This is the game we play. We skirt around each other with banter, but tonight, it just feels different. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to back down. If Harper wants to go head-to-head, then I’m ready for the challenge.

“Then you better start working on finding something to feast on.” The fire behind her eyes is building. She may not want the love that I’m offering, but she is hungry for the high my touch can give her.

“You are full of sass tonight, aren’t you?” I stand beside her and look down on her beauty. This is not how I wanted tonight to go.

I need to take control.

“Maybe it’s because I know it irritates you.” And she’s right, but I’m not going to agree with her and let her win. If she thinks she can piss me off so it will be easier when she tries to walk away, then she’s wrong. If I only get one more night, then I’ll make sure I show her how I really feel. The hot and heavy she wanted didn’t work this afternoon, so now we do it my way.

“Oh, you can try to annoy me all you like, but that’s not how this night is going to go. It’s your birthday, and you deserve to be treated like the goddess you are. So, relax and let me worship you,” I say, dropping my sleep pants to the floor and stepping out of them. Without any underwear, my cock shows her how much it appreciates seeing her lying in our bed. Reaching for my phone on the side of the bed, I hit the playlist I made for her birthday night, because it’s just another way of telling her how I feel without having to say the words.

The words of “Room for 2” by Benson Boon start to fill the room, and I can see the shift in her. She knows what I’m trying to say to her, and as much as she wants to push me away, her heart is already mine.

She can try to wrap herself up and pretend it isn’t happening, but tonight, I’m laying myself bare for her, and she can make the choice to truly feel it all or not.

As I kneel on the bed beside her, I can see her chest rising to take a deep breath, trying to stay calm, but the closer I get to her, the light sheen of sweat that she always gets when she is turned on starts to cover her body, and that’s all the sign I need.

My fingers start working on the silk pajama shirt, opening one button at a time but in no rush.