Page 105 of Rising Heat

Just sex.

I mean the idea of anything else is completely ridiculous, anyway.

“Trust, Darcy,” Mack’s voice comes out more gravely now. “Remember?”

Shit. Who am I even kidding? I’m already in.

“Okay,” I finally sigh in half relief, half nervous excitement. “No weirdness. Just…fun.”

The silence that follows lasts maybe half a second. It’s like lighting a fuse in a room full of hydrogen.

Tyler’s eyes drop to my mouth before meeting mine again. When I look at Mack, he’s already closer, the last traces of any restraint gone from his expression, replaced by something that makes my stomach dip—hungry, certain, like he’s been waiting a very long time for me to say yes.

“You sure about this?”

I bite my lip and nod.

His hand comes up beneath my chin, light enough that I could stop this at any moment. The kiss is soft at first. Easy, testing, like there’s no hurry in the world because he already knows how this ends and plans on taking his sweet time.

My hand finds his shirt without deciding to and the kiss deepens, his tongue finding mine, sending heat moving through me fast enough that I forget that I’ve been trying to be careful about this. His other hand slides to my waist and I press into him as our lips move and tongues twirl around each other’s and for one suspended, breathless moment I stop thinking about anything at all.

When he pulls back, his forehead drops against mine.

“There she is,” he murmurs.

I open my eyes to find two sets of green staring back.

My breath comes out uneven, and I’m all too aware of my own pulse pounding through my body, begging for more.

Before Tyler even steps away, Mack’s calloused hands find my waist, his grip firm and grounding.

I turn fully toward him before he even has to tell me to. He kisses me the way I’ve spent six weeks half-consciously bracing for. One rough hand slides to my cheek keeping me exactly where he wants me—even though we both already know I’m not going anywhere.

It isn’t soft or asking. It’s the kind of kiss that alters your brain chemistry and leaves you trying to remember your own name.

My hands trace the back of his neck, threading into his hair while he walks me back until my shoulders hit the wall. His whole body presses into me, and I feel exactly how much he wants this too. My hips roll against his thigh without my permission, desperately chasing friction, pulling a low growl out of him that vibrates against my mouth.

Then—

Without warning, he breaks the kiss and pulls back, leaving both our chests heaving. His hand falls away from my face as he takes another measured step back, his jaw tightening like it physically costs him something to put the space between us.

“You should get some sleep.”

I stare at him in disbelief.

“What the fuck?”

His expression doesn’t change.

“Tomorrow.”

Then he’s through the door. Gone.

I spin around toward Tyler still trying to catch my breath.

“That’s a crime.”

He exhales through his nose, somewhere between amusement and sympathy.