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  “And what?”

  A deep furrow returned between her brows. She shook her head before answering him in a whisper. “I suck at submissiveness, okay?”

  “Zoe.” It was all Shay could do not to laugh. “Beautiful, breathtaking Zoe. I find that statement harder to believe than a cheap carny psychic.”

  “Sure. Because you know me so well.”

  “Because I know me so well. And I know the parts of me that have definitely awakened to corresponding things about you.”

  Her snort turned scornful. “Keep them in your pants, honey.”

  He allowed her to break free, only thinking she needed some breathing space—until she stunned him with a parade-perfect pivot and started stomping back down the hall. “You really want that, baby girl?”

  He didn’t raise his voice on the growl. As he’d hoped, it didn’t take long to take effect, halting her cold in those little boots. Her sassy posture accentuated every gorgeous curve of her legs and ass. It all looked even nicer when her spine stiffened. His cock enthusiastically followed suit.

  Damn. Their “relationship” wasn’t even at triple digits in minutes, but witnessing his voice have that effect on her and getting her gorgeous impudence in return only strengthened his impression about the connection they already shared.

  This magic…

  So what if she didn’t see it yet? He’d already resolved to do the fighting for them both—and recommitted himself to the cause now.

  Too bad he was too busy with the mental hooah to remember one of the shittiest rules-that-weren’t-rules about unconventional warfare.

  The outcome of a battle often hinged on the smallest of actions.

  Like the one Zoe made in the moment he still struggled to take control of his dick and make his way to her again.

  From one of the pockets hugging that cute backside, she withdrew a room key card. Waved it at the door in front of her. The portal beeped, and she didn’t waste a second stepping through it. By the time Shay caught up, she’d turned around, one hand on the inside light switch, the other on the door. Her gaze returned to its guarded anger. Her lips were a tight line.

  Shay reined back another growl. It was fucking impossible to fight for something with a door slammed in one’s face.

  Nearly slammed.

  “Thank you again,” she murmured, “for the help with Brynn and El. You racked up the Good Samaritan points tonight, okay?”

  He risked sliding his toes to the threshold of the room. Then tilting up her face with his thumb once more. “I have a lot of those already.” He wasn’t lying. In his years with the teams, he’d stopped counting how many kids he’d guided from landmine fields, rations he’d distributed to villagers, and even kittens he’d pulled out of trees. “What if I simply want to cash them in?”

  Her breath hitched. As she let it back out in shaky spurts, he dared pushing a whole foot forward.

  “Burnett…”

  She moved her hand from the wall to his shoulder. To push him away? He chose to ignore the possibility and was damn glad he did. The next instant, her fingers curled into his sleeve. A visible tremor claimed her.

  Shay moved his other foot into the room. Slid his thumb along her jaw, toward her ear. He framed the other side of her face with his index finger, pulling her mouth steadily closer.

  “Please,” she whispered.

  He lowered a hand to her waist. “I love the way you say that, tiny dancer.”

  The endearment earned him a high-pitched little cry, vibrating from her throat into his fingers. His bloodstream thundered in response. His cock surged through his pants, now pressed against her stomach.

  “Hell,” she gasped.

  “Feels a lot more like heaven to me.”

  “Please. We can’t.”

  He drew back a little, making sure her gaze was consumed with the hot intent of his. “I’m going to kiss you, baby girl. If you still believe that when I’m done, then I’ll turn around, leave you alone, and never bother you again. Sound fair?”

  She blinked hard. With every dip of her dark lashes, her eyes glittered more intensely. Her chest pumped, deep and hard. Technically, none of it told him yes.

  But none of it was no.

  He fitted their bodies together. Slammed his mouth atop hers. As he did, his spirit pumped a fist with its revision to his battle wisdom from earlier.

  Small actions could definitely determine outcomes.

  But bold actions created awesome explosions.

  Chapter Four

  She was in trouble.

  Hot, wonderful, beautiful gobs of it.

