Page 194 of Darling Venom
Both options displeased me.
“Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you when he stabs you in the back with his fountain pen.”
She rolled her eyes. “First—no one writes in pen anymore. And second—you’re the last person I’d go to if I had a problem.”
“Interesting. Yet, you received my help so well on my exam table.”
Yeah. I went there.
It was the wrong thing to say on so many levels.
Unprofessional. Low. Inappropriate.
But also true.
So fucking true, it was seared into my goddamn brain.
Her cheeks flushed, throat bobbing. She averted her eyes.
When they returned to mine, she licked her lips. “Let’s make a bet.”
“Gambling is a vice, Charlie.”
She mimicked my didactic delivery. “Everything is a vice, Tate. Gambling.” She lifted her cup. “Coffee.” A beat. “Lust.”
I swallowed hard. We were treading in dangerous waters. I pinned her with my undivided attention as she set the glass down, rounded the island, and stood in front of me, swiveling my round stool to face her. She fit between my legs perfectly, lips level with mine. I felt her sweet coffee breath fan me as she spoke.
“Living is an addiction, and it’s better to crave it than hate it.”
My hand met the outside of her thigh before I could stop it. I palmed her smooth skin, sliding up, relishing in the surprised intake of her breath.
“I don’t do addictions, Miss Richards.” I used my hand on her thighs to nudge her away from me and abandoned the seat for the door.
“It’s Charlie,” she breathed, following me. “To you, I’m Charlie.”
I shoved my feet into the first pair of shoes I could find. I needed to get out of here before I did something I wasn’t sure I’d regret, but definitely knew I shouldn’t do.
She knew about Kel, I reminded myself. She knew, and she lied.
The words did nothing to reduce the temptation.
“Talk to me, Tate.”
She worried her bottom lip. The squeaks of her shoes as she shifted from foot to foot filled the silence while I scoured the area for a raincoat to protect me from the shower. Her feet settled.
She approached me, not giving up. “I haven’t asked because I didn’t want to push you, but you’ve been off lately. Why? You can talk to me.?
?
Fuck it.
I gave up on finding a coat, doing my damnedest to ignore her. My fingertips met the knob. They settled there a second too long, and even my body wasn’t agreeing with my brain. The traitor.
I turned to her, keeping my fist around the metal sphere behind me. “Miss Richards?”
Hope bloomed on her face. “Yes?”
Tell me you didn’t know.
