Chapter 12: Chapter 12

Ana's heart raced at his question. Her body screamed at her to invite him in, but her pride wouldn't let her. "You haven't earned your way into my apartment," she responded harshly.

"Fair enough," Eric replied with a casual shrug as he reached for the button at her waist.

Ana inhaled sharply; her entire body thrummed with anticipation. "What are you doing?" she breathed.

"I told you I was going to fuck you, Ana," he reminded her as he gradually lowered her zipper. "Right here if I have to."

"Miller—"

"And I'll use my fingers to do it," he said tersely as he reached between her legs.

"You can't do this here," she insisted, grabbing his wrist. But he was too strong for her; she couldn't stop him. Her back arched as he plunged two fingers inside of her. "Ooooooooooookay, you can," she hissed, nodding jerkily. She hated herself for giving into him so quickly, but now that she had, there was no way to stop. She wanted him too much. She always seemed to want him too much! Her back slid up and down the wall as she rode his finger thrusts, and she groaned softly.

"That fuckin' groan is music to my ears," Eric said huskily as he leaned forward and took her bottom lip between his teeth. She gasped when he tugged forcefully; there was flash of heat between her thighs and she felt Eric's fingers pick up speed with the added dampness. "Mmmm," he moaned appreciatively as his fingers suddenly left her; she whimpered in protest. Her eyes widened at the sight of his fingers—just like last night in the restaurant, they were glimmering with the proof of her arousal.

He shoved them inside of his mouth, sucking hard. "You taste so good, Ana," he growled.

She stood there for a moment, dumbfounded, before she was finally able to speak. "Th—thank you," she uttered breathlessly, unable to think of anything else to say. She couldn't help but wonder what he thought she tasted like.

"Are you sure you don't want to fuck me tonight?" he asked as his hands skimmed down her sides of her shirt and settled on her waist.

"I…I'm not going to," she persisted instead of answering his question. Of course she wanted to sleep with him tonight! And tomorrow night, for God's sake! But she wasn't about to let herself fall into bed with him again. Not right now, anyway. Let him to want her for a change.

"But you want to," he whispered huskily as his mouth took hers.

Her fingers tangled in her hair as his lips locked on hers and his tongue assaulted hers. She lifted a leg and hooked her heel behind his knee as she rubbed against him.

She pulled away when he chuckled and glared up at him. "Is something funny?" she asked heatedly.

"You don't act like someone who doesn't want to fuck me," he taunted with a satisfied glint in his eyes.

Her gaze narrowed as she planted her hands on his chest and gave him a solid shove, then turned around and bent over to pick her keys up. She couldn't even remember dropping them.

Eric gripped her hips from behind and she immediately straightened. He pushed her hair away from her neck and ran the tip of his nose over the soft skin. "Did I make you mad?" he asked huskily.

"No," she snapped.

"Ana—"

"You should go," she interrupted.

"That's funny," he said in amusement. "I don't remember coming."

Ana's jaw dropped as she spun in his arms and then took a step back. "Everything is a game to you, isn't it?" she demanded, not bothering to wait for an answer. "I'm probably just some big joke to you. You probably wouldn't even want me if I'd been in your bed that morning. Am I right?"

"I don't know," Eric answered honestly.

Ana laughed, but the sound that resonated in the hallway was more hysterical than amused. "I do," she informed him. "And if I let you take me to bed tonight, I'd probably never see you again. Well, I'm not going to let you."

"Because you want to see me again," he declared triumphantly.

"No," she said in surprise. Well…yes. But he didn't need to know that. How in the hell did he know her so well?

"Then why?" he pressed.

When she couldn't formulate an answer, he leaned forward and placed a hand on the wall next to her head, trapping her once again between his body and her apartment door. His breath was warm on her cheek, and she shivered. "It wouldn't matter if I took you to bed tonight, tomorrow night, and the night after that, Ana," he said in a low voice as he ran his fingertip down her cheek. "I'd be back for more."

Her breathing hastened as he pulled away from her and straightened his jacket. "Good night, Ana," he said as he turned on his heel and strode to the elevator.

It took her a few tries before she finally got her key in the lock and stumbled into her apartment, taking care to lock the door behind her. She made her way to the couch and plopped down; her breaths were still coming in fitful pants. She had no idea where the strength to turn Eric away had come from; every part of her craved him.

And though she was convinced she'd done the right thing, she knew she'd be kicking herself in the ass come morning.

Eric wasn't used to losing control the way he did when he was around Ana, and he certainly wasn't used to asking for permission to accompany a woman to bed. He was usually the one being chased, not the other way around.

And he sure as hell wasn't used to walking away hard as a fucking rock—two nights in a row now. Sure, maybe last night had been his fault, but tonight was all on Ana. Until he'd spied her on the dance floor with another man tonight, he'd held all the cards in this little tryst they were having. But in that one moment, she'd unknowingly pilfered any shred of control he had. Never before had he experienced the jealousy that had consumed him tonight, and he didn't like it.

He needed to find some way to gain the upper hand again…and he had a feeling the only way to do that was to get in her back into bed.

And he knew damn well he had his work cut out for him.