  Shane Burnett and his mouth—and his hands, and his arms, and his thighs—were the hard, incredible ringleaders of the mess. Even before he prodded her lips open with his mouth, he brought a waterfall of heat to her blood, a cascade of need to her skin, a profound pleasure to every sense she possessed—and probably a few new ones too. As he deepened their kiss, she matched his rough growl with a whimper that echoed through every corner of her body at once.

  He consumed her already—as she knew he would.

  Pulled out every dark, sinful craving of her soul again—as she feared he would.

  A corner of her mind tried rationalizing the sensations. Holy shit. Waterfalls? Cascades? Cravings? Would she next start comparing the man’s touch to a shower of stars? And could she be blamed? The only male touch she’d known since January had been from the guys in the show, who fantasized about caressing each other when they had to fondle her for the steamier numbers. Dating hadn’t been a consideration. After the disastrous night in the dungeon that had officially ended her relationship with Bryce, she’d declared herself an intimacy disaster zone. Ten months later, it was just easier to keep the barriers up.

  There was nothing safe about Shane Burnett. And nothing remotely easy.

  He groaned against her lips as he shifted their bodies, making room for the door to thump shut behind them. Zoe sucked in air through her nose, yearning to keep the contact of their mouths intact. Shane groaned his approval, spreading her lips wide before sweeping his tongue into the deepest corners of her mouth. His hands splayed to her shoulders, dropped along her rib cage, and finally gripped her hips in fierce possession, sliding her against the bulge that reigned the apex of his thighs.

  He finally pulled back, fanning her face with his lustful breaths. “Please don’t tell me the Samaritan points are still my only option tonight.”

  She smiled. “Please don’t tell me that running after the kids is mine.”

  He answered that by screwing his grip tighter to her hips and hiking her higher on the wall so he could kiss her at a direct angle. Holy hell. Maybe the man’s touch was made of stars. Her body felt like a damn meteor shower as he controlled her positioning against him…and that meant the blatant slide of her pussy along his huge erection.

  “Speaking of the kids,” he said against her lips, “how long do you think we have?”

  Zoe pried her eyes open. “How long? For what?”

  “Until your roommate stumbles in.”

  She grinned wider. It was refreshing to be with someone who knew so little about her world. Even Bryce, for all his surface charm, got a little tiresome about showing off her lead dancer status, as well as her comp show seats and other perks, to all his friends. “The lead gets her own room, Mr. Burnett.”

  His groin pulsed against hers. “Fuck.”

  She giggled again. “Yes, please.”

  He dipped his gaze to her lips and kissed her soundly there again before returning her to her feet with a reluctant expression. “In that case, grab your phone.”

  Her smile fell. “Qué? Why?”

  “Safe call.” His brows jumped when Zoe stared like he’d just said squirrel farts. “You think I’m going to ask for your nakedness and trust after knowing me a little over an hour, without a safety net of some sort?” His gaze turned dark bronze. “You need to call or text a friend, preferably one who isn’t drunk at the terminal, and tell
them that if you don’t contact them in three hours, they need to call the Los Angeles PD and send them to this room.”

  “Mierda.” Zoe had slipped her cell out but froze, eyeing him as if the squirrel had done more than fart on him. “You’re joking, right?”

  Shane stepped back, clasping his hands at the small of his back and widening his stance. “Not by any stretch of the word. Your trust is key to me, dancer. As much as you’ll give me, as far as you’ll let me go. The power here belongs to you as much as me, and having a backup for your safety gives us a clearer path to that.”

  He looked thoroughly dominant now. Totally breathtaking. Nevertheless, Zoe blurted in confusion, “I’m still not sure I understand.”

  The man shook his head. Great. Now he had her a little scared as well as a lot muddled. “Why don’t you sit?”

  Clearly, the polite phrasing was a courtesy. As tempted as she was to go for a cheeky comeback, something in her psyche nixed the move.

  She lowered her butt onto the edge of the bed.

  Shane positioned himself directly in front of her. She looked down at his shiny black dress shoes, strangely afraid about looking up again—and embracing that sweet thrill.

