Tears welled up in my eyes and threatened to fall, probably enough to ruin my carefully applied makeup. What is going on with me? I never cry. I have not cried in years, and I'd rather face the public completely naked than to let anyone see me shed a tear. I prefer to be the one to make others cry.

I had hardened my heart over the years. It was the only way to survive in a cutthroat man's world. It was imperative that I not be seen as soft, otherwise, people may see that as a sign of weakness and think they could take advantage of, or discredit me. Yet here was this man: I've known and crushed on him for years. He's sweet and ridiculously cute, and he's suddenly making me feel things that I've always been afraid of. He's threatening to knock my walls down. He's making me soft. He has me wanting to be a better person and less of a bitch, and at this moment I am powerless to resist.

Yes, the whole evening was maybe a little cheesy...cheesy in a wonderful, I love cheese so much I'd like extra please, kind of cheesy. He'd gone out of his way to do all of these amazing things that I had missed out on while growing up in a sheltered, although lavish upbringing. He had given me something that all of my grandfather's billions could not buy.

It may be ten years late, but I was finally going to prom.

I blinked back my tears and smiled. "I would love to go to prom with you Ryan." I then held out my hand so he could slide the corsage with the attached wrist band onto my wrist. It was beautiful. Simple, yet elegant with 3 red roses and white babies' breath.

Then, he did something I did not think men did anymore: he lifted my hand to his lips and placed a soft kiss on the back of it. I was literally swooning by this point.

"Would you like to dance?" He asked, my hand still in his, and all I could do was nod, due to the huge lump in my throat.

He picked up a remote from the coffee table and after pressing a button, the room filled with the sultry sound of a Riley Green song.

Tonight, I ain't bringin' no wine
Tonight, I ain't bringin' no roses
Talkin' would take too much time, I think I just better show you
Just turn the lights down, let's get right down to it
As soon as I walk in the door
I don't wanna be out of line, but girl, I can't wait anymore

Well damn. This might be the shortest prom ever because he went and chose one of the sexiest songs ever for our first dance.

I melted into his embrace, letting the moment and the words of the song consume me as we swayed across the hardwood floor of the living room, the fairy lights catching his eyes making them sparkle and highlighting the swirl of blue, green and tiny flecks of gold.

I want you in the worst way, my hands are needin' your hips
Want the first taste of whiskey to be off your lips
So close all the blinds, lock all the doors
Put away anything that'll break
Baby, I need you tonight
Let's see how much love we can make
I want you in the worst way

Oh he's so not playing fair.

"Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight? I mean, you always look beautiful, but tonight...you look even more beautiful. Stunning." He said, sounding almost shy.

"Mr. Blaney, if you think all of this flattery will get you into my panties tonight, you could not be more mistaken." I teasingly scolded him.

"Are you playing hard to get Ms. Davenport?" He teased me back.

"Not at all. It's just...I'm not wearing any panties." I finished with a smirk. It was true. My dress was so fitted that even a thong was visible. So because of that, I decided to go without.

I could hear his sharp intake of breath over my admission and see his Adam's Apple bob. He was so easy to tempt, but then again, so was I when he was the one doing the tempting.

The current song ended, only to be replaced with yet another smoldering Riley Green tune.

These boots can't wait to get kicked off on the front porch
Me and you ain't gonna make it very far past the front door
That record's been waiting on a needle
That whiskey's been waiting on a glass
And I been running out of patience, pedal down racing
I need to get to you fast

Not playing fair at all.

I was not going to cut my ten year late prom short after less than two songs, so I quickly looked around the room for something I could use as a distraction, and caught sight of the dog bed next to the fireplace.

"Where is your dog Ryan? I know you used to bring him to the track all the time, but I haven't seen him yet this season." I asked.

"He's at Erin's place right now. I didn't want him to jump on you and mess up your dress. He's been staying with Erin during the race weekends too because, well...I've been busy with you and I didn't know how you feel about dogs." He explained.

How could he be so damn sweet and considerate?

"I like dogs, although I have not had one since I was little, but I did kind of bond with Alex's dog during our situationship. Finn is the only thing I miss about Alex." I explained, then quickly regretted what I had just said.

Why did I bring up Alex? For being so smart, that was about the stupidest thing that could have come out of my mouth. If both of my hands weren't so busy touching Ryan, I would have slapped myself. I could just ignore my word vomit and hope Ryan didn't think anything of it, but judging by the look on his face, the mention of Alex's name did have an effect on him, so for the sake of this evening that Ryan had so sweetly and carefully planned, I should address the elephant in the room and send him on his way.

