He tugged on her hair, angling her head so he could drive the kiss deeper. He was a f**king goner. Maybe he could’ve stopped it—if she didn’t taste so good, if her body wasn’t so soft and warm, if her throaty moans weren’t vibrating against his lips. But stopping was impossible now, not when she kept swirling her hungry little tongue over his and riding his thigh with zero abandon.
His mouth stayed locked with hers, even as he lowered his hand to his zipper. Goddamn it, he had to be inside her. Right f**king now—
“Uh, boss?”
The male voice sliced into his ear like an electric current and promptly jump-started his brain.
He tore his lips away from Skyler’s. Breathing hard, trying to recover from that mind-blowing kiss.
“Shit,” he mumbled, then sucked in another breath and touched his ear. “What is it, Jerry?”
Skyler blinked. “Huh?”
He gestured to his earpiece, then focused on the amused voice of the man who monitored the club’s security booth. “Reed wants to know if we should shut off camera two. You know, for privacy.”
Aw hell.
Gage stifled a curse, his gaze moving to the camera mounted right above the staff entrance. The blinking red light was practically waving at him, a reminder that even though they were alone in the alley, they weren’t actually alone.
“We don’t mind watching, though,” another voice piped up, this one belonging to Reed Miller, Gage’s best friend and one of Sin’s co-owners.
Rather than answer, Gage shifted around and gave his audience the finger.
Then he shut off the feed and turned to Skyler, whose face still held the flush of arousal. “Go inside and find your date. Get him to drive you home.”
“No.”
The fortitude in her eyes was dangerous. And she still hadn’t fixed her dress. It was bunched around her waist, revealing firm thighs and pale skin and a perfect view of her panties. They were red, just like the shoes, and so skimpy his mouth went dry, because he knew it would take no effort at all to rip them off her. With his teeth.
He fought to speak past the lust clogging his throat. “The fantasy isn’t gonna play out, Skyler. I’m not the right man for the job.”
She stepped close and pressed her palm over his groin, cupping his erection with a boldness that surprised him. “I don’t know…I think you might be exactly the right man.”
He thrust into her hand. Just once, just one second of contact, before he eased out of her grip and tipped his head at the camera. “Do you really want to put on a show for my partners? Because that’s what we’re doing.”
“Partners?”
“I’m co-owner of this joint. And even though my behavior these last ten minutes might say otherwise, I don’t make it a habit of screwing around on the job.” He paused meaningfully. “And you don’t strike me as the kind of girl who screws around at all.”
She had the nerve to smirk at him. “I’m not a virgin, if that’s what you’re implying.”
“I’m not implying anything.” He smothered his growing aggravation. Christ, the one time he tried acting like a gentleman, and look where it got him. “I don’t know you, but I’m pretty sure you don’t go around doing strangers in public. I have no clue why you decided to do it tonight—maybe it’s that ass**le Mick, maybe you had too much to drink. But the best thing for you to do right now is go home, Skyler.”
“Why do men always assume they know what’s best for a woman?” she demanded. “And FYI? I didn’t drink anything but water tonight, and I was over Mick about five minutes after he picked me up. You want to know why I’m out here with you? Because I was attracted to you and decided to act on it. For once in my life I was acting on impulse, not thinking about consequences or overanalyzing things.” Her gaze sharpened as she studied him. “You, on the other hand, you’re all about impulse, aren’t you? You strike me as a man of action.” There was a beat. “I’m kind of surprised you wimped out at the thought of getting busy in front of a camera.”
He clenched his teeth. “I didn’t wimp out.”
“Really? Are we having sex right now?” Another beat. “Nope, I didn’t think so.”
She finally straightened her dress, much to his overwhelming relief. Those red panties had come dangerously close to stealing his common sense again.
Gage sighed. “You really should go.”
“Oh, I will. The moment’s over, anyway.” Her blue eyes flickered with something that made him uneasy. “What would you do if I came back tomorrow night?”
A groan lodged in his throat. He was trying to do the honorable thing, to save her from the regrets she’d undoubtedly have after sleeping with a total stranger, but the infuriating woman didn’t seem at all appreciative of his caution.
“You shouldn’t do that,” he said in a low voice.
“Why not?”
“Because you’re right. I’m impulsive, and I don’t usually show much restraint. No matter what you think, stopping this, stopping what we were about to do, was damn hard for me.”
She glanced at the bulge in his pants. “I can see that.”
Gage grasped her chin, forcing her gaze away from his aching c**k and up at his face. “Don’t tempt me, all right? You’re beautiful, Skyler. Beautiful and sexy and so goddamn tempting. If you come back, I won’t be able to control myself next time.”