He blinked. “You said masturbation. Wait, don’t hit me. I’m letting that sink in.”
It didn’t escape her notice that something hard nudged her backside. Good Lord, the man grew aroused when arguing?
Deacon sighed. “Look, Solene. You don’t need me to tell you how fucking hot you are. You’re also mouthy, angry, and bossy. And that’s sexy as hell. This whatever-it-is between us has been there from day one. Admit it.”
She grudgingly nodded.
“We acted on it. Big deal.”
Maybe for him. For Solene, despite what she’d told her friends publically, sex meant more than just tab A into slot B.
Deacon continued, “For the record, you seduced me. I’m weak. I came in two seconds, like a rocket.”
She couldn’t help smirking. “That’s true. You did.”
“But I more than made up for it by eating you out in the shower.” His smug grin returned. “And baby, you were wet before my mouth was on you. You taste real good. I’m thinking we’ll be doing all that again. Together would be better.”
Her cheeks felt hot. “I don’t think we should.”
“I know. You’re scared of me. I’m sexy and charming. You know I’ll be leaving once this op is over. And you know you’ll fall in love with me and be crushed when I go. I get it, sweetcheeks. It’s okay.” He gave her a seriously superior smile.
She wanted to bite him and contented herself with another slap to his chest.
“Damn it. Cut that out.”
“Oh please. We both know to you that’s a love tap.”
“Well, yeah. But it’s the principle of the thing.” He rubbed at the nonexistent mark on his chest, his handsome smile still too wide.
“You know what? I think you’re right.”
His grin faded. “Huh?”
“I think sex with you will be amazing. Totally hot, combustible. Except like all the others,you’llfall forme. Then you won’t want to leave. You’ll end up retiring on the island like Noel. You’ll try to move in with me, and I’ll have to gently let you down. You know, easily, so you don’t need to spend years of therapy getting over me.”
“Is that right?” He sat up, caging her in his thick arms. That ridge shifted beneath her, now nudging in the right place.Damn.
“You know, I—”
He jerked them both back, laying flush against the couch for a split second before rolling them to the floor. He quickly tucked her under him, so that he covered her. She heard muted thuds, breaking glass, and footsteps on the hardwood floor.
What the—?
“Don’t move,” he whispered into her ear, then leapt off her. He disappeared, and Solene lay still, not sure what to do, her heart racing like a freight train. Just as she’d decided to move, because she felt decidedly unsafe just waiting for danger to find her, she noticed feet moving in her direction.
She heard what sounded like punches, swearing, and a foreign language she didn’t recognize. Deacon remained as silent as a ghost. As she looked around, trying to see more than booted feet and armed, masked intruders facing off against a bare-chested, bare-footed Deacon, the confusion ended. So had the brief altercation.
She hurried to stand, stunned to realize they’d been attacked in her supposedly secure house.
Deacon had a smear of blood on his knuckles and was breathing hard, but otherwise looked as if he’d just left his bed. “Come on.”
She followed him in a rush, glancing over her shoulder to see the three figures on the ground, unmoving. Once in her bedroom, he grabbed her go-bag from the closet. She’d put it together for such a contingency weeks ago. Two changes of clothes, cash, a few toiletries and an extra pair of sneakers.
“Let’s go.”
She didn’t question him except to ask, “Are they dead?” Her words came out in a croak.
“No.” A flat response. From the spare room, he shoved his feet into shoes and shrugged into a sweatshirt, then grabbed a black backpack and another, heavier looking duffle bag. They walked back toward the living room with Deacon leading the way and carrying a gun.
