Dare to Love by Lylah James

2

Lila

We were going to break each other.

I couldn’t find myself to regret last night because it was every bit as beautiful and wild as I had dreamed it to be. But I was already feeling regret for what was about to come. Heartbreak – that was the only ending.

I wanted him.

Maddox wanted me.

It should had been easy.

But…

What about after?

This – Paris – was our safe cocoon, but what about after…when we’d go back to the real world?

A groan escaped me, and my head fell into my hands, feeling helpless and so… confused. Maddox was simply maddening and so goddamn stubborn.

“Breakfast doesn’t suit you?”

My head snapped up, and my gaze found his. My mouth went dry as I gaped at him.

Maddox leaned against the door that led to the balcony, where I was currently sitting. He crossed his ankles, and his lips twitched with a grin. He was barefoot and freshly showered, his hair still wet and droplets of water lingered over his bare chest and thick arms, as if he hadn’t bothered to dry himself.

His jeans hung loosely around his hips, halfway zipped, unbuttoned and unbuckled. My eyes lingered over his wide chest far longer than I intended, his nipple piercing catching my attention. The silver barbell was enticing as I remembered the feel of it on my tongue last night, my teeth grazing his nipple and the tip of my tongue flickering over his piercing.

I flushed at the reminder. My gaze lowered to his hard-cut abs and the perfect trail of hair, a shade lighter than the hair on his head, leading from his navel to his…

Oh shit, he wasn’t wearing any underwear.

My head snapped up, but it was too late. Maddox had caught me checking him out, and he was now giving me a dirty smirk. There was a mischievous glint in his blue eyes as he walked into the sunlight and onto the balcony of our – his – hotel room. One of the finest hotels in Paris, our master suite had its own balcony, with a little breakfast area – an outdoor sofa and coffee table. It gave us the perfect view of the Eiffel tower. One could easily eat a French baguette, while admiring France’s famous landmark.

Maddox stopped next to the coffee table and nodded toward the tray. “You haven’t eaten yet. Not hungry?”

As if I could eat in this situation.

He perched himself on the coffee table, sitting directly in front of me and practically crowding into my personal space. Maddox reached for a chocolate croissant and brought it to my mouth, silently waiting, silently demanding. My lips parted, and I took a small bite.

He nodded in approval. “Good girl.”

I chewed, the taste of rich chocolate on my tongue. Sweet and oh, so good. This was probably the best croissant I ever had. No surprises there; it was a Parisian specialty.

“I thought you’d build an appetite after last night’s…” Maddox trailed off and took a bite of the croissant. “… vigorous fucking,” he finished, still chewing.

I almost choked on my saliva as my face heated up. “Maddox!”

“Okay, my bad. I meant, vigorous love-making. Is that better?”

Once again, we were back to him taunting me. “No,” I hissed.

He shrugged. “It is what it is. We fucked last night. Get over it, Lila. It’s not as dramatic as you’re making it out to be.”

“Everything is just so easy for you, isn’t it, Maddox?” I said, sitting up straight. “Sleep with a girl tonight, find a new conquest tomorrow. This is what you do, isn’t it? Fuck and move on to the next available girl.”

His eyes darkened, and he leaned forward, bringing his face closer to mine. His breath fanned over my lips. “Who said I was moving on…? You’re still here. I haven’t kicked you out yet.”

My heart thudded hard against my rib cage, but I still glowered. “Do you have to be such an asshole? We,” I angrily motioned between us, “are best friends. What happened last night can’t happen again. It was a moment of weakness…for both of us.”

Maddox seemed unfazed at my outburst, as he brought the rest of the croissant to my mouth. I pressed my lips together, refusing to give him the satisfaction of feeding me and effectively shutting me up.

His lips twitched in amusement. “Open your mouth, Lila. Or I will force feed it to you. Don’t tempt me.”

I gritted my teeth, the urge to punch him strong. Yes, I was stubborn, but he was acting like his usual asshole self, right now, and I didn’t like it one bit.

Warm breeze hit my bare chest, and I gasped, looking down. Maddox had pulled my white robe apart, untying the belt from around my waist without me even realizing.

Sneaky bastard. Why was I even surprised?

His hand snaked upward and inside my robe, before I could even think. Mischief flashed in his blue eyes as he cupped my breast, lazily brushing his thumb over my hard nipple. Heat flushed through me as my stomach fluttered and my heart raced.

“Eat,” he demanded, rolling my painfully tight nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

Maddox waited, his attitude aggravating, and his grin – so freaking annoying.

I opened my mouth and took a big bite, shoving the rest of the croissant in my mouth and biting on the same fingers that were feeding me. He hissed and pulled his hand away from my lips… and teeth.

I raised an eyebrow, cocking my head to the side. Two can play this game, Maddox.

He pinched my nipple, hard. A squeak left my lips, and he smirked.

“We can’t be friends after I fucked you like I did last night,” Maddox said, ever so crudely. I tensed, my lungs clenching at his words.

