Ыоуве Been Warned   ::   Patterson James

“Michael, there’s something I have to tell you about -”

But I only get partway into the sentence before he covers my mouth with his. He kisses me deep and hard, and I get caught up even more in the moment. He feels so good, and I feel so safe in his arms. And, need I say, sane.

We fall back against the length of the seat, the leather cool and enticing to the touch. He pulls off my jeans, and I help him out of his trousers. His hand slowly travels up my thighs, over my stomach, around my chest, his fingers barely grazing my skin.

“God, you’re amazing,” he says. “So soft, so sweet. So not Penley.”

I wrap my legs around Michael tightly as he enters me, and I don’t let go of him until I come.

I feel dizzy and wonderful and I never want the feeling to end.

Not ever.

This is no dream.



Chapter 17



“SO, WHAT DID YOU WANT to tell me?” asks Michael, tucking in his shirt. “Did something happen today? Something good, I hope. That gallery called?”

But somehow I don’t feel like a postsex conversation. Honestly, what happened today seems too crazy to talk about now. I feel embarrassed. I’m also whipped.

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow,” I say. “You’ve got to get back to your dinner.”

He grasps my hand. “Are you sure?”

I nod. “Pens or no pens, your guests might be a little suspicious by now.”

“That, or just more drunk.”

I laugh and he smiles. God, I’m still helpless in front of that smile of his.

Michael pages Vincent to have him come back and drive me home. Putting down his BlackBerry, he begins to fidget with his tie.

“Here,” I say. “Let me do that.”

As I flip up his collar and straighten the knot – always a double Windsor – he gently caresses my cheek.

“I love you. I adore you. You know that, right?” he asks.

“Do I?”

“You better.”

I give him “the Look,” the same look I’ve been giving him for months now. He knows what’s coming next and playfully rolls his eyes.

“Go ahead and say it, Kris.”

You bet I will.

I lean over, whispering in his ear the two words that will make all the difference – the one thing he absolutely needs to do.

“Dump Penley.”

For some added incentive, I gently lick his ear and blow. He recoils like a little boy being tickled. I kind of like that too, his vulnerability at times.

“I’m working on it,” he assures me.