Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 93301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
“God, what does that say about us?” she asked.
“Huh?” My eyes were over her shoulder. There was a group of guys now standing right behind her, and I didn’t like the way they were staring at her. Elbowing each other. Puffing up their chests. It was almost like they were daring one another to approach her. One of them rolled his shoulders and faced her. His arm came up, like he was about to tap her on the shoulder.
She looked up at me. “I mean why do you think we both—”
But before she could finish what she was saying, I grabbed her by the back of the neck and crushed my mouth to hers. A soft, surprised noise came from the back of her throat. I spun her so her back was to the wall, making it impossible for the guy to touch her or even see her. If he wanted to know if she was Pixie Hart, he was going to have to tap my shoulder.
He didn’t.
I kept kissing her.
Five seconds went by. Then ten.
I lifted my head, our lips parting. The guy had obviously changed his mind. The threat was gone. There was no reason to kiss her again.
I did it anyway.
In fact, I changed the angle of my head to go deeper, opened my mouth a little wider, eased my tongue between her lips. I tightened my grip on the back of her neck, holding her to me. I kissed her until I had to take a breath, and when I tore my lips from hers, I swear her knees buckled a little.
“Xander,” she whispered. “What the hell?”
Those green eyes were looking up at me with wonder and confusion, but no anger—I had the feeling I could take her hand, take her home, take it all. And goddamn, I wanted to.
But I couldn’t.
“Sorry.” I dropped my hand from her neck and glanced over my shoulder. “There was a guy about to tap your shoulder. I didn’t want him talking to you.”
“Oh.” She struggled to put it together. “So—so that was—that kiss was fake? It was like . . . a shield?”
Our mouths were still impossibly close. My eyes dropped to her lips. “Yes.”
It wasn’t a total lie—the first kiss had been a shield.
The second? That was a little more difficult to explain.
I decided not to try. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
NINE
kelly
He kissed me.
On the silent drive home, those three words kept running through my mind.
He kissed me. He kissed me. He kissed me.
He’d done more than that, actually. He’d stunned me. Stopped my breath. Spiked my pulse. Lit a fuse in me.
And I’d liked it.
Sure, we’d gotten off to a rough start yesterday, but by this afternoon it had felt like the last layer of ice had thawed. We’d actually warmed to each other. I liked hearing about his family and his bar. I liked that he took his job to protect me so seriously. I liked looking at him, the way it made my stomach go a little jumpy. Sure, he had an ego the size of Texas and issued his opinions like they were gospel, but he made me laugh. He made me feel safe.
And when he’d kissed me, I’d felt something real.
Had it really been just for show? I mean, maybe the first kiss was a panic move. Maybe he honestly hadn’t seen any other way to safeguard my identity.
But . . . twice?
And that second time, he’d kissed me like he meant it—hard and deep. The man put his tongue in my mouth.
So maybe it was possible both things were true. Maybe he’d kissed me once in order to protect me, but he did it again because he liked it.
Then again, maybe that was wishful thinking on my part.
I glanced over at him. He drove with one hand on the wheel, the other on the back of his neck. His bicep bulged inside the sleeve of his black T-shirt, sending a current of desire rippling through me. I wished there was a way I could just ask him for the truth—was he into me that way or not?
But of course, I couldn’t.
I closed my eyes and tipped my head back, imagining what it would be like if we were just a regular couple on our way home from a Friday night date. Would he take my hand as he drove? Maybe I’d reach over and put a hand on his thigh. Tip my head onto his shoulder. And when we got home, we’d undress each other. Slip beneath the sheets. Cling together in the dark. I wondered what it would feel like to be held in those big, strong arms. Cradled against that hot, muscular body. Penetrated by his huge, hard—
“Kelly,” he whispered.
That’s when I realized we’d arrived at the cabin and the engine was off. Just to mess with him, I didn’t open my eyes.