The Farther I Fall by Lisa Nicholas Page A

She’d kissed Lee because she’d wanted to, but she’d wanted to because Lucas was watching her. It was a stupid stunt, and she owed Lee an apology.
    Lucas was abrasive and often rude and she hadn’t actually kissed him while they were dancing because she wouldn’t have stopped there.
I want you so bad I can’t think straight.
That voice in her ear, dark and smoky and low, tied her stomach in knots and sent a rush of heat between her legs. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d wanted someone with such frantic immediacy. It hadn’t just been jealousy she’d felt when Lucas kissed that guy. She’d rather be standing in a desert with men shooting at her. It was just as terrifying, but at least she understood it. At least it was familiar.
    Frightened or no, she couldn’t keep hiding all night. She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders, then walked out of the stall, washed her hands, and headed into the club.
    She found Lee sitting at the table and talking to the others. He smiled at her, and she felt a pang of guilt. “I think I need to head back,” she said. To Craig, “Make sure everybody gets home in one piece, yeah?”
    Lee touched her arm. “You okay?”
    She smiled, but wasn’t sure how convincing it was. “I’m fine. I’m just knackered. Long day. I’m sorry.”
    â€œLet me walk you back.” He slid off his stool.
    â€œNo, no, it’s fine. Really. Stay. I’ll see you tomorrow night.” The last thing she wanted to deal with was another advance from one of the Wheeler brothers. She kissed his cheek and slipped away. She caught a glimpse of Lucas still on the dance floor, wrapped up in Maggie and the new guy—if anything, more so than before. He had, it seemed, moved on.
    Cathy stopped her before she got all the way to the door. “You sure you’re okay? I saw—”
    â€œOh God. Lee didn’t, did he?” Gwen wanted to crawl into a hole.
    â€œMaggie was keeping him pretty busy, looked like.” She leaned closer. “Listen, Lucas is just trying to make you jealous. Maggie’s not going to let him take that guy home. It’d be a disaster.”
    â€œIt doesn’t matter. Nothing’s going on.”
    A raised eyebrow told Gwen what Cathy thought of that.
    â€œI’m fine,” Gwen said.
    Back at the hotel room, Gwen put the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door, grateful tonight’s suite had two bedrooms. She needed a shower and a few hours of sleep. Then she should be able to think clearly again. And God, she needed to think.
    The hot water did wonders, and she stepped out of the shower feeling more human, but sleepier than before. She shut the door to her bedroom behind her and crawled into bed, not bothering to find any clothes.
    As soon as she closed her eyes, she couldn’t stop thinking about him. She started tingling everywhere, thinking about his breath against her throat, the tickle of his hair against her skin when he leaned over her. Gwen rolled onto her back with a grumble, but her hands had other ideas. Her mind replayed scene after scene: Lucas kissing her in the green room, unbuttoning her shirt as he kissed her throat—that still hurt, the look in his eyes at her disfigurement—and then on the dance floor, first watching him kiss a very pretty man, then imagining him kissing her with the same fervor.
    If she’d said yes, she and Lucas would be on the other side of that door right now, in his bed, or maybe right here, in hers. Would there be a third? But no, that wasn’t what she wanted right now. She wanted
him
, and just him. He would be talkative. Using that voice to an unfair advantage.
    â€œI can’t wait to taste you,”
she heard in her mind, as she dragged the fingers of her right hand up her thigh, shifting her knees up and apart.
“God, you’re so wet for me,”
as he slipped his