Don’t do this, Maddox. Don’t…please.

“If you think we can go back to being just friends, then Lila, you’re more delusional than I thought.”

I opened my mouth to snap at him, but he was already pushing me back against the seat. “Maddox, what–”

He loomed over me, our chests touching, and his hands landed on either side of my head. Maddox caged me against his body. “Give us one week,” he rumbled. His face was the most serious I had ever seen, his expression hard and sure. “Our time in Paris, seven days.”

One week…

With Maddox? Not as his friend, but as his lover?

A fling? An affair…?

My eyes widened, and I was already shaking my head. My heart wouldn’t survive a one-week affair. Maddox would wreck me, and I’d leave my bleeding heart in Paris.

His thumb brushed against my throat, over my throbbing vein. “Lila,” Maddox breathed my name.

My breath hitched as my robe slid open. He knelt in front of me, his big shoulders settling between my spread thighs, pushing them farther apart. I breathed in, but my throat closed, as I ended up silently gasping instead. I was completely naked under my robe, and he took it as his advantage.

He lifted his head, his gaze hot and dark. “Your cunt looks thoroughly used from last night, Lila,” Maddox said, unadulterated satisfaction gleaming in his eyes. My fingers curled around the cushion, and I dug my nails in, feeling a rush of heat coursing through me. My skin grew tight and warmth spread through my lower region, my sex growing damp. Damn him and his filthy mouth.

My eyes turned into slits as I glared down at his imposing self. I wasn’t going to fall for it; I wouldn’t let him sway me with sex.

Maddox’s hand slowly slid up the outside of my calves, up my thighs… and…

I squirmed, my voice gone and the fight leaving me. He was meticulously slow, dragging out the suspense and forcing me to feel him.

Inch by inch, his hand slid upward, his touch scorching my flesh as he continued toward my center.

His slightly calloused palm felt rough against my sensitive skin, but his touch was… so light, he was barely touching me. Teasing and tempting.

Driving… me… crazy.

My heart thudded so hard I thought it would spill out of my chest. His fingers brushed against my folds, a soft touch, but I quivered in response.

“You’re red and swollen,” he rasped, his voice thick and hard. His fingers spread me open, still ever so gentle. Maddox tsked, the side of his lips quirking up in approval. “… and wet.”

“What… are you doing?” I questioned, slightly breathless.

His chest rumbled with a low growl. “Having my breakfast. You can’t deny a starving man, Baby, and last night, I built up quite the appetite.”

Goosebumps peppered my flesh, and my core tightened as Maddox lowered his head between my thighs. Maddox wasn’t the first man to go down on me, but he was the first one to take his sweet time. To stare at my body like he was about devour me, and it still wouldn’t be enough for him.

I ached.

I didn’t know I could feel this way, this intense… fierce need inside of me. Desire pooled in the pit of my stomach, and my arousal leaked out of me. The moment his mouth was on me, my body tightened, and I felt a rush of wetness between my thighs. Holy shit!

Maddox took his time, lapping at my sex leisurely. He dragged his tongue over my wet folds, before circling around my clit. “Maddox,” I choked, my thighs shaking. A whimper left my lips before I could stop myself, and my hands went to the top of his head in frantic need. My fingers gripped his hair, pulling him closer and silently demanding more.

Fire licked through my veins, and my eyes fluttered close. Maddox was killing me.

It would be a sweet, torturous death.

His touch was both tormenting and heavenly.

“Maddox,” I breathed.

His tongue slid over my folds, and his teeth grazed my swollen clit. My back arched off the sofa, and my thighs tightened around his head. He sucked and lapped, licking every inch of me, until my whimpers rang like desperate pleas.

I wasn’t prepared for it, when he shoved a finger inside of me, but I clenched around the hard intrusion. Seeking for more… needing more…

It hurt so good.

“Oh God!” I cried out, as he thrust his finger in and out, his tongue simultaneously working my pussy like his favorite meal. I guessed… I was.

“Ma – Maddox… Please…”

My stomach tightened, my thighs quivered, and the muscles of my calves were cramping, as I grew closer to my release. I climbed higher on the cliff, writhing and crying out, but Maddox didn’t let me fall.

I throbbed, an intense beat that match my thudding heart.

I bit down on my lip, shaking, choking on my moans and on the precipice of orgasm. He dragged my pleasure out.

I just needed…

Just… oh…

The same moment he thrust two fingers inside of me, his teeth grazed my clit, a small bite that left a sharp sting behind. I bucked against his mouth and fingers, my lips parting with a cry.

I had not finished orgasming, before he was starting all over again.

“No…” I gasped, still sensitive and shaking with my orgasm. “Wait.”

Maddox growled between my thighs – a warning – and went back to lapping up my wetness, sucking and licking. This time, there was nothing slow and sweet about it.

The first orgasm was for me. This one was for him.

His tongue ravaged me.