  “Zoe, what do you want from this—from me—tonight?”

  A pile of rocks tumbled into the base of her throat. “You…You just want me to say it?”

  “That would be the purpose of the question. Yes.”

  “I…I just can’t…”

  “Take a deep breath. I’m not asking for fancy words. Just tell me the way you did when you explored the D/s dynamic with others.”

  She nervously licked her lips. “There weren’t others. There was only one, okay? And he sure as hell didn’t ask me questions like that.”

  Burnett let out a slow breath. “Let me guess,” he stated. “The conversation revolved around how you’d serve him, all the things he’d do to you, and all the pleasure he’d get out of it?”

  Zoe pressed her hands together between her thighs, sandwiching her phone with them. The sizzle from their kiss had faded from the room, aided by the palpable tension from Shane—no doubt because he discerned how her silence confirmed his accusation.

  In return, she couldn’t let go of her shock. How had he known? He’d quoted, nearly word for word, what Bryce had said to her on both their disastrous visits to the dungeon outside Henderson. But Bryce hadn’t been the only Dom in the place saying things like that. She’d simply been the only sub who didn’t seem to get mushy from it.

  “He wasn’t a bad guy, okay? Just because I couldn’t get with the program or be turned-on because—”

  “Your Dom didn’t learn anything about your needs before you two stepped into the dungeon?”

  “Look, we dated for a few months first. We got along great. He knew a lot about my needs alrea—” His angry snort not only stopped her but irritated her. “Forget it. I don’t want to hash this out with you tonight.”

  “Believe me, dancer, your asshole ex-Dom isn’t what I want to fixate on, either.” His grim laugh turned his features into a portrait of dark sensuality, especially as he snaked a hand around the back of her head. “You’re my priority tonight.” His long fingers curled into the roots of her hair, pulling gently, until Zoe sighed in bliss.

  “And…and you’re my priority too.” She only had these few special hours with him. It was what she had to believe. For all she knew, the guy was actually based in Vegas too, but something about him, lingering in his eyes and voice, said his passion was only ever on loan to a woman. There’d be nothing between them after the hours in this room. That meant every moment counted more. Every touch. Every word. Every kiss.

  “Good,” he murmured, his grip tightening. “Goddamn, you’re beautiful.”

  “You asked what I wanted?” she whispered. “Well, it’s this.” She reached to press a hand along the breathtaking line of his jaw. “To see more of this desire on your face. To know whatever I’m doing is okay…is good enough to please you. To see how I make you feel and to feel it with—”

  She hesitated, suddenly embarrassed—until realizing the tremble she felt through Shane’s body was definitely not his way of stifling a chuckle. Instead, as he cradled the other side of her head, he emitted a low, lush, aroused growl. The sound was so sexy, her skin tingled.

  “Don’t stop there.” The veins in his forearms stood out as he yanked her face higher, pinning her with his heated stare. “Say it, Zoe. The whole nasty, sexy truth of it. You want to feel my cock inside your body, don’t you? You want me to fill your beautiful cunt until you scream from being stretched by me…fucked by me?”

  “Yes.” She quivered. “That’s exactly what I want. Your hands all over me. Commanding me. Showing me how to please you…”

  She surrendered to breathlessness when the thunder from his throat took on a savage edge. The world narrowed to a pinpoint. Every heartbeat was a struggle. Even that awareness was impossible to grasp as he rammed his mouth to hers again. With her head bent back, she was an open vessel for his lust, accepting every vicious stab of his tongue and drop of his passion. There was no other choice. And she didn’t want one.

  She cried out in protest as he pulled away. Shane hovered his lips above hers, letting their breaths continue to tangle as he softly ordered, “Get the fucking safe call handled, Zoe. I have plans for you.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  She finished it off with a giggle, mostly out of nerves. The man didn’t copy the humor. He turned back toward her while pulling off his jacket, jaw set and brows arched, turning her into a puddle of equal parts fear and arousal. “Patience, girl. You’ll be speaking that ‘Sir’ for me again very soon and sounding just as beautiful doing it. Get the call handled first.”

