Every Time He Leaves by Anna Karington
Publication date: September 25th 2015
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Synopsis:I’m different now. I won’t be that girl again. I’m in control. I’m the one who’s going to leave him wishing he’d given me his everything when he had the chance…
Lana Raeven and Jarek Dean shared a night of passion, but the next morning, she woke up alone. Nine years later, Lana works as a successful event coordinator for a prestigious company. Bold and confident in every area but love, she hasn’t ever recovered from Jarek’s abandonment. However, a chance encounter with her former lover grants her an opportunity to take back her power.
Rather than chastising him for his cruelty, she plays unfazed and invites him back into her life. Using her ingenuity and sensuality as weapons, she draws him in with the intention of destroying him as he once destroyed her. But her plan for revenge isn’t as simple as she initially believed, for the more time she spends with Jarek, the more she’s reminded of why she loved him. And if she isn’t careful, she could lose him all over again.
Every Time He Leaves (Excerpt #1)
Anna Karington
How can I be doing this? Why would I even entertain this after all he's done?
But I deserve it. I deserve another night...and yet, I worry it'll just leave me wanting more, as it did so long ago.
I'm different now. I won't be that girl again. I'm in control. I'm the one who's going to leave him wishing he'd given me his everything when he had the chance.
“I thought you'd...” he begins, and I can tell by the look in his eyes he wants to take me back to that night, and I don't want to go. “...be upset about—”
I turn back to him and rest my lower back against the kitchen island. “The past is the past.”
Though I know I can't just toss it off like I wasn't upset. Jarek will know it's an act, so I'm more careful in my approach as I lean back against the island, pushing my hip forward to stress my form. I'm not Kelsey, but if even half the chemistry of our past still lingers, my tricks will be as effective as they once were.
“I can't say I was ecstatic,” I say with a forced chuckle. “It wasn't the most noble of exits, and I was pretty mad at you for a while after. But what else should I have expected? I was a kid. We were both kids. Stupid kids.”
“Yeah,” he says, a trite acknowledgment of his behavior. You hurt me so much. How can't you see that? How can't you read my thoughts and see the pain I still feel because of what you did? The Jarek I knew could have read that...would have seen how much I'm falling apart inside right now. He would have saved me from the pain. Maybe that version of him only existed in my imagination.
“That was a long time ago, though,” I say. “I'm not sure I can even remember the details.” I think I'm doing a good job, but I worry I'm trying too hard. He steps across the living area carpet, onto the tile. The click of his shoes isn't as loud as my heels—a slow, steady tap, emphasizing how fast my heart is racing right now.
As he grows nearer, I have to look up to see him. Our positions leave me feeling submissive. I want to fall into his arms and let him do with my body as he pleases, because I know exactly how satisfying it can be, but I have to fight this primal urge.
At least for now.
“Regardless,” he says, “it was a shitty thing to do.”
“I've done plenty of shitty things since then, so I can't claim to be an innocent.”
I haven't done anything nearly as cruel to another person as what he did to me. But tonight...I just want to lose myself in this. I can face the regret tomorrow. I can handle that insurmountable pain another time—not now.
He approaches me and caresses his thumb against my cheek. It's the way I remember him touching me before our last experience. It almost does me in, but he doesn't get to be in charge. I leap at him, pressing my lips against his, cupping my hand around his neck, pulling him close.
He pushes me away.
Will he stop this? Will he reject me? Maybe it would be better if he did. That might offer me the closure I desperately seek. Give that to me, Jarek. Deny me right here.
“Do you really want to do this?” he asks, reminding me of a similar sentiment he expressed last time. I attempt to vanquish it from my thoughts.
My conscience begs me to reconsider what I'm doing. That's the weak child within me. She doesn't have a right to speak right now. She doesn't have a right to vocalize her opinion when her childishness has only caused me heartache. She's not in control of this moment. And neither is he.
“Jarek, Jarek, Jarek,” I say. “I'm not the girl you once knew.” I kiss him again, the way I would a guy I'd picked up for the night. However, I can't deny the warmth of his lips and breath, the sensation that spreads through me as our flesh meets. He wraps his arms around me. I trust I won't have any problem getting him to fall into my trap—to watch me take it, enjoy it, and walk away. Regardless of how much it will hurt tomorrow, it'll help knowing I had a moment where he didn't leave me like I meant nothing to him. Not this time. Never again, Jarek.
AUTHOR BIO:(no author photo)Anna is from Atlanta, Georgia. In her spare time, she enjoys reading and writing love stories.
Anna Karington is a pseudonym and fictitious persona.Author links:
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