“You’re not going anywhere.” His deep voice is firm and gruff.
Finally.
Turning to face him, I lean against the counter across from him. I blow over the top of my coffee and take a sip, my eyes meeting his. “Why was I in your bed? Did anything happen?”
He crosses the space between us and cages me in, his hands on the counter on each side of me. His safe, familiar heat and his scent wrap around me, my heart high-fiving my ribs with each beat.
Keeping space between us, he bends to bring his dark eyes level with mine, staring intently. “Somnophilia’s not my thing, I don’t like the toothbrushes the dentist gives me at my checkup, so I usually toss them in a drawer in case they’re needed, I don’t bring women back to my home, that fucking dress is in the garbage because you’re never wearing it again, I like that you’re wearing my clothes, and if anyone is driving you anywhere it’s going to be me.”
Oh my.
My heart is rattling a hundred miles an hour against my ribs as relief washes over me, but I keep my face indifferent as I stare into his eyes and take another sip of my coffee. “Where are my panties? And why was I in your bed?”
His eyes volley between mine. “After we got back here, you had to pee, and you thought it was funny to stuff the little scrap of lace you call panties into my pants pocket. You’re not getting them back, by the way. And you were in my bed because I wanted to make sure you didn’t vomit again in your sleep.”
My chest warms at the thought of him watching over me to make sure I’m okay. I fake an intentionally indifferent small shoulder shrug of acceptance while keeping my expression blank.
It’s fuzzy, but I remember leaning against his chest as hewalked me across the hall and I hooked my fingers over the pocket of his pants to push my thong in while telling him he could have a souvenir. I think he may have sat on the edge of the tub as I peed to make sure I didn’t fall over. My cheeks flush red, but I try to ignore my embarrassment and take another sip.
One side of his lips twitches. “You remember that, huh?”
Taking another sip, holding his intense eye contact, I say, “I plead the fifth.” With a sigh, I cut my eyes over his head. “Did you take my clothes off?”
With a slow blink, I lower my eyes when I realize he’s not going to answer me until I look at him.
“Yes, I changed you out of that fucking dress.” His eyes narrow. “That wasn’t even a dress, it was an invitation, and the only person you’ll be inviting is me.”
A flutter deep in the pit of my stomach warms my center, and I continue staring at him. “Is that so?”
He lifts his eyebrows like he’s daring me to argue. “Yes.”
The hairs on my arm prick to attention as that warmth travels over my skin, heating every inch of my body.
Keeping the cup partly in front of my face as a shield, I remember what started all this in the first place. “If I recall, you want me to sit on the sidelines while you put work first.”
His eyes light up as he realizes something and lifts his head. “That’s what the baseball references were about.”
My heart beats harder, and I take a deep breath to steel myself for what I’m about to say. “I’m sorry, Rhys, but I won’t be second to work, or friends, or hobbies. My father always put my mother first before everything, and I won’t settle for less than that.”
With a small sigh, I look to the side and swallow the lump that is trying to form because it’s possible that he’ll be taking me home soon. “It’s only fair that you know that at the start. If it’s not something you can do, then I would like to go home.”Trying to hide my feelings, I look down into my coffee.
“Hey.” His voice is soft, and he lets go of the counter with one hand and pushes a strand of wayward hair behind my ear as he waits for me to lift my eyes back up. “I told myself the responsible thing