A delicious smirk took over his lips, and I swear I saw a twinkle in his eyes. “So we are using formalities now? Well in that case, thank you Miss Rivers.”
My name fell from his mouth with such ease and the smile tugging on his lips encouraged a matching smile to flash over mine. The idea of flirting with this man was dangerous; it was temperamental and had the ingredients to be beautifully devastating. But the more I was around him, the more I realized I was beginning to feel and imagine things I never knew I wanted.
I dropped my eyes from his and opened Photoshop, wanting the distraction to cease the awkwardness filling the table; awkwardness laced with a confusing need which made me consider things I shouldn’t. It didn’t work. I blankly stared at the screen not being able to concentrate on anything but the man sitting across from me.
“So are we going to pussyfoot around my question?”
“I’m not pussyfooting around anything, Ky.” I slammed my laptop shut and glared at him. He could not be serious. “Tori had no right to mention anything about me before she left town, I don’t care how drunk she was. I barely know you. You are simply the guy who is paying me to photograph the cover.”
“Yep I’m simply that guy.” His voice dropped devastatingly low, and he tore his eyes from mine.
“That’s not what I meant. I am grateful for what you are doing, but come on, you can’t be serious? A month is a long time. Your idea is twisted.”
“What’s twisted about it?” He laughed. “I’ve already kissed you, and you were very involved in that kiss so you cannot say it doesn’t intrigue you. It’s not as crazy as it sounds. It will simply be two people spending time together. You’re only just back in town, I don’t get out much, and we obviously have some things in common. If I am being completely honest, which I always seem to be around you, you are insanely sexy so as a fully functioning man I’d be crazy not to want to have you in my life even if it is just for a month, four measly weeks, thirty-one days even.”
He could not be serious.
“So what? Are you one of those guys who would use the month to live out some sick fantasy? Is this a crazy way of attempting to get in my pants?” I swallowed hard as my heartbeat increased to the point of pain. I couldn’t do this. There was no way.
“Why do you do that?” His eyes narrowed in, the frustration in his voice not missed.
“Do what?”
“Pretend to be this person that you clearly aren’t. You can be yourself around me. That’s what I want. I want the Eden who I know is in there. Not the Eden that you hide behind. I want the Eden who I met last night on the balcony, the same girl who kissed me within a breath of her life, the Eden who grabbed hold of me like she never wanted me to leave, the Eden who I know hasn’t stopped thinking about that kiss.”
“You know absolutely nothing about me so don’t sit there and pretend like you do.”
“Fine, I’ll be the mature one that’s honest shall I? There is nothing sick and twisted about this.” His voice dripped with sexuality and tinged with promise. “And I won’t be attempting to fuck you so I definitely won’t be going anywhere near your pants. That’s a promise.”
“You just called me, and I quote, insanely sexy, yet you don’t want to touch me. You are all kinds of messed up.” I rolled my eyes before staring at him. I had no clue what kind of game he was playing at, but it was a game that I was slowly yet surely being dragged in to.
“I said I won’t be fucking you, but that doesn’t mean I won’t constantly be thinking about fucking you.”
Hearing those words allowed the breath I was holding to leave my body. One month. Who was I trying to fool? I knew the decision had already been made the moment he asked the question. He had given me no choice. I couldn’t deny that Ky Crawford’s ability to captivate me ignited that very first time I met him and that was what was dangerous. He was dangerous to everything I had desperately tried to become in the last four years, but more terrifyingly, he was dangerous to everything I didn’t want to remember.
“What would this month entail?” Regret filled me the moment the words tumbled from my mouth, but my attentiveness to hear his response made me lean in closer.
Ky’s lips curved dangerously, a knowing smirk took over his too handsome face. I witnessed the exact moment he realized he had me. What the hell was I doing? His body pressed back against the seat, and he sat in complete silence observing me like I was some kind of sick prize.
“Don’t look at me like that,” I spat, averting my eyes from his. I couldn’t stay here. Why the fuck couldn’t I just learn to say no? Really, was it that hard? It was a simple word, but here I was at twenty-four years of age, and I couldn’t say it.
“Like what?”
“Like I’m a prize. That’s not me, Ky, and I am not going to be a toy you can play with when you desire. That will never be me.” I shoved my laptop into my satchel then slid my body along the leather booth desperate for a reprieve. I needed to leave.
“Eden, wait.” Ky shot up from his seat so fast that I never had a chance to escape. His hand grabbed hold, his fingers wrapping firmly around my forearm just below my elbow and instantly diverted my escape plan. My eyes fell to his hand as my breath caught in my throat. Our gaze collided and everything around me disappeared into a vortex of silence and calm. A mixture of fear and anxiety swept over his face as he watched me so intently. It confused me. What could he possibly have to fear when it came to me? “You are definitely not a toy Eden. You would be the greatest prize. Always the greatest prize. I know you can’t say no, and I am a bastard for using that against you, but I promise you it’s for your own good. It’s time you started saying yes for the right reasons, and if I need to demand this time I will. So Eden, I’ll ask you this question one last time, will you be my December?”
“I am going back to San Fran in January.” The words fell from my lips without a single thought.
“I don’t care. I am not looking for a relationship with you Eden; I am looking for nothing but your time for the next four weeks. I will ask you things that will make you uncomfortable; I will do things that may make you anxious; I plan on taking you out of this comfort zone that you believe is reality.”
With his pleading eyes staring at me, I took everything of what I knew of Ky Crawford in. I couldn’t understand his reasoning behind this, but I couldn’t deny the rumblings within my dormant body. Why would this guy want to spend time with someone he barely knew? What was so enticing about me? How could a man with a face like his and a body that oozed sex appeal want someone like me?
But I didn’t really have a choice, did I?
“Yes,” I whispered.
Eden Rivers was seconds away from saying yes to my absurd request, seconds away from handing over her mind, her body, her everything on a fucking platter for me to feast on. What the hell had I done? My mind bounced through the conversation, and landed on my asshole question. I never thought she’d agree to this. I thought Tori had been fucking around with me. Eden shouldn’t have agreed to this. Why did she agree to this?
I slid back into the booth and fell against the leather of the bucket seat. My eyes traced her steps as she walked through the diner and out the door. She stopped on the sidewalk and turned back, gazing into the diner; the moment her eyes connected with mine, I felt something shift. I might have proposed the fucked-up month idea, but she had cemented something within me. She had created unease within me. How in the hell was I meant to keep my hands and mouth off her for a month?
My urge to spend time with her was too much; why couldn’t I just do what a normal person would do? I was featuring her work for God’s sake; it wasn’t like I wouldn’t be seeing her. I was pissed that she assumed this was a game. I would never do that to her. I had my own secrets when it came to Eden Rivers so I needed to be careful with how I played this out. It would just be a few outings, maybe some dinners. I wanted to show her that not all men’s main goal in life was to get their dick in her pussy. I wouldn’t be anywhere near her pussy. I couldn’t. I promised.