Dangerous Temptations (2 page)

Chapter One

Six Months Later…

Oh, god.

My head was pounding. Or wait. Was someone at the door?

There’s no way I was this hung over.
Or was I?
Shit, I didn’t know. It was pitch black, but then I realized I hadn’t opened my eyes yet, but the pounding was definitely apparent.

I rolled over, feeling the weight shift around on the mattress. The light, fluffy comforter felt great on my hot skin. The rest of me felt like I’d been hit by a truck.

My body jerked. Something was wrong.

I didn’t have a light, fluffy comforter.

I opened my eyes, blinking several times to get used to the bright light. The sun was shining in, and I silently cursed the damn window for not shielding the sunlight out.

I sucked in a breath as I tried to remember the events of last night.

I couldn’t. Not much after dinner anyway. I knew I went out for Brittainy’s bachelorette party. The girls and I took a limo all over the city, taking us to dinner at Eleven Madison Park, and then we ended up at Club Le Bain for dancing and drinks.

The rest was kind of fuzzy.

I squinted, arching my back to stretch out the kinks. Christ, it felt like my body had been folded in half and beaten all night long.

I roamed my hands down my body, feeling for any kind of evidence. I was naked, completely naked, and I never slept naked unless…

I brought my fingers down in between my legs. It ached, terribly. I could tell I had a full body work out last night.

I felt sick like I was going to throw up, but I continued to lie straight, hoping it’d pass.

I breathed in and out, slowly. Once my stomach calmed down, I attempted to move. A firm hand grabbed around my waist, pulling me back before I had the chance to get up.

“Don’t move,” a low, deep, gravelly voice growled in my ear. It was a voice of a man who’d just woken up. Next to me.

Once I let it sink it, it rang a bell, but I couldn’t quite place it. He pulled my body closer to his, my back to his chest, as he grasped my hip with one of his hands. He dipped his chin onto my shoulder and whispered in my ear, “I still have the taste of you on my lips.” My eyes widened in shock. I felt his hot breath on me, the scent of alcohol evident as I inhaled against him.

Holy shit.

I tried to rack my brain for any memory of last night.
Who the hell was this guy? What was his name?
Crap, I didn’t even know his name!

He squeezed my hip before trailing his fingers down my stomach, slowly heading down in between my thighs. My body tingled in response, my eyes fluttered shut from the touch of his hands on me.

I quickly opened my eyes and covered his hand with mine. “Stop,” I blurted out in a panic, sucking in another breath. His hand halted, his body stilling next to me.

“Hung over?” he questioned, amusement laced in his tone. His breath tickled my ear again, sending unwanted shivers down my spine.

I cursed my traitorous body. It apparently remembered last night, yet nothing was coming to me.

“Yeah, I seem to have a case of the ‘I don’t remember what the hell happened last night’,” I said honestly. He removed his hand. I felt his body shift slightly as he put space in between us.

“Turn around,” he ordered. “Maybe you’ll remember my face.” I could hear the hopefulness in his tone, but I knew a visual wasn’t going to help. I blacked out and nothing from last night was coming to me.

I didn’t hesitate though. I grabbed the sheet to conceal myself as I turned around to face him.

Well, then at least I understood my body’s reaction. He was all messy hair with light stubble on his face. His eyes were a dark, chocolate brown. He was looking at me intently, waiting for me to say I remembered him. But I didn’t.

I swallowed as I looked down the length of his body to see he was completely naked. Only a small part of the sheet covered up his cock, but everything else was exposed. I sucked in a sharp breath as I forced my eyes back up.

“Sorry,” I choked out. “I have no memory of you.” I blushed, severely embarrassed. He looked good enough to eat and here I didn’t remember any of it.

“That’s okay,” he finally said, his lips curving up slightly. “I’d be glad to help you remember…perhaps a fourth time would jolt your memory.”

My eyes widened in shocked. “A…
fourth
time?” I clenched the sheet tighter to my chest. No wonder my body felt bruised and broken.

“Wow…” He grinned playfully. “No memory even after three times is kind of an ego killer.” He brushed a hand through his messy locks, taking my attention away from his eyes. I imagined I was to blame for his hair looking like that—as if I had raked my hands through it over and over—squeezing, pulling.

Stay focused, Mac.

I blinked, seriously frustrated I couldn’t remember anything.

“I’m s-so sorry,” I rambled. “I can usually hold my liquor, but last night was a girl’s night…”

“I know,” he cut me off. “Bachelorette party if memory serves me correct. You were out with some girlfriends.”

“Right…oh, god, did they see me leave with you? I need to get dressed. I should leave. Where are my clothes?” I started to sit up, feeling too lightheaded to stand up. “Shit.”

“Sit back, Mac.” It wasn’t a suggestion. He pulled me back gently until my head hit the pillow. “I’ll grab you some juice and pills.”

“Okay. Thank you…” I lingered, still not knowing his name.

He sat up, searching the floor for his shorts. He pulled them on and spun around with an enormous grin on his face. “Alex.”

Holy panty dropper.

Which explains why I’m not wearing any.

I swallowed, taking all of him in again. He definitely had something worth staring at; not overly buff, but he had chiseled muscles in all the right places. His arms looked tone and strong, as did his torso. I blinked up at him and nodded. “Thank you, Alex.”

“You’re welcome, Mac.” He started to walk away before he froze and quickly spun around. “That’s your name, right?” One side of his lips curved up.

I tried not to laugh because it hurt my head, but I couldn’t help the small chuckle as it escaped my throat. “Yes, well, it’s Mackenzie. But my friends call me Mac.”