  Puddle? She was a whole lake of sensations now. “Yes, S—” While stopping herself in the nick of time, she hit the button showing a picture of Ryder with a dazzling grin on his face and a margarita in his hand.

  There was no way her best friend wouldn’t answer. Once, the guy had even picked up on a frantic call from her while having sex. After her sister Ava, he was her lifetime rock for the worst storms. They’d been through calculus, prom, college applications, dorm life, real life, and moving to Vegas, where they’d both nearly starved for two years before Zoe landed her first show gig while Ry was picked up by the city’s biggest modeling agency.

  Halfway through the third ring, her friend’s smartass baritone filled the line. “How’s la-la land, hot stuff? Everyone good and passed out now? Have you tucked everyone in and are calling to squee about meeting David Gandy in the hotel bar, who insisted on showing you what really rhymes with ‘candy’?”

  Zoe had no idea how she kept a straight face. “Actually…it’s better than that.”

  There was a rustle on the line. She’d made Ry sit up. “What the… You’re serious, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah. I sorta am.”

  “Fuck. Me.”

  “That’s my line tonight.” She tugged her bottom lip with her teeth and bashfully glanced at Shane. “At least I hope. That’s why you’re getting the honor of the safe call.”

  “Thank God. Your ticket is way overdue for a punch, Zo-Glow.”

  She couldn’t help a soft giggle at his nickname for her since high school. “Thanks for the vote of support.”

  “So…” Ry extended the word with anticipation. “Is it David Gandy?”

  She laughed harder. “Better, sweetie. Much better.”

  After Ry confirmed details with her and then expelled a celebratory whoop even Shane could hear, she disconnected the call with a smile.

  Her mirth dipped into perplexity all too fast when she looked up—and found a similar smirk on Shane’s face.

  “What now?” she blurted. “Did I do it wrong?”

  He instantly frowned again. “Why do you keep obsessing about ‘doing it wrong’?”

  She tugged at the edge of a pillow. “You were smirking.”

  “I was smiling.”


  “Why?”

  “Because it’s beautiful when you smile.” The admission caused a chain reaction across his gorgeous features, as if bigger doors of comprehension opened in his mind. “Baby girl, you’re breathtaking.”

  Zoe dropped her head to hide her flush. This was loco. So silly. She was a dancer in one of the sexiest shows in Las Vegas. She was used to a lot of people ogling her, cheering for her, and desiring her, all while she was dressed in a lot less than a T-shirt and jeans.

  But none of those fans, even the ones who came to the show weekly, ever truly knew her. None saw her as this man did, even though he’d only met her an hour and a half earlier. None had ever studied her as Shane did now, or called her breathtaking in a way that had nothing to do with what she wore, how perfect her makeup was, or how alluring her dance steps were.

  Even standing six feet away, he could awaken her whole body with the knowing caress of his molten gaze and cause her to blink back tears because of the thousand ways she already felt connected to him.

  Dios. They hadn’t even taken their shoes off.

  Had she ever felt this way with Bryce?

  Contemplating the answer made her teeth clench. And the backs of her eyes burn.

  “Whoa.” Great. Their chemistry included him noticing every inch of her struggle, despite how she tucked her chin to hide it. He crossed to her again, tugging beneath her chin with a couple of long, beautiful fingers. “You’re not supposed to be crying…yet.”

  She attempted a dismissive laugh. “And you’re not supposed to be so…”

  “What?”

  “Sweet. And sexy. And still smiling.”

  “Oh?” He dipped his head. “Is that so?”

  “Doms don’t smile.”

  “Hmm. Is that what it says in the ‘Dungeon Rules for Dummies’? Same place you got the notion you’re a sucky subbie? Guess I missed that riveting bestseller.”

  She looked back down and pressed her lips together. If she didn’t, a zinger of a retort was certain to fly from them. She wouldn’t be able to sift the snark from the words, either—which meant she’d get hammered with his look again. And now, any of the methods he’d choose to enforce it…