Spycraft Academy B. Miles (new ebook reader txt) 📖

back into her. His tongue met hers in an almost violent clash, their teeth scraping against one another. It was frenzied, uncontrolled, and all Sam could think about was the sight of her naked in his bed, her face full of the same hunger that consumed him.

"Oh!" Mattie gasped against his lips and Sam was vaguely aware of her legs moving, but he didn't pay attention until she was straddling his lap, squeezing his hips with her knees and pressing her center against the too-hard bulge in his pants.

She broke the kiss and latched onto his neck, nipping and sucking at his skin and sending gooseflesh rolling down his arms. His nerves were on fire, every little touch like a stroke to the very essence of his being, every little sway of her hips driving him further into a dark place where words and expectations didn't matter, only taste and touch and mad need.

Mattie swiveled her hips and the material of Sam's pants dragged against him, the pressure in his groin rising like it was being sucked from him and into the woman rubbing herself against his lap.

Sam hissed when she pressed down harder. He didn't realize his eyes were closed until they flew open and locked onto a figure standing right there in the middle of the hall.

Mattie stopped long enough to lean away and look at him. Sam's blood flagged and spread into his body again, like rations given to each appendage.

He could have yelled at Drina right then. Mattie glanced over her shoulder and when she saw who it was, she quickly scrambled off of Sam's lap.

"Oh, please, don't mind me." Drina flicked her wrist as if she walked in on people like this all the time. She probably did.

Any electricity building between Sam and Mattie was quickly snuffed, but the embers still remained. Sam was very aware of Mattie, of her proximity, the heat of her body, and how close his bedroom door was.

"Drina," Mattie huffed, "did you need something?"

"No, but I thought you did." She inspected her neatly shaped nails. "When I woke up and you were gone, I got a little worried considering what Sam did to Delcan today. I figured if somebody had dragged you off, I'd come to the rescue."

Something was off with her. She didn't look at either of them when she spoke. Sam watched her carefully and noted that whenever she was done inspecting her nails, instead of giving them her attention, she only looked at the other hand.

Then it hit him.

She came to sabotage him because of that stupid bet. Damn her. Well, the bet was never a serious one to begin with, so she could forget about playing a game with Sam and Mattie, not when he was so close to figuring out what they were to one another.

"But since you don't actually need me, I'm going back to bed." She flicked her hair over her shoulder and finally looked at them. Her voice was cheerful, but her cheeky grin didn't meet her eyes.

"Next time, Mattie, leave a note so I don't think you're being brutally murdered." With that, she turned on her heel and sashayed away. Sam watched her and took note of her gait. When she was pretending to be interested in people, she walked away slowly, probably so any onlookers could drool after the sway of her heart-shaped backside. When she wasn't pretending anything, she walked a little quicker than Mattie, but not so fast that it was noticeable. Right now, though, she was walking at a brisk clip before she disappeared behind the door of her shared room.

Mattie sighed and scratched the back of her head, her eyes darting to his. "We probably shouldn't be doing this where people can watch us at their leisure."

Was she implying they find a room?

She leaned toward him and rested her forehead against his, closing her eyes with a soft sigh. "I love you, you know."

Sam opened his mouth to say it back, something they've said to one another before that never had any connotations, but it did now.

He watched her face, clear of tension and utterly relaxed. She could have been sleeping. Did she mean 'I love you' like she used to mean it, or 'I love you and want to be with you'?

It didn't matter. He knew what kind of love he had. Both. And if she didn't, if she meant the sort of love people shared when they grew up together and fought through the slog of life side by side, then that was fine. She didn't need to love him like he loved her in order for him to love her to begin with.

He closed his eyes. "I love you too," he breathed.

Mattie brushed her nose against his before leaning away from him. Sam's eyes fluttered open and he gave her a questioning frown.

"I love you, but we can't be in this alone. I was serious earlier. We need more people in the crew. If we do this . . . if this turns into a romantic . . . thing, then we could isolate ourselves and all we'd have is each other. If Delcan gets it in his head . . ."

She huffed and looked out of the window.

A lot of things were going on in his mind. Crews. Delcan. Romance. It was unspoken, but it was there—she wanted to be with him. Sam wasn't worried about what threats the future held, not at that moment.

He cupped her jaw tenderly and turned her head to look at him. He brushed his thumb along her chin. "None of that will happen."

Sam drew her in and she let him until she was pressing into his lips. She broke the kiss all too soon, "Promise?"

"Promise."

She grinned and swiped at his bottom lip with her tongue, then she licked the tip of his nose and giggled when he jumped back.

Mattie was on her feet before he could get her back, her sheer shirt still bathed in soft