The rooftop bar was buzzing with low laughter, the clink of glasses, and the hum of music that pulsed just beneath the surface. Lexy adjusted the strap of her black dress, the satin clinging to her curves in all the right places. She told herself she wasn't dressing for him, that the deep plunge at the back had nothing to do with the fact that James would be here tonight.
But when she spotted him across the room, his gaze already locked on her, she knew she was lying to herself.
He looked devastatingly good a black dress shirt rolled up at the sleeves, top buttons undone, his presence commanding even in a room full of powerful men. But it was the way he looked at her that made her breath hitch.
Like he wanted to devour her.
Lexy turned away, forcing a polite smile as a colleague approached, engaging in small talk she barely registered. She felt James before she saw him, the heat of his body radiating behind her, a presence that set her nerves alight.
"Enjoying the party?" His voice was smooth, low, laced with something darker.
Lexy didn't turn. "I was."
A pause. Then, deliberately, he leaned in close enough that his breath brushed the shell of her ear. "Liar."
Her stomach clenched.
She turned slightly, just enough to see the way his lips curved into a knowing smirk. Their faces were inches apart now, the air between them charged, dangerous.
"Careful, James." Her voice was steady, but her body betrayed her pulse thrumming wildly, heat pooling in her core.
James' fingers skimmed along the curve of her waist, barely a touch, but enough to send a shiver down her spine. "You think I don't notice how you look at me?" His voice was low, rough now. "How you react to me?"
Lexy swallowed hard. This was reckless. This was the edge.
And then, the final push James' eyes flickered past her, landing on the man she had been speaking with, a casual acquaintance, but in that moment, it didn't matter.
His jaw tightened. "He doesn't get to look at you like that."
Her breath caught. "James"
"Come with me," he said. Not a request. A command.
Her body answered before her mind could argue.
James led her through the dimly lit corridor of the bar, past the murmuring guests, past reason, past restraint. A private lounge. A locked door. A line about to be obliterated.
The second the door clicked shut, James was on her.
His mouth crashed against hers, hot and demanding, years of unspoken hunger igniting in a single, uncontrollable moment. Lexy moaned into his lips, her fingers threading through his hair, pulling him closer, her body pressing against the hard planes of his.
"Tell me to stop," James murmured against her mouth, his breath ragged, his hands gripping her hips.
She didn't.
Instead, she let her head fall back as his lips trailed down her neck, his teeth grazing her pulse, making her body arch against him. His hands roamed, sliding up her thigh, under her dress, finding bare skin and pulling a gasp from her lips.
"Fuck," James groaned, his forehead resting against hers. "You feel too good."
Lexy didn't care about the consequences anymore. Not when his hands were on her, not when he lifted her onto the sleek leather couch, spreading her legs, claiming her in a way that left no room for denial.
Not when she had craved this for so long.
And there was no turning back now