Copping To It by Ava Meyers

“Is that why you ran from me? Did some
asshole use your fantasies against you?”
    “That’s none of your —”
    “Answer me,” he snapped, his expression
turning grim.
    She swallowed hard, then nodded. “Yes,” she
said, too afraid by the sudden violence in his eyes to lie to him.
“He was an asshole, okay? Can we drop it?”
    “Did he hurt you?”
    She said nothing, but she obviously didn’t
have to.
    “What’s his name?”
    “Why? So you can hunt him down and kill
him?” she tried to tease.
    “Yes.” There was nothing teasing about his
response. He meant it and the lightning bolt of sensation that
knowledge caused in her pussy was just wrong. Wasn’t it?
    “No,” she said.
    He studied her, not taking his eyes off her
even when more thumps and shouts barraged them. “Yo, Ty. Come on,
man. Don’t be greedy.”
    Ty looked toward the door, then back at her
again. “So how about it, Claire? If I fulfill your fantasy…let Luke
touch you…will you finally believe I want all of you? The straight
and narrow reporter, as well as the kinky wild wanton?”
    He was bluffing. He had to be. He was an
alpha male, and alpha males didn’t share. Did they? “You really are
crazy. Besides, what makes you think Luke would even want to —”
    “He’ll want to.” He sounded so certain.
    “Want to fuck me, maybe. But that’s not…I
mean, yes it would be nice to try something like that once in my
life but only if…” Her face was probably cherry red given how hot
it felt. She looked away, unable to complete her thoughts.
    She heard him approach, and then he was
kneeling in front of her. He hooked his finger underneath her chin
and tilted her face up, forcing her to look at him.
    “Hey, Ty — ” Luke called again.
    “Hold up,” he shouted, still looking at her.
She trembled and bit her lip. “Say it,” he said.
    “No,” she whispered, instinctively unwilling
to say what he wanted her to. What she’d almost blurted out on her
own.
    “Say it, Claire. You want to know what it
would feel like to be touched by Luke but only if…what?”
    “Don’t.” What did he want her to do? Expose
her soul? Hand him the power to hurt her?
    “Only if what, Claire?” he asked, his voice
growing louder. More demanding. “Damn it, you know I won’t hurt
you. Take a chance and tell me.”
    As she stared at him, her body naked and her
emotions feeling exactly the same way, she finally heard his own
vulnerability. Her mind replayed everything that had happened.
Everything he’d made her feel since the moment they’d met. Excited.
Scared. Horny. Amused.
    Protected. Not safe, because the intensity
of her response made her fear for her heart, but she’d never felt
more protected than when she was with him.
    You know I won’t hurt you .
    He was right. She did know that.
    Maybe it was time to take a chance. On the
both of them.
    Closing her eyes, she said in a rush, “It
would be nice to try something like that once in my life but only
if you’re touching me, too. I don’t want him to touch me unless you
are.”
    The pulse of silence was brief. “Then open
your eyes and tell me why that is, Claire. Please.”
    It was the please that cinched it. Her eyes
popped open and before she knew what she was doing, she raised her
trembling hand to his cheek. She caressed him, loving the way he
smiled and leaned into her palm. “I — I think I could love you,
Ty,” she said. “But I’m scared. Not of you, but of how strong this
thing is between us. I tried to let you go, but when I found out
Hoyt was gone, that he wouldn’t be here for the initiation, I
couldn’t stop myself from coming. I wanted to see you so badly. I’m
scared of how you make me feel.”
    He turned his head and kissed her palm. “I
know you are, baby girl. But believe me, you’ve got nothing to be
scared of. Because I know if you’ll let me, I’ll love you, too. And
I’ll spend the rest of my life making you happy.”
    With that, he stood, walked