Excerpt from You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

"Hold up," he said. "I have a—"

Feyi wrapped her legs around his hips. "It's fine."

Reckless.

"But—"

"Shh. Here." She brushed him against her slick self and Milan swore in the back of his throat as his common sense slid away.

"Oh, you're bad," he whispered, pushing into her slowly, committed to their mistake. It was something she was beginning to like about him, the way he made decisions, abandoning uncertainty once the choice was done.

Her mind spun off as he stretched his way in, floating away on sharp pleasure. Feyi bit down on his shoulder as he sank into her and whimpered as he started to pull back out, tortuously slow. Fuck, it had been so long, how had she even made it this far? No wonder Joy kept telling her to get laid.

"Faster," she gasped, and Milan chuckled.

"Ask nicely."

"Oh, you fucking bastard."

He pulled all the way out and Feyi's breath hitched, the ache suddenly roaring and furious. "Ask nicely," he said, his smile wicked. "And I'll give you everything you want."

She needed him not to stop. He didn't understand. There were so many things she was keeping at bay. "Please," she said, giving in. "Please fuck me."

Milan's smile left immediately, and something shadowed took its place, but he gave Feyi what she wanted, slipping back in and burying himself deep with one hard stroke. He slid his arms under her knees, lifting her legs and splaying her open, then pushed even deeper. Sound blossomed from Feyi's throat as he reached up to twist one of her nipple rings.

"Like this?" he asked, watching her cry out, not breaking his gaze.

Feyi put a hand to his neck, circling it lightly, barely touching his skin. It was almost perfect.

"Harder," she ordered, her voice fracturing, and Milan obliged, his hands bruising her, her skirt bunched up with her waistbeads, his jeans caught around his ankles. They both still had their shoes on. Feyi's heels were trembling in the air over his shoulders, and she didn't care how loud she was being, if anyone could hear them above the bass and through the door—because there it was, that blessed blinding white space, that searing nothingness even as she was alive, so clearly alive and in his arms, strangers coming undone, and she was coming around him, begging him not to stop, and Milan kept going, his own voice twisting into low and uncontrolled sounds. When he gasped a warning and made to pull away, Feyi grabbed his hips, keeping him deep inside her and putting her lips by his ear. Men were easy; there were some keys you could use that unlocked them like a quick password.

"Come inside me," she whispered, her voice a silken filthy plea, making it sound like she was begging, desperate for him, and in some ways, she was. Since they were already mad and reckless and human, Milan cursed, his face contorting, his sense lost, and obliged her once more, pushing as deep as he could, growling against the glass and tile and her, their skin slippery with sweat and half of each other. Feyi felt another orgasm wash over her, and she welcomed it in all its illicit carelessness. She didn't call out his name—in that moment she didn't quite remember what it was anyway—but when he kissed her again, she kissed him back, and then they stayed still for a minute, their foreheads pressed against each other's, trying to catch their breath as the air settled around them.

"Sorry," Milan managed to say. "I usually don't… do that." He straightened up and pulled out of her, turning to grab some tissues and zip himself up as Feyi wriggled off the counter and tugged her skirt down.

"It's fine," she said, picking up her blouse.

"I got carried away. I shouldn't have." Milan handed her a wad of tissues and didn't smile. "I always use a condom, usually."

Sure. Feyi didn't believe him for a second; it had been way too easy to convince him not to bother. "I'm on birth control," she said, since they were playing this game. "I wouldn't have… you know. If I wasn't."

Excerpted from You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi. Copyright © 2023 by Akwaeke Emezi. Excerpted by permission of Washington Square Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.