A_Little_Harmless_Fascination by Melissa Schroeder Read Free Book Online

look
over the top of them. "What about on other people?"
    He could tell from the sparkle in her eyes that she was
fucking with him. He looked down her arms at a sleeve of tattoos that must have
taken hours to get. "Depends on the person. I especially like yours."
    "Really?"
    "Yeah. That and your belly-button ring."
    Her lips curved as she pushed the glasses back up and turned
to walk away. The woman moved like a freaking temptress. He knew it was innate
to her, like breathing. She didn’t do it on purpose. That didn’t mean he could
ignore it. His hands itched to touch, to tease, to spank. That full ass swinging
in her barely-there shorts...he was sure the lack of blood in his brain wasn't
good for his health.
    He caught up to her. "So, is your belly the only place
you're pierced?"
    "Wouldn't you like to know?"
    He slipped his hand around her upper arm and gently tugged
her to the side of a tent at the end of one of the rows, out of the pedestrian
traffic. It was heating up, the air stifled by the arrangements of the vendors,
and the humidity was rising by the minute. The scent of her filled his senses.
    "Yeah, I kind of do want to know where else you're
pierced."
    She smiled up at him, and he could tell she was going to
brush him off. The Dom in him was already beating his way out. He had lain
dormant for months, but with Jillian around, those dominant tendencies were surfacing
again.
    She patted his cheek. "I only share that with intimate
friends."
    Jillian turned to leave, but he grabbed her arm again.
    "Don't mess with me, Jillian. I don't like it, not that
way."
    Her eyes narrowed as she looked down at his hand on her upper
arm.
    "If you're not interested, just say ‘leave me the fuck
alone, Conner.’"
    He waited, holding his breath. He hadn't meant to challenge
her, hadn't known this was so important right now. It was. More than he had
ever expected, it was beyond that now. Why this woman, right now, he had no
idea. But the need he had building in him was starting to take over any sane
thought he had. He knew right now if he didn’t have her soon, there was a good
chance he might just go a little insane. If she said to fuck off, he would be
screwed.
    When she didn’t say anything, Conner let loose the breath
and nodded. "Good, then we understand each other. Just know that when I
ask you that question again, I will expect an answer."
    With that he released her, waited for her to walk, and then
followed her into the path of the shoppers again.
    She didn’t say anything for a few minutes as they strolled
through another set of tents. Then she said, “That wasn’t an invitation.”
    “What?” he asked, knowing just what she meant.
    “Just because I didn’t say it, it wasn’t an invitation.”
    “Understood. Just as long as you know that from now on out,
I believe I have every right to work on getting that invitation.”
    She stopped and looked up at him. She hid her eyes behind
those sunglasses, and it was still bothering him. With Jillian, he always felt
he was missing something she was hiding. Not on purpose, not really. But he had
a feeling she had spent a lot of her time hiding a lot of things from most
people.
    “Pretty cocky, aren’t you?” she asked with humor threading
her voice.
    He smiled. “What can I say? You bring it out in me.”
    She groaned. “Oh, that was bad.”
    “You gave me the setup, so you can blame yourself.”
    “I might have, but it doesn’t mean you needed to go there.”
She opened the bag of pineapple bites. “Here, take one.”
    He did and instantly knew why she called them pineapple
crack. Sweet, tart, and as soon as he finished that one, he needed another. He
grabbed a few more as they started to walk again.
    “That should be illegal,” he said. “I think if I had those
every day, I might gain fifty pounds in a week.”
    She laughed, and the sound of it had his heart doing more
than a little two-step. She never giggled or muffled her happiness. It was
always out