And she lost it.

She tore her mouth from his and struggled to pull her hands free. Right now, nothing mattered more than feeling him against her. In her.

He held firm.

Frantic now, she twisted, tugged, jerked her body up against his arms, effectively bringing his knuckles right over her sensitized core. Once by accident, the second with a vengeance.

She bucked against his closed fist and fastened her lips back on his, tasted the possessed groan rumbling up his throat and nearly screamed when his hand finally, finally opened and turned to cup her heat.

The pace was no longer hers.

He was relentless, touching her in every way her own fingers could never measure up, taking her higher and harder.

Until his rough, “Come for me, Abby,” sent her shattering into a thousand jagged pieces.

* * * * *

CONNOR WAS DROWNING in a pool of lust.

He didn’t have much practice at being the good man but for Abby, he really wanted to try.

So he kept his hands chastely at her hips, his now painfully tattooed zipper fly firmly left closed, and his mind on anything but how she’d looked coming apart just for him.

He found he was really bad at being good.

When she eventually stirred from the mini-slumber she’d fallen into, she rubbed her cheek against his chest and said softly, “You know, I’ve never had sex in a car before.” Her voice, which was always ultra-sexy, was now a full-blown sex kitten purr.

Not. Helping.

He managed an unintelligible, hoarse sound in his throat. Pretty damn good effort on his part, considering.

“Is that Neanderthal for you haven’t either, or you have loads of times?” She kissed her way up his neck and whispered in his ear, “Because if you haven’t, I really want to show you why my red panties aren’t as conservative as my white ones.”

“I haven’t,” he rasped, so hard now he was in serious danger of passing out from lack of blood in his brain.

She smiled against his skin and tucked a little square packet in his hand before rolling over to the middle of the seat. “Have I mentioned how much I love these seats?”

He was back to speaking Neanderthal again.

Because while he’d always loved this car, especially the interior he’d had custom restored, the sight of Abby in nothing but her red lace underwear on the creamy leather seats made his appreciation of the car reach new more reverent heights.

Wow.

“You are so beautiful.”

“So are you. I’ve always thought so.”

The way she looked at him, hell, he’d imagined nothing could get him to calm down at that point, but that look did. Because it reminded him he wanted to do this right, take it slow, cherish her.

Then she showed him the nifty ‘all access’ feature of her underwear…

Aaand, he was back.

In two seconds flat, condom in place, he was trying out that red lacy feature, inch by slow inch.

Holy hell. He had to shut his eyes to keep from coming on the spot.

Abby whimpered and arched and basically did everything possible to make that first gliding stroke completely mind-altering. Hot, wet, and so tight he had to stop for a second to get his bearings; she was all that he’d imagined and more.

The more being when she took control and slid him to the hilt on her own.

He’d expected nothing less.

And he would’ve smiled over it if he weren’t so busy trying not to come.

Teeth clenched, body fighting his brain something fierce, he started a steady rhythm, a torturous rhythm. He dragged her hands above her, pinned them against the leather seats, and her tight, slick walls began pulsing around him in response.

Pumping into her harder, faster he buried himself as deep as he could go. Again and again. His breathing rasped against her neck, “Let me feel it again. Drive me crazy, Abby. Come for me.”

She did.

His mouth came down on hers hard as she gripped him in a hot, liquid explosion that sent him hurtling over the edge right after her.

* * * * *

LATER, MUCH LATER, he realized he must have blacked out there for a minute. Or ten.

When he somehow managed to regain enough brain ability to shift his weight off of her, she grumbled a sleepy protest and followed him as he rolled onto his back.

Smiling, he tucked her in against his chest and did his best to ignore the fact that her sweet weight on him was making him hard again.

Around Abby, his constant arousal was a state of being.

As was this feeling of never wanting to let her go.

It had been the same way last night when she’d fallen asleep on him during the movie. Rather than carry her back to her room right away, he’d just held her and dozed off with her for a bit.

Now here he was again, ready to fall asleep with her in his arms, liking it far more than was sensible.

The realization didn’t stop him from dropping a kiss onto her hair and closing his eyes.

He’d worry about letting her go later.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

“SO WHAT NORMALLY HAPPENS at the end of the month?”

Connor sighed. These were not normal questions he usually entertained.

“I mean, it’s got to be an awkward last day,” pressed Abby. “What do you do? Shake hands and provide a severance package with references?”

Damn it, looks like it was cold-hearted bastard time again. “Most times, I just leave before they wake up.”

Abby’s jaw dropped and he could see she was officially offended on behalf of all womankind. “You don’t even leave a note? An email or text message, maybe? A grocery store flower arrangement with a ‘to whom it may concern’ card? Anything?”

Well, when she put it like that.

Her brows went up a notch. “Wow, you’re kind of an asshat.”

He jerked back defensively. “Why? Because I refuse to draw things out and string these women along? I’ve had enough of the post-one-month drama to know how each one of those gestures you just listed could play out. A call or text is always way too awkward because it puts it back on her to reply. And if she does, we’re right back at the start of a vicious loop. Email isn’t all that much better, and actually rather insulting if you ask me. Meanwhile, leaving a note is much, much worse. If I leave a note, then it’s like leaving the hope that this isn’t really goodbye for good, that I want each word I’ve written to be analyzed with the magic relationship decoder ring for the secret hidden message.”

Oh yeah, he was officially worked up. “And a gift? Are you serious? If I send a gift, hell, that’s the same as saying I’ll be back someday so don’t ever forget me.” He looked her square in the eye. “Why do that to them? At least if I leave without a word, they know that’s it. Door closed. The end.”

She was expressionless in her silence.

“Say something,” he grumbled.

“You’ve obviously given this a lot of thought.”

“I have!”

“Everything you said is probably, twistedly more true than not.”

He’d yet to realign his jaw. She wasn’t getting off that easily.

“I’m sorry for calling you an asshat.”

Finally.

“It’s clear that your logic, though warped and jaded, comes from someplace honest and kind.”

Aaand, of course. “Do you have any idea how infuriating you can be?”

She beamed. “Oh c’mon, just because you win an argument doesn’t mean I can’t get in some good blows. What kind of fight would that be?”

Choosing to hear only the most important part of that, he puffed up his chest in satisfaction. “So you’re admitting I’m right?”

Her pert little nose went up in the air. “Most certainly not. I’m saying I get why you think you’re right.”

Laughing, he kissed the tip of her nose and began arming up to go another round when the doorbell rang.