’m trying to be careful.”

She touches the scar beneath my jaw, and her expression softens. “Don’t.”

I pull her against me. Her breath leaves her in a small rush before she kisses me again. My hand moves from her waist to her back as I guide her toward the bed.

At the edge, her fingers find the hem of my shirt. She waits until I raise my arms, then pulls it over my head. Her eyes travel over my chest, taking in the older scar there and the crest on my right shoulder. I see the question in her face before she asks it.

“You don’t have to explain them tonight,” she says.

I have no answer ready. People usually want an explanation as soon as they see a scar. Cassie wants one too, but she leaves the choice with me. I bend to kiss her, and her palms come to rest against my skin.

I take my time with the buttons of her sweater. Beneath it, she’s warm from the apartment, and when I kiss the side of her neck, she laughs softly.

“What?” I ask, lifting my head.

“You looked so serious about those buttons.”

“I didn’t want to break them.”

“They’re only buttons, Andrei.”

“They’re attached to your favorite sweater.” I glance at the worn cuff. “You’ve had it long enough to repair this twice.”

She looks down at her sleeve. “You noticed that?”

“I pay attention to you.”

Her smile fades as she reaches for me, and the look in her eyes sends a low sound through my chest. I catch her at the waist and kiss her harder, pulling her close enough to feel her gasp against my mouth. She draws back for a breath, then comes to me again, her fingers sliding into my hair as she opens to my kiss. My cock throbs painfully, needing to be inside her right this second.

Pushing her down onto her back, I grind my cock against her, feeling the heat of her through her jeans. I unclasp her bra, pull it off, and drop it on the floor. Her breasts make my mouth water as I rub my thumb over her pebbled nipple, making her groan softly. Cupping her breast, I squeeze it, claiming her mouth at the same time. She arches into my hand as I feast on her lips.

I slide my hand up her chest and rest it lightly against the side of her neck. Cassie goes still beneath my touch, her breath coming faster as she looks up at me.

“Unbutton your jeans,” I tell her, keeping my eyes on hers.

Desire darkens Cassie’s eyes as she opens her jeans. I slide my hand beneath the waistband of her panties, and she presses into my touch with a soft moan, her fingers closing around my wrist to keep me there. I gently rub her clit, sliding my finger up and down her slit. She’s so wet it makes my cock strain against my pants to be released.