She only hesitated a split second before sitting up and lifting her top over her head. I kept my eyes pinned to hers before finally allowing my gaze to slide down to her nearly-bare chest. She wore a black lacy bra that was a contrast to her creamy, pale skin. The smooth flesh on her stomach was sexy, and I could see the edges of her hipbones jutting above her cotton pajama shorts.

I took my time drinking her in, and I saw her shiver beneath my scrutiny. She was so turned on her nipples looked like hard pebbles through the ebony material. And all my brain could muster was that I was the one responsible for that desire in her eyes, as the blood rushed straight to my crotch. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever been harder than in that moment—when the girl I ached for was finally noticing me in the same way.

And I wanted nothing more than to lose myself in her like she wanted to get lost in me. But some logical part of my brain knew that we shouldn’t take it to the next level. That she might regret it if we did. And besides, if I was going to bury myself inside Rachel, the girl of my fucking dreams, I wanted it to be under different circumstances.

I wanted to see something beyond lust in her eyes. I wanted her to really see me for who I was. I needed her to want every single piece of me, beyond the physical. But I’d take every encounter as it came, knowing each one might be the last.

I sat up and hooked my fingers beneath the satin strap of her bra, tugging it down partway. “Take it off, Rachel.”

I knew she liked when I was bossy, when I took action. I could see it in her eyes—there was a flicker of desire there every time I gave a command. It was definitely one of the areas I excelled in. Taking control in the bedroom. It was probably what made girls come back for more. It was one of the few things I was good at.

But I wanted to excel at more than just the art of seduction.

Besides, I liked it when girls took charge in the bedroom, too. And given the stark difference between the Rachel I knew with Miles and the one I’d heard she’d become during the past three years, I wondered which Rachel would show up tonight.

Rachel’s eyes stayed on mine, both of us breathing heavily as the anticipation coiled around us, shrouding us like a thick blanket.

“You want this off?” she asked, teasing me by placing her hands over the cups of her bra.

I gave a curt nod.

One seductive eyebrow lifted before she leaned forward and whispered, “Then take it off yourself.”

There was the Rachel that I’d missed. Fuck me, I’d be taking a cold shower tonight. My fingers curled around her wrists and I tugged her hands away from her breasts. I yanked them down to her sides as her fists clenched tight.

I bent and kissed her neck as I reached around to unclasp her bra. Now it hung loosely on her torso. I slid the straps down her arms to remove the cumbersome material. Flinging the undergarment over my shoulder, I allowed my eyes to wander over her gorgeous breasts.

Her chest was heaving as I took in her small and round globes, her perfectly brown nipples standing at attention. Then my gaze slid up to meet hers. There was trepidation in her eyes. She’d been nervous about my inspection. Anxious about what I’d think of her body.

I gathered her face in my hands and rose up on my knees. She matched my effort, her teeth worrying her bottom lip. I scooted forward so that our chests were almost touching. She let out a small whimper, and I could feel her breath against my mouth as her lips trembled.

I leaned toward her, my lips barely grazing hers. “I always knew you’d be beautiful, Rachel.”

She closed her eyes and bent back her head to rest against my fingers. As if she were allowing my words to rinse over her. Her eyelashes fanned across her cheeks and her chest flushed a rosy color.

She’d never looked prettier.

I’d seen her vulnerable that entire year after the accident, when she was attempting to pick up the pieces of her life. Trying to survive.

But this was a different kind of weakness that I never would have guessed I would witness. She’d hoped I found her desirable. Me. The boy who she didn’t even fucking realize loved her. The one who already worshiped her, body and soul.

And I wasn’t sure where this defenselessness was coming from.

Maybe she thought I was some kind of sex expert. A guy who had seen one too many girls’ bodies. But there was nothing compared to seeing the body of the girl you loved.

She knocked the goddamn wind out of me.

I couldn’t hold myself back any longer, as I tunneled my fingers through her hair. I ran my tongue along her bottom lip and then bit down lightly. Her eyes snapped open.

My tongue probed the seam of her mouth and she parted her lips. The tips of our tongues brushed against each other while we openly stared into each other’s eyes.

As if we were being honest in this one moment. Showing each other our cards. Proving how exposed we felt in the other’s presence.

Then I deepened the kiss, and her eyes fell closed in a moan. My mouth moved over hers in a heated rush as my hands traveled down her back to clutch her ass and yank her hips forward. Her fingers grasped onto my hair as our bodies finally met skin to skin. And the feeling was indescribable.

This desperate need to feel her completely naked against me bubbled up inside me. I nudged her back onto the bed and sank down so that my skin could touch hers. I propped my forearms so as not to crush her as she opened her legs to accommodate me. My hard-as-nails dick met her soft and warm center, and we fit together like a glove. It was fucking amazing.

“Kai,” she whispered, as I took my time kissing her—her mouth warm, her tongue like velvet, as it glided smoothly against mine. My hands on her ass, I slid my lips down her neck to her collarbone. I bit down on the sensitive flesh there and ground my hard-on against her.

“Please . . . I need you.” She drove her hips against mine as she breathed on my neck.

My mouth trailed down the center of her chest and then closed around one of her stiff peaks. I felt her shudder as I flicked my tongue against the tender skin there. I moved to the other side, licking and sucking, while I cupped and pinched the other breast.

Her hands were going wild, nails scraping through my hair, down my neck, and along my back. When her moans became louder I looked into her eyes and shook my head, a silent reminder that my sister was just down the hall.

She squeezed her eyes shut and exhaled a shaky breath. I captured the skin at her throat and sucked on it greedily all while grinding my hips into hers.

Her fingers glided down my chest to my pants. Unbuttoning the top button and unzipping partway, her thumb swiped over the top of my dick. Ah, fuck.

“Rach, wait.” I gasped when her fingers slipped farther inside and she clutched me with her warm hand.

“You . . .” Her hand stilled and her lips parted. “You’re . . . pierced.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I tried to warn you.”

Her finger looped through the ring on the underside of my head, making me shudder. “How in the hell does this even work?”

I attempted to rein in my harsh breaths.

“I’ve been told it works pretty well,” I grunted out.

“You are full of surprises, you know that?” she said, marveling at me.

I grasped her hands and then pinned them above her head, rocking into her even harder. She wrapped her legs around my waist and thrust upward.

The tip of my dick strained against her entrance. “Fuck, Rachel.” The friction created from the seam of her shorts almost caused me to lose my load.

She tugged at my arms, attempting to get her hands loose. When I shook my head and smirked, she stretched her mouth upward and bit my lip, like some wild animal. “Keep that up and I’m going to come in five seconds flat.”