Sloan took another drink, longer this time.Little circles of pink appeared high on her cheeks, giving her some much-needed color.She licked her lips, and he damn near groaned.“You never answered my question.Why are you doing this?”
Jude finished his drink.“I was a dick before for no reason.You caught me off guard.So I’m sorry.”
“You don’t like me.”She smoothed back her dark hair.“You haven’t since we met.”
“I thought you were breaking into my house.I got a little territorial.”
“A little?”Sloan shook her head and drank more.“I don’t think there’s a realm on earth where manhandling me on your front porch in the dark could be qualified as a little.”
He couldn’t very well tell her that he thought she might be one of his targets, wandered into his lair.Lair?Dramatic to the very end.Jude poured more vodka over his ice, not bothering with the juice this time.
She watched him drink it, her gaze lingering on his mouth.It wouldn’t take much.He could touch her in some innocent way, lower his voice so she’d lean close, cup the back of her neck and…
Fuck.Jude finished his drink and set it on the counter.“Thanks for the drink.We should do it again sometime.”And then he walked out before he could talk himself out of it.
Or into a whole different set of mistakes.
Chapter Three
Sloan finished her drink, the alcohol buoying her and making her feel ten feet tall.As tall as Jude.She wandered over to lock the back door, but hesitated.She might not be good at the flirting game, but she wasn’t stupid.He wanted her.He might be holding back for unknown reasons, but he was interested.
The question remained…Was she?
She laughed softly.The man was so overwhelming, she wouldn’t know what to do with him even if she was interested—and she was.He was just sobig, and that hair should have been ridiculous, but it gave him the air of a wild thing that could never be tamed.In truth, they couldn’t be more opposite.
Not to mention she didn’t know a single thing about him.
He’d charged in here, taken control of the situation, made her a delicious drink, and charged back out into the night.She rested her forehead against the cool wood of the door.If she were braver, she’d follow him home.She’d flirt.She’d issue an invitation that couldn’t be misinterpreted…
And he’d say no just like he did to the initial offer for drinks.
Sloan opened her eyes and straightened.“The only reason he came over was because he pitied me.”Call her naive, but she didn’t want her first time with a man to be because he felt sorry for her.
So she turned the deadbolt, and then did her normal circuit of the house to ensure everything was closed and locked.Satisfied and feeling a little silly—what were the odds that someone would choosethishouse to break into?—Sloan shook her head.She knew better.She might have left the past and the dangers of Boston behind, but that didn’t mean she should be careless.
Someone would be coming for her.It was only a matter of time.She just hoped that Teague had hidden her well enough, and that she could keep under the radar on her end as well.
She needed to stay out of trouble, and Jude had trouble written all over him.
Stripping, she allowed herself to imagine, just for a moment, what it would have been like if he’d stayed.He’d take control in the bedroom the same way he had over drinks.There was no doubt about that.Sloan closed her eyes and ran her hands down her body, imagining it was his touch.Her fingers stopped just north of the band of her panties.
I shouldn’t.
But she wanted to.
She slipped beneath the covers and took off her underwear.She never slept naked, and it felt downright decadent to have the silky sheets rubbing against her nipples with every breath.Would he kiss her there?Or even between her legs?
She closed her eyes again, refusing to feel self-conscious as she ran her hand down her stomach to stroke herself between her thighs.She might be thinking of him, but no one had to know.It was her private little fantasy, something that would never happen in the real world.
Her body was already primed, and she spread her wetness up and over her clit, nearly gasping with the shock of pleasure the move brought.She’d masturbated before, but there was something just naughty about doing it while visualizing the man who lived next door.If she concentrated, she could almost feel his whiskers against her inner thigh, his tongue following the path her finger traced.Her body tightened, the pleasure so acute, it almost hurt.Sloan arched her back, a moan slipping free despite herself.Her orgasm stole her breath, but she managed to whisper Jude’s name as she came.
What in God’s name was I thinking?
She opened her eyes, feeling so incredibly foolish.“It doesn’t matter, because it’s just pretend.It won’t ever happen.”Something like disappointment banged inside her, but she ignored it.She had a life here, a life that she’d chosen for herself.She had nothing to be ashamed of.She smiled to herself and rolled over, pulling the covers up to her neck.Tomorrow would come soon enough.She’d get up with the sun and attend yoga, and then she’d go to her shift at the diner.After?Well, maybe she’d give cooking another shot.
Things were finally looking up.
***