"Ryan...I'm so sorry. I wasn't even thinking. I never should have mentioned his name. I was thinking about his dog, not him." I said as sincerely as I could muster.

"Do you swear to me that you no longer have feelings for Alex?" Ryan asked, and there was a bit of an edge to his voice. Did I just fuck up our evening?

"No." I adamantly denied. "The only thing I feel for Alex is annoyance from a professional standpoint because he, along with two of my other drivers, test my patience daily. I really am sorry his name came up, because I was thinking of Finn, not him. This is our night. I don't want to talk about "he whose name shall not be mentioned" again, my other drivers, work or anything else that does not involve you and me. I do however want to meet your dog officially, so I do hope you will start bringing him to the track again. Maybe now that Erin knows about us, we could start hanging out here more instead of my place all the time." I replied in a desperate attempt to smooth over the whole situation.

"Okay. Obviously not this coming weekend since I'm staying in a hotel, but when we are done with the west coast, I'll start bringing him to the track. I'm sure he's going to love you." He beamed at me.

Whew. Just like that, the tense moment was over. Saved.

"I was thinking this weekend, we could stay together. I have our usual suites already booked, but I never canceled my grandfathers. They are adjourning suites, so you are welcome to take it. It'll make sneaking around a lot easier." I offered, then traced my index finger along his jawline to further tempt him.

"I like the way you think." He nearly whispered, his lips inches from mine, so close I that I could feel his breath, yet not close enough. Although I tried to tune out the music, I could still hear the sexy, sultry words pouring out of the speakers:

These hands, nah, they can't seem to wait to be all over you
And these lips, they been waiting on a taste of a drink or two
I bet the boss'll be waiting in the morning, yeah
'Cause I'll be rolling in late
And the world outside this bedroom is just gonna have to wait
So hurry on up and slow it on down
Watching that clock, but it's watching us now
Been losing my mind like you're losing that dress
Think it's 'bout time we do what we do best
'Cause I've been waiting all day
To be up all night long, loving you
Loving you

Damn you Riley Green and your sexy ass songs.

I closed the very small distance between us, pressing my lips to his. It only took the slightest bit of pressure for him to yield to me and I was tasting the traces of sweet champagne in his lips and tongue. The champagne and that unique taste that was just Ryan. My favorite taste in the world. Not so long ago, I joked to myself about how I wished that I could bottle that taste and keep it all to myself. Now however, there was no need to do that. I had a never ending supply of it standing right before me, kissing me senseless.

I moaned into the kiss as our tongues tangled together and felt my insides twist just as heatedly. It felt like flames licking between my thighs and into my core. I know if I were wearing panties, they would either be soaked, or would have melted right off of my body.

He angled my head, taking control from me, and deepened the kiss. Now my head was swirling with incoherent thoughts. I doubt I could even remember my own name at this point. The power shift increased even more as he took further control from me and his tongue invaded my entire mouth. Who cares? He can have full control as long as he keeps kissing me like this.

I wasn't aware of my zipper sliding down until I felt cool air hit my back. So much for dragging out this prom. I could vaguely hear a different song playing, but could not tell you who or what it was because the coolness in my bare back was now being replaced by sheer warmth as his hands splayed across my skin. Everywhere he touched left an imprint of heat, almost as if my skin was doused in warm water or covered by a heated blanket.

He pulled away for a brief moment to allow both of us to catch our breaths, and I immediately missed the connection. I licked my lips to try and catch that taste again to hold me over until his lips were back on mine. His eyes darted to my lips and tongue and his gaze turned hungry with the ocean colored irises turning a shade darker. I could tell he was turned on just from that tiny gesture.

"You know, I heard that for prom, a lot of couples rent hotel rooms for the night..." I said suggestively, letting my sentence trail off.

"I heard that too. In fact. I got a room. Would you like to see it?" He asked, quite eagerly if I'm being honest.

"I would love to." I grinned, then let him take my hand to lead me upstairs.

Best. Prom. Ever!!!

A/N: Just a short note to apologize to everyone for slacking so much on this story. Motivation is so hard to come by sometimes thanks to real life. I'm going to do my best to try and update more frequently. Thanks to everyone that has stuck around.

XOXO 💋