“Breathe for me,” he whispered, dropping the stem into a nearby wastebasket.

I sucked in a breath of much-needed oxygen. There, much better.

Braydon’s deep blue gaze remained trained on mine, watching me, reading every emotion that flitted across my brain. I wanted him. And he knew it.

Several tense heartbeats later, Braydon was whisked away by an older man in a suit and I was left with an ache the size of the Grand Canyon between my thighs.

Damn him for still being able to get to me like that. I was supposed to be taunting him. Not the other way around. But he’d turned the table on me. My seductive berry-eating trick was being used against me as my head filled with thoughts of me on my knees, taking his hot length into my mouth, flicking my tongue along his steely shaft until I found the barbell piercing his head.

Mmm . . . memories . . .

Braydon was still chatting quietly with the older man, but they’d now been joined by two beautiful blond bombshells in barely there cocktail dresses. Game over. No way I could compete with them. He remained with the group, but his eyes strayed to mine every so often to let me know he was still thinking of me, of our little encounter just moments ago. The blonde to his left leaned in close to him, brushing her br**sts against his chest as she whispered something meant only for his ears. Braydon pulled back ever so slightly and shook his head, no doubt refusing whatever it was she was offering.

My heart soared.

His sexy blue eyes found mine once again. I felt a bolt of heat radiate from my belly down to my core. He was becoming harder and harder to resist. But until he fully let me in, I knew I needed to stand my ground.

Teasing him just a little more, though, was something I couldn’t resist.

In the elevator ride back to our rooms, Ben and Emmy were in their own private bliss, holding hands, whispering to each other and laughing at their own inside jokes—which left Braydon and me standing in stony silence, awkwardness hanging in the air around us. Leaning forward to punch the button to my floor, my bottom accidently brushed the front of Braydon’s slacks. His entire body stiffened and he let out a muted curse. My lips curled up in a smile. It seemed as though I ruffled his feathers every bit as much as he ruffled mine. Good to know. I stood a little taller in my heels, feeling proud. When I turned back to look in his direction, Braydon’s expression caught me off guard. Intensity radiated from him. Something was off with him. But I had no clue what.

“Would you mind walking me to my room?” I asked, my tone low.

He gave a stiff nod. “Of course I will.”

Ben and Emmy exited the elevator on their floor and Braydon remained by my side, riding up several more floors and following me to my hotel room once the lift stopped. I fumbled a bit with the key card thanks to my shaking hands. I had no game plan, no clue what I was doing. All I knew was that I wasn’t ready for the night to be over. I wasn’t ready to say good-bye to Braydon.

Once we made it inside the room, I flipped on a table-side lamp and Braydon turned to me. “Are you okay?”

“Fine,” I breathed.

Two fingers lifted my chin and his eyes searched mine. Slowly, achingly slowly, he lowered his mouth to mine. “Don’t lie to me,” he exhaled against my lips.

I shook my head. “Never.”

The anticipation of his mouth so close that I could feel the warmth of his breath put my entire body on hyperalert. I wanted him to kiss me more than I wanted my next breath. It’d been too long. Too many lonely nights remembering all the ways he used to pleasure my body. His mouth closed over mine in a kiss that started off sweet and innocent but quickly turned into something hungry and hot. He nibbled at my bottom lip until my lips parted, then his tongue sought entrance and began rubbing against mine. Holy hell, he knew how to kiss. I suckled at his tongue and he groaned into my mouth. Those sounds were like pouring gasoline on the flames inside me. Everything ignited at once. I needed him. Wanted him. Consequences be damned. I fought with his shirt, grabbing fistfuls of it and yanking. He’d already succeeded in ruining me. I might as well go for the gusto. Braydon caught on and broke the kiss only long enough to tear his shirt off. My hands found his belt and I began tugging.

“Slow down, kitten.” His big hands captured my jaw and he whispered against my lips. “There’s no rush.”

He was wrong, though. There was a rush. If I was going to go through with this, it was best to get caught up in the heat of passion—to not let myself slow down to think this through. I dropped to my knees and pulled down his zipper while looking up to meet his gaze.

Braydon’s teeth sunk into his bottom lip as he watched me with wide eyes.

As I tugged down his boxer briefs and dress slacks in one motion, his thick c**k sprang free to greet me. Good God, it’d been too long. I’d missed this thing. How that was even possible, I had no clue, only that it was an absolute fact. I missed the breathing sounds he made when I pleased him, missed the way his abdominals tightened when he was getting close, and yes, I missed his naughty piercing. A lot.

Gripping the base of him with one hand, I guided him into the warmth of my mouth. He let out a string of curse words and fisted a hand in my hair. Pushing past the initial gag reflex, I took him as deep as I could and felt his knees lock.

“Fucking hell, kitten.” His thumb smoothed up and down my cheek as he looked down at me with wonder. “Don’t make me fall for you . . .”

He couldn’t be sweet right now. My poor tattered and broken heart couldn’t take it. This was supposed to be a hookup. Nothing more. I gripped him harder and stroked as I paid extra attention to his piercing, suckling his head into my mouth and rubbing my tongue along the barbell.