“Ryan, you let me in. I told you, I can feel your emotions. You wanted me so badly. It was so easy to be swept along…”
“You faked it?”
His pain was hers, and she decided he deserved the truth, if only half of it. “Of course not. There’s no way I could fake nine orgasms. You are a wonderful lover, but wonderful is not enough to make me want to change my life,” she explained. “I like my life. There’s nothing I want to change.”
He shook his head and poured himself a cup of coffee. “It can’t possibly be this good with your girlfriend, Crystal. You left her at the wedding with a hot blond and a stiff drink and never even glanced back on your way out the door.” He took a sip of coffee. Her mouth watered, but she set her cup down on the table and went back into the bedroom to get her shoes. She sat on the bed to put them on and ignored Ryan, standing in the doorway.
The emotional overload of the past twenty-four hours was wearing on her last nerve, and her composure was fraying. She was hungry, tired and she wanted nothing more than to sit down and have breakfast with him like a normal person, but she wasn’t a normal person. She was an empath and she needed distance in order to function, distance she couldn’t get from him. She wasn’t sure which was worse, the fact that she couldn’t keep him out of her head or the fact that he made her want things she couldn’t have. Either way, she had to get out of here before she did something stupid, like crawl back in bed and lose herself completely.
She stood and walked toward him, keeping her eyes on the center of his bare chest.
He blocked the door.
“Please move.” When he didn’t budge, she froze, not wanting to touch him.
He crossed his arms. “Not until you tell me why you’d have to change your life to have breakfast with me. You spent the night, after all. I’d say breakfast is downshifting.”
Crystal raised her gaze to his teasing grin. His dark eyes were shining with laughter, smile lines fanning out from the edges. The man was infuriating. And relentless. They weren’t just talking about breakfast and he knew it. And because she’d read his heart last night, she knew his desire for her was underpinned by hurt and anger. She couldn’t blame him for feeling betrayed by what she had done ten years ago. From his perspective, she’d gotten out of bed with him and climbed into the sack with the Alpha Sig brothers. He didn’t know she’d had no control over her actions. He didn’t know it wasn’t her fault. He had no way of knowing unless she told him, and she wasn’t going to do that.
If thinking she was a tramp had kept him away then, it would probably work now too. But, oh, it was going to hurt. It was one thing to cultivate the image of a freewheeling sex guru—it was another thing to brand herself a heartless slut. However, she was running out of options. She couldn’t risk the emotional hell she’d barely survived ten years ago.
She kept her voice light. “Staying for breakfast isn’t really my style. I would have left last night if you hadn’t worn me out. You have the energy of a dozen men—and I would know, remember?”
She moved forward and he drew back, probably to avoid touching her. Lord knew she felt dirty. She quickened her stride as he followed her into the other room.
“No, actually,” he said. “I remember a sweet girl who gave me her virginity. That girl would have stayed for breakfast, lunch and dinner. She wasn’t just in it for the sex, and she wouldn’t have jumped into a frat house orgy—but she did, right? What happened, Crystal? Why did you do it?” The air held curiosity, not scorn or judgment. “If you’re not going to stay, at least tell me that.”
She kept her back to him as she snatched her purse from the desk and composed her expression. She turned toward the door, wishing for the first time that his emotions were more volatile. The cool calculation in his tone was dangerous.
“You faked it?”
His pain was hers, and she decided he deserved the truth, if only half of it. “Of course not. There’s no way I could fake nine orgasms. You are a wonderful lover, but wonderful is not enough to make me want to change my life,” she explained. “I like my life. There’s nothing I want to change.”
He shook his head and poured himself a cup of coffee. “It can’t possibly be this good with your girlfriend, Crystal. You left her at the wedding with a hot blond and a stiff drink and never even glanced back on your way out the door.” He took a sip of coffee. Her mouth watered, but she set her cup down on the table and went back into the bedroom to get her shoes. She sat on the bed to put them on and ignored Ryan, standing in the doorway.
The emotional overload of the past twenty-four hours was wearing on her last nerve, and her composure was fraying. She was hungry, tired and she wanted nothing more than to sit down and have breakfast with him like a normal person, but she wasn’t a normal person. She was an empath and she needed distance in order to function, distance she couldn’t get from him. She wasn’t sure which was worse, the fact that she couldn’t keep him out of her head or the fact that he made her want things she couldn’t have. Either way, she had to get out of here before she did something stupid, like crawl back in bed and lose herself completely.
She stood and walked toward him, keeping her eyes on the center of his bare chest.
He blocked the door.
“Please move.” When he didn’t budge, she froze, not wanting to touch him.
He crossed his arms. “Not until you tell me why you’d have to change your life to have breakfast with me. You spent the night, after all. I’d say breakfast is downshifting.”
Crystal raised her gaze to his teasing grin. His dark eyes were shining with laughter, smile lines fanning out from the edges. The man was infuriating. And relentless. They weren’t just talking about breakfast and he knew it. And because she’d read his heart last night, she knew his desire for her was underpinned by hurt and anger. She couldn’t blame him for feeling betrayed by what she had done ten years ago. From his perspective, she’d gotten out of bed with him and climbed into the sack with the Alpha Sig brothers. He didn’t know she’d had no control over her actions. He didn’t know it wasn’t her fault. He had no way of knowing unless she told him, and she wasn’t going to do that.
If thinking she was a tramp had kept him away then, it would probably work now too. But, oh, it was going to hurt. It was one thing to cultivate the image of a freewheeling sex guru—it was another thing to brand herself a heartless slut. However, she was running out of options. She couldn’t risk the emotional hell she’d barely survived ten years ago.
She kept her voice light. “Staying for breakfast isn’t really my style. I would have left last night if you hadn’t worn me out. You have the energy of a dozen men—and I would know, remember?”
She moved forward and he drew back, probably to avoid touching her. Lord knew she felt dirty. She quickened her stride as he followed her into the other room.
“No, actually,” he said. “I remember a sweet girl who gave me her virginity. That girl would have stayed for breakfast, lunch and dinner. She wasn’t just in it for the sex, and she wouldn’t have jumped into a frat house orgy—but she did, right? What happened, Crystal? Why did you do it?” The air held curiosity, not scorn or judgment. “If you’re not going to stay, at least tell me that.”
She kept her back to him as she snatched her purse from the desk and composed her expression. She turned toward the door, wishing for the first time that his emotions were more volatile. The cool calculation in his tone was dangerous.
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