Page 246 of The Lies We Play

Her breath leaves her in one soft rush.

I kiss the top curve of her breast while Halston kisses her again.

This time, she gives in.

Not completely. Liv never does anything completely without first reviewing the consequences, objecting to two of them, then drafting a safer plan in her head. But her hips shift back into Halston’s hand. Her fingers curl into my hair. Her mouth opens for him, and I feel the sound she makes more than I hear it, feel it travel through her body and into mine.

That sound changes the room.

The air grows warmer. Closer. The low hum from the city fades behind the rush in my ears. There is only her between us, almost bare, breathing too fast. Halston behind her, watching everything. Me on my knees in front of her, my mouth on her skin, my hands at her hips.

I hook my fingers into the sides of her underwear.

Liv’s breath catches.

I look up at her.

Her eyes are on me, wide and dark and furious with need. That is what gets me. Not just the way she looks, though fuck, she looks beautiful enough to make a man forget every decent thought he’s ever had. It’s the fight in her face. The little war she wages every time she wants something too much.

I start to pull the fabric down.

Slowly.

Her hand tightens in my hair. “Creed.”

I stop at once.

Not far. Just enough to make her feel the pause.

“Tell me no.”

She moans instead.

Halston’s hand flexes at her waist, but he doesn’t move. His mouth hovers near her ear, his breath warm against her skin.

“What do you want, Liv?” he asks.

Her eyes open. I press my mouth to her hip and wait.

She swallows. “I want you to love me.”

My fingers tighten on the edge of her underwear.

Halston goes still behind her.

“Say the rest,” I tell her.

Her cheeks flush, and the look she gives me could cut glass. “You’re very bossy for a man on his knees.”

“And yet?”

Her breath shakes.

“I want you to take them off,” she whispers. “I want your mouth on me. I want Hal’s hands on me. I want you both to stop making me say things before I lose my mind.”

Halston’s mouth brushes her temple.

“No,” he says softly.