“Eli...”

“Do you?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said.

He curved his hands around both of her thighs and tugged her down hard, his lips meeting her tender flesh, his tongue stroking her clit. She threw one arm over the back of the couch, putting the other one on his shoulder as he teased her, as he pushed her, mercilessly, straight over the edge into a climax she wasn’t even remotely prepared for.

Pleasure poured through her, threatening to drown her, and all she could do was cling to Eli. Cling to him and hope she survived the storm.

“Turn over,” he said, his voice rough.

“What?”

“On your knees, babe,” he said.

She sat up and obeyed, resting part of her body against the arm of the couch, her knees pressing into the cushions.

She could hear him getting his wallet out, tearing the condom packet. Her throat was dry, her body throbbing. She could not need to come again this bad less than a minute after that last orgasm. It wasn’t even possible.

But it was happening.

She was shaking, she needed him so bad. And shaking with fear because this level of need was terrifying. But she couldn’t stop him. Which only made it scarier. Because she didn’t want to. She should be running. She should be in her Toyota and halfway to the Washington border. But she was here, bracing herself on the couch, waiting for Eli. Needing Eli.

She didn’t have to wait long.

He pushed inside her, and she lowered her head, her forehead pressing against the arm of the couch, the brocade pattern biting into her skin.

He gripped her hips and established a steady rhythm, his hand drifting between her thighs, stroking her clit, making her shiver. She was powerless in this position, at his mercy. And she loved it.

It was so different from the last time they’d been together, when she’d ridden him until they both lost their minds. This was his game. He set the pace, and he had total control. She’d never liked this, submitting to a guy like this. But she liked it with him.

She more than liked it.

He pulled her back against him and increased the intensity, her whole body tightening up, pleasure twisting around her, reaching that unbearable point where she knew something had to give.

He pressed down hard between her thighs, the added pressure the final straw that snapped the tension, sending waves of release pounding through her.

He put both hands on her hips, his fingers digging into her skin as he rode her hard, chasing his own release. He found it on a harsh growl as he stiffened against her, then relaxed, his head resting against the curve of her back.

He moved away from her, her skin prickling in the cool air after he removed his warmth. “I’ll be right back,” he said.

She lay flat on her stomach, her knees and arms like wilted kale. She tried to catch her breath, to catch a thought, before he came back. So she didn’t do something dumb and needy like crawl into his lap and bury her head in his chest.

But she kind of felt dumb and needy. Which was really aggravating.

She pushed herself into a sitting position so that she would look a little less pathetic upon his return.

He walked back into the room, beautifully naked, his eyes most definitely focused on her breasts. “Hi,” he said.

“I’m having déjà vu. Except you were wearing clothes last time you walked in and said that.”

“So were you.”

“Yes, well. Not now.”

“Obviously.”

“Don’t leave,” she said, and she could have bitten her tongue off.

“I won’t,” he said. “Just yet.”

“Yeah, that’s what I meant. Just not...right now. We could... We could go into the bedroom, and...”

Toby chose that moment to jump onto the floor between them and look at them both, judgment gleaming in his golden cat eyes.

“Oh, you,” she said, “go make yourself useful. Catch vermin!”

“You said he didn’t catch vermin,” Eli said, a smile curving his lips.

“He needs a hobby. One that is not staring at us after we have sex. Over it, cat. I’m over it.”

Toby meowed and walked over to Eli, rubbing against his bare legs and winding his tail around his calf. Eli looked pointedly at Sadie, his eyebrows arched.

“He can smell your disdain. It’s...well, it’s like catnip to him. He feeds off hatred.”

“Why do you like him again?”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but I think for reasons similar to the ones I like you for.”

He looked back down at the cat, who was winding himself around his ankles, then back at her. “Excuse me?”

“We don’t always get along. You can be grumpy. Standoffish. Judge-y as hell. But there is just something about you.”

“You’re really selling my personality.”

“Hey, I know what I like. Grumpy, judgmental cats and...grumpy, judgmental men in uniform.”

“I’m not judgmental,” he said.

“Sure you’re not.”

“I’m not.”

“You seem upset. Are you going to punish me to the fullest extent of the law?” She wiggled her brows and stood up, her legs wobbling beneath her.

“I might,” he said, his voice getting deeper, huskier.

Oh, yes, this was better than the alternative. Desire was better than that other stuff. The intense aftershocks of sex with him. The deep need that it seemed to expose, without ever satisfying it.