Insider (Exodus End #1)(53)
Author: Olivia Cunning

Toni shrugged. She guessed that Dare was the most introverted of the band, but if he was considered introverted, then she was mega-advanced introverted. “I guess. I just get overwhelmed when I’m around too many people.”

“So I should leave you alone?”

“No,” she said and shook her head. “It’s only long interactions with crowds that bother me. I enjoy intimate gatherings.”

He grinned suggestively and wiggled her eyebrows at her. “I enjoy intimate gatherings as well.”

He closed the door behind him and crossed the room. He took the bag from her lap and set it on the shiny round white coffee table before the deep blue sectional. She crinkled her nose at him when her senses were bombarded by the musky, strangely erotic scent of his body. Why was the flesh between her legs suddenly throbbing? Could the scent of his sweat really turn her on?

“You’re all sweaty,” she protested when he pulled her to her feet and grabbed her ass to press her up against him—belly to belly.

“And you’re about to get that way.”

He kissed her neck, and an excited breath escaped her. Obviously encouraged by her response, he moved his mouth to her throat to suckle there, his tongue swirling in chaotic patterns against her tender flesh. Good God! Why did that feel so good? Logan’s mouth was on her neck, not at her breast, not between her thighs, and yet Toni was paralyzed by pleasure.

“Mmm,” Logan murmured against her throat. “I think I’ve discovered a new erogenous zone.”

He nipped her skin, and her entire body jerked. “Oh!” she gasped.

“Got yourself a vampire fetish?” he asked with a chuckle.

“What?” she managed to say. “No, of course not. Vampires aren’t real.”

“But I’m all about bringing your fantasies to life, babe. If you want to be banged by a sparkling dick, I’ll go get the glitter.”

She shook her head slightly, confused. She had no idea what he was referring to. “Wait. What? Why would your dick sparkle if you’re a vampire?”

“I’m a modern-day vampire. The kind that sparkles in the sun instead of bursting into flames.”

She laughed. “You’ve seen Twilight?”

He arched a brow at her. “Do I look like the kind of guy who would watch that girly shit?”

She bit her lip, not sure if she’d insulted him.

“Yeah, I’ve seen it,” he said. “Twice.”

“Twice?” She didn’t know why the admission surprised her so much.

“I watch all kinds of movies. The bus gets pretty boring, you know. But don’t tell the guys what I’m watching on my phone. They think I’m looking at porn.”

She laughed and hugged him. “You’re full of surprises.”

“Do you like surprises?”

“I like your surprises,” she gushed. “I love everything about you.”

His teasing smile faded, and his blue-eyed gaze locked on hers.

Crap! What was she saying? She was sure to push him away if he had any idea how much she already liked him. “I mean, I like everything about you as a friend,” she said.

He blinked, and his gaze shifted to her forehead. “Yeah,” he said flatly. “Friend.”

Did he not even want her in that capacity?

He took a deep breath, and his hands tightened on her ass. “So do you want the sparkle treatment or just plain dick?”

She laughed, glad the moment of tension between them had faded. She really needed to watch what came gushing out of her mouth. “Plain dick is fine.”

“Good, because I think we’re out of glitter and I need to be inside you right now.”

Toni flushed with pleasure. She’d never felt truly wanted before. People in her life needed her regularly—her sister, her mother, and she supposed even her editor, though there would be no admittance of that by Susan—but no one except Logan had ever made her feel the heady rush of being wanted. Or of wanting. She was certain his wants were purely sexual, but she wanted more than his body. She wanted his heart. The realization terrified her because she knew it would never belong to her in the capacity she desired and she was only setting herself up for heartache.

“Take your clothes off,” he said.

“Aren’t the others—”

“Toni.”

The mere utterance of her name in that tone made her throb with want. Maybe even need.

“Yes?” She looked up at him, and he removed her glasses, tossing them on the sofa.

“Take your clothes off.”

Her fingers trembled as she lifted them to unfasten the topmost button of her blouse. She stared at his slightly blurry shoulder, unable to meet his eyes, though she wasn’t sure why she was so embarrassed after all the intimate moments they’d shared over the past day.

“Look at me,” he demanded.

Her fingers went still on her buttons, and she forced her gaze to his. Her heart fluttered at the smoldering intensity in his pale blue eyes.

“Take your clothes off,” he repeated again.

She lowered her gaze and unfastened another button.

“Can’t you look at me and take your clothes off at the same time?”

She shook her head. “I can’t do anything but stare when I look at you,” she admitted, her blush spreading down her throat. “My fingers won’t work.”

“Try. I want you to see how much you turn me on.”

She so admired him for knowing what he wanted and being able to ask for it. Would she ever be that bold? Or would she always be the one being told how to act and respond? Not that she minded. It was strangely exciting to be told to undress.

She forced her gaze upward to meet his and somehow found a steady enough hand to unfasten the button between her breasts. Logan’s gaze darted down to her cleavage, now on display, and he licked the corner of his mouth before gnawing on his lips as if placating them from the feast he denied them.

A bit more confident in her actions—seeing that he was affected by her body, even if he seemed to be calling all the shots—she released the next button and the next. When she ran out of buttons on her blouse, she unfastened the one at the waist of her long skirt and then slowly unzipped the suddenly constrictive garment. The skirt slid from her hips to land in a heap at her feet. Logan was still staring at her cleavage. She was used to people staring at her boobs. They were enormous by any standards, but she wasn’t used to liking the attention they garnered for her. She typically tried to hide them, though even the loosest sweaters became form-fitting on her and all her button-down shirts had to be tailored so they didn’t gap between her boobs while simultaneously billowing like a circus tent around the waist.