Layers Peeled Read Online Free PDF Page A

deadly
looks stuck in my back like daggers, courtesy of all the women
dancing around us. But I didn’t really care. I was with Tristan,
and he made me feel so alive and wanted and beautiful. Life was
actually worth living.
    Behind us I
heard, “How did Allie score him?” and “Don’t I know him from
somewhere?”
    I would
definitely have some explaining to do.
    Tristan led me
toward the center of the dance floor. As if at his request, the
music slowed and he spun me right into his arms. The way he held
me, protected me from the world and sharp stares, made me feel like
I was hovering on cloud nine. The press of his body against mine
erased all my worries – in fact all my thoughts. He cast a spell
over me, and that giddy feeling of a school girl returned.
    “Smooth, Mr.
Cross.”
    “Thank you,
Ms. Green.”
    “You knew we
were coming here tonight?”
    “Yes.”
    “Should I even
ask how?”
    “No, but
please accept my apologies for ruining your ladies’ night out. I
just couldn’t stay away from you.”
    “Any evening
when you’re around seems to be much better.”
    “I’ll make a
note of that.”
    “Weren’t you
supposed to come back tomorrow?” I slid my hands up his arms,
wanting to feel that much more of him.
    “And spend a
restless night in a hotel room with a cold bed? I’d much rather be
here.” And there was that lifted lip again: so perfect, even if
scarred.
    “Are you
suggesting you’ll be in my bed tonight?”
    “Yours, mine.
It doesn’t make a difference as long as you’re in my arms.”
    I bit my lip.
“You were flirting back there.” I looked up into his eyes. The dark
atmosphere added a pinch of mystery to his hazels.
    “I was
not.”
    “Bartender’s
Wet Dream?”
    “Would a Dead
Penis have sounded better?”
    I chuckled.
“How about I’m off the market ?”
    “But that
should be obvious from the way I look at you.”
    The heat of
his stare penetrated me to the core. He could have asked me to come
on the spot and I would have. How had he managed to steal all my
sensibility? With that one simple sentence I wanted us to be alone,
ideally back at Tristan’s apartment and in his bed. I couldn’t deny
at how my body responded to every single look Tristan graced upon
me. I hung onto his words like they were all connected in a chain
that kept me attached to this world. Otherwise, I’d think I was
dreaming. Girls like me, regular ones who led a simple lifestyle
(less the obsessive bastard Wright who’d ruined my childhood),
weren’t supposed to deserve a man like Tristan. He’d managed to
peel every single layer of my impenetrable cop exterior with a
look, a touch, and a word.
    “I stole your
ladies’ night, but I can guarantee your friends will be well taken
care of.”
    I didn’t doubt
that. Jess was already leaning over the bar, striking up a
conversation that would lead to nothing less than a night of hot
banging. Laura had found some hottie as well, whom I thought I
recognized, and was grinding her body against him like blunt knife
on a whetstone. The poor guy had no idea what he was in for.
    “I think
they’ll manage,” I laughed, feeling Tristan’s hairline with the
tips of my fingers, “and I much prefer this.”
    And without
another word Tristan dipped me back and down in a semi-circle,
forcing my pelvis to brace against his thigh. The contact sent a
sharp throb of pleasure through my body. When I came up, Tristan’s
full hand supported my back, holding me closer. I had no room to
breathe or move. His grasp left no space for a wiggle, and I had no
choice but to lose myself in his graceful and needy mouth. The club
disappeared from my thoughts. The sounds around us faded. The
pounding of his heartbeat mixed with mine and echoed in my ears.
Tristan possessed my mouth, and without thinking I let him. His
tender tongue parted my lips and guided mine, pressing harder when
I tried to inhale, its depth and moist tip tantalizing me. Kissing
Tristan was almost as good