His fingers didn’t stop their torturous ministrations, thrusting and twisting inside of me. There was nothing gentle as he fingered me.

Maddox was a mad man on a mission.

Molten desire, strong and lustful, coursed through my veins at the sounds coming from his throat as he tasted me, like a starved man, who would never ever get enough of me. His deep, primal groans were as sinful as the sound of my wet pussy – oh fuck!

My hips jerked, and his fingers bit into my thighs, leaving their marks there. His bruising grip was almost painful, but my muddled brain didn’t seem to care one bit.

Stop.

My hips moved with his fingers, jerking and grinding against his face. I heard him groan my name against my tender sex as pleasure spiked through me, and my back bowed.

No, don’t stop.

“Maddox… Maddox!”

My second orgasm threw me over the edge, and a loud moan spilled past my lips. My eyes rolled back into my head, as he gave my hypersensitive pussy one last lick.

What–?

Dazed, I blinked my eyes open, my body still shaking from the aftermath of my release. I couldn’t…breathe.

Maddox lifted his head from between my thighs and regarded me, his blue eyes dark and raw. “You can have this all the time. Me, between your legs, worshipping your pussy. Say yes.”

I finally came down from my high, and I shook my head, trying to clear my mind. “You’re bribing me with sex? Maddox! This isn’t about sex…”

His eyes hardened. “This is more. I know it, but you’re not giving us a chance, Lila.”

“What are you so scared of?” he asked, kissing the inside of my thigh, before giving me a playful nip.

Losing you…

Uncertainty flashed through me, but I was already losing this argument.

“One week…” I whispered. The look in his eyes, such raw emotions, almost like he was pleading to me, weakened my resolve.

“One week,” Maddox affirmed. “For now. I might change your mind later.”

I dug my nails in the back of his neck, not hard enough to hurt but in warning. “You can’t seduce me.”

His lips quirked up. “Can’t I? Haven’t I?”

Maddox left a trail of soft kisses across my navel, giving my belly button a playful lick, before he nipped my flesh teasingly. He didn’t look like he was about to leave his spot between my thighs any time soon.

My fingers raked through his dirty blond hair. “If I remember correctly, I did the seducing last night.

Our gaze collided. His chest rumbled and I throbbed at the deep sound. “And I’m weak to my goddamn knees for you, Lila.”

My heart lurched but all of this was too good to be true. This couldn’t be happening, not with Maddox… not after years of friendship… not after years of playing it safe. Now, everything was complicated.

“You probably fucked someone else last week, and you’re here, now, telling me you want me? Don’t, Maddox.” The words spilled out before I could stop myself, and my voice cracked. I bit my lip, hating that I’d shown him a sign of weakness.

Maddox was a predator; he’d pounce on my vulnerability.

Except he did the complete opposite…

“I haven’t.” His eyes bore into mine, smoldering with an intensity I couldn’t put in words. “I haven’t slept with anyone for… weeks.”

I blinked, my chest caving in. “You’ve been celibate for months?”

“My dick doesn’t seem to like the idea of another girl.”

I shook my head, tensing, and tried to close my legs, but Maddox was still between my thighs, forcing them apart. “You think you want me… especially after last night. I won’t lie, it was amazing. Whatever happened last night–”

I broke off with a choked gasp. Smack.

My body jolted, and a hot flash of pain seared through my pussy, before it quickly disappeared, replaced by a dull throbbing pleasure that lingered. Did Maddox just spank my…?

Oh God! I sputtered and glared, but he was already speaking, his voice almost furious. His tone held a dangerous warning and my mouth snapped close.

“That,” he growled. “was the best fucking night of my life. So, don’t tell me what I think and don’t tell me how I feel.”

Maddox grasped my wrist and placed my hand over his chest, his skin warm and smooth under my touch. His heart was pounding. Thud, thud, thud.

The hard glint in his eyes had softened by a fraction, but the intensity of his gaze was just as fierce. His words rippled across my flesh, and my heart stuttered, before caving inside my chest. “Don’t tell me how I feel. You have no idea, Lila.”

This was so… difficult.

A pained sound escaped me, but I quickly smothered it. Falling into Maddox’s trap would be dangerous for my heart. I’d end up being just another conquest.

Maddox wasn’t the type of man to settle down. I didn’t think he’d ever be. He was too wild, too reckless, too… wounded.

I had always known Maddox would never be the type of man to do a long-term relationship.

This wasn’t going to be an easy week or a simple affair. I was already tittering over the edge of a very dangerous cliff; I was already at risk of losing my heart and having it broken by Maddox.

But I had already lost this fight.

He moved up my body, and my legs instinctively wrapped around his hips. His lips skimmed over my throat, before he claimed my lips into a long kiss.

Maddox Coulter – my best friend, now my lover – was maddeningly irresistible.

He knew exactly how to twist my hearts into knots, and he turned me into putty in his hands.

One week.

A seven-day affair.

Seven days to fall deeper in love with Maddox Coulter.

Seven days to have my heart… broken by him.