Crimson Dahlia by Abigail Owen

started out soft and sweet. Ramsey feathered his lips across hers in a barely
there touch that had her leaning into him, trying to get closer. He rewarded
her with an open- mouthed kiss, still soft and sweet, but then he sucked her
bottom lip between his teeth. He gave her a little nip and then soothed it with
his tongue.
    Lila
whimpered.
    Ramsey
shifted so that she was lying partially under him. While his lips played havoc
with her mouth, her neck, her earlobe, her collarbone, and back to her lips,
his hands wandered her body.
    Touching…
but not quite touching. His fingers whispered down her side, barely brushed the
underside of her breast, traced her ribs, and lingered at the dip in her waist.
Lila held her breath when his hand stopped at the elastic band of her sweats.
Would he?
    Oh
yes, he would. His fingers snuck under the band and squeezed her hip. Suddenly Ramsey froze.
He placed a swift, hard kiss on her lips and then pulled back. Lila opened her
eyes, slightly apprehensive at what she might see in his.
    She
saw that he was focused on where his hand had been. He rolled her slightly onto
her side. “Ramsey what are you...?”
    He
inched her pants down to reveal a hand-shaped scar. “I’m so sorry I hurt you.”
He leaned down and kissed the damaged skin tenderly.
    Lila
shivered at the sensation of his lips on her body. “I never was sorry.”
    “No?”
    She
shrugged. “I’ve always thought of it like…”
    A
thought struck Lila, or more accurately, a series of memories reared their ugly
heads. All the reasons she’d let go and moved on. Echoes of past words that had
ripped out her heart and trampled it into the ground sounded in her mind…
    I
mean it, Lila. You stay away from me. I won’t come near you like this again.
    I’ve
moved on, a long time ago. You should too.
    I
don’t want her anywhere near me!
    Ramsey
frowned as he felt her body stiffen beneath him. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
    Lila
reached down to pull her pants back up, and he leaned away, giving her the
space her body language demanded.
    “You
don’t want me anywhere near you.”
    Lila
wasn’t positive, Ramsey was always so hard to read, but it looked like sadness
entered his eyes. “I was trying to protect you,” he said.
    “I
didn’t need your protection. I was a big girl. I could make my own decisions.”
    “You
weren’t thinking clearly when it came to me. One of us had to keep you safe.
That scar is only a tiny bit of what could’ve happened to you. How could I have
lived with myself if I had hurt you?”
    Anger
sparked in Lila’s eyes. “So you decided to live without me?”
    “As
much as I was able. I never did manage to force myself to leave the family.”
Ramsey grimaced.
    Lila’s
frown deepened. “No. I had to do that.”
    “Why
did you go?” He reached for her hand, but she pulled it back.
    “You
made it clear you didn’t want me . And you’re in love with Selene .”
    Ramsey
sat back with a jerk. “What? What made you… Did Adelaide tell you that?”
    “She
didn’t have to. I could sense your emotions around Selene.”
    “Is
that the main reason you left?”
    Lila
wanted to scream yes , but she still had some pride. “Despite what you
believe, not everything I do is about you. It was more than time I learned a
little independence.”
    Ramsey
just gave her a steady look. “I think I can guess why you got the impression I
had feelings for Selene.”
    “I
don’t need an explanation, and it wasn’t just an impression,” Lila insisted.
    Ramsey
looked a little stunned. “You’re not going to let me try to explain?”
    “There’s
nothing to explain.” Lila’s chin jutted out stubbornly. Ramsey knew that look.
Something else was coming that he wouldn’t like. “Besides… as soon as Marcus is
ready to leave, I’m going back out with him.”
    Lila
stared at Ramsey belligerently as he sat straight up. She could see the anger
practically coming off him in waves of heat.
    “Do
you even know what