“Hmm…” he pondered. “I like it. Mac suits you.” He grinned once again before spinning back around. He bent down quickly, giving me a full view of his perfectly-shaped ass and turned to place my dress on the bed. I narrowed my eyes.
Were those scratches on his ass?

“I have shorts and a t-shirt in the dresser if you prefer to wear something else since that can’t actually be considered a dress anyway.” He winked and then took off out of the room.

I decided I’d rather wear the shorts and t-shirt. I would already be doing the walk of shame, but at least my ass would be covered up.

Everything remained fuzzy, but I was trying really hard to remember something,
anything
. I’d been planning Brittainy’s bachelorette party for months, so I knew I had to be out with her and a few of our other friends—Katie, Ella, and Staci. I just don’t remember the actual events that took place after getting ready.

“Here…” Alex said as he walked back in. I couldn’t help my eyes wandering back down to where his shorts were. They lay loosely on his hips, not really concealing much at all. He handed me two white pills and a small glass of orange juice. “You should eat.”

I swallowed the pills down and shook my head no. “Not sure I could keep food down right now.”

“You should try…absorb the alcohol at least. It might make you feel better,” he insisted. It was then I realized we were in a hotel—a suite. I’m not sure how I didn’t notice it earlier, but now I could definitely tell.

“Okay, I’ll try,” I agreed. “Where are we?”

“The Standard,” he responded. Things were slowly making sense. Le Bain was a club inside The Standard, which meant we didn’t have to go far once we left. “I’m staying here while my things get shipped back over.”

“Shipped from where?”

“I spent the last few years studying abroad for graduate school. I just flew back and haven’t moved back home yet.”

“Oh, interesting. Guess this was one way to celebrate coming home…waking up to a girl who remembers nothing.” I laughed, mostly to myself and of the irony. I was so going to hell.

“You’ve definitely made it interesting,” he agreed. “Memorable, as well.”

He grabbed the room service menu and started looking it over. “Would you like me to order something for you? Do you have any specific requests or anything?”

I’ve been on a diet for over a year, making sure my body was always in perfect shape. The damn paparazzi loved taking my picture any chance they could get, making sure to point out every single flaw they could find. They were relentless.

But today…hell, I’d already had a plateful of sins adding up, so I was going to continue to indulge.

“I want…
everything
.” I breathed out a sigh. “Pancakes, eggs, bacon…oh, god, bacon. I haven’t had that in over a year. Maybe longer. Toast with jelly, waffles, anything with blueberries…”

“Basically, the whole menu?” He grinned. His eyes glazed over as he continued staring at me as if he were impressed.

“Basically.” I laughed again, realizing how comfortable I felt around him.

After ordering, he sat down on the bed next to me and leaned up against the bed frame. “It’s okay to sit by me, you know. I won’t bite. I mean…unless you ask me to, of course.”
Was he flirting with me?
Considering everything we apparently did last night, you’d think our one-night stand would be as awkward as I felt. He sucked in his lower lip and winked at me.

He was definitely flirting with me.

“I feel a little awkward not remembering you and you remembering…
everything
. Usually one-night stands just do the quick dress-and-bail, right? Well, you’re acting kind of…normal.”

He laughed lightly with amusement in his eyes as he continued looking at me. “I haven’t ever had a one-night stand before, but I’d guess you’re probably right.”

I leaned back against the bed frame next to him, my body relaxing more. “Seriously?” I frowned. “Are you just messing with me? You’ve never had a one-night stand before?”

His eyes shifted as his lips pursed together, thinking before he responded. “Nope. Well, they might’ve started like that, but they always ended up as more.”

I chewed my lip, thinking how this was not…
could not
…turn into more.

“Well, consider your cherry popped for one-night stands,” I said lightly, hoping he’d understand what I was trying to say.

He shifted, bringing his body closer to mine. I swallowed nervously as his hand moved to my face, cupping my jaw. “Would you be upset if I kissed you?” His question felt so misplaced, but I didn’t mind. I should’ve minded a lot, but I couldn’t find it in me to deny him. “Just once so you can say you actually remember something about me?” His voice was low, sultry. If I had any panties on, they’d be melting right off my skin with his voice.

I stared into his intense, brown eyes and nodded. I didn’t have the nerve to respond. I didn’t trust what would come out of my mouth if I did.

He pulled my face closer to his, our mouths each meeting half way. His lips covered mine, soft and warm, as he gently pushed his tongue inside. It started slow and easy, our tongues slowly finding a rhythm. His hand shifted and wrapped into my hair, pulling me even closer. My body felt like it was on fire, heat and arousal building up inside me. The sensation alone clouded my head and any logic my mind was trying to make. My body was driving, not stopping to hear any rational reasons as to why I should’ve stopped the kiss.

Before I had the chance to second-guess my decision, he pulled back lightly, nipping at my lower lip before pressing one last light kiss on my mouth.

“Any chance that sparked your memory?” he whispered hopefully, his hand still tangled in my hair. I wanted so badly to tell him I remembered everything, but still, nothing. I shook my head, keeping my eyes closed as I tried to force any memories in. Anything that could bring to light what had happened.

This was wrong. That much I knew. But my body disagreed—stomach flutters, heart thumping, arousal building inside—it was nothing like I’ve ever felt before.

“Can you tell me how we met? About what happened last night?” I asked, opening my eyes to see his locked on mine.

He lowered his hand but continued pressing up close to me. “You mean you want me to tell you how you were all over me?”

I laughed, appreciating the way he was trying to lighten the mood. I shoved my elbow into his side and said, “No. If I wanted the made-up version, I’d just tell myself a story.”

“Are you saying it was the other way around?” he asked, pretending to sound offended.

“I’m saying that’s the only option if this is how we ended up.”

“So sure of herself—a quality I don’t mind. Confidence is a good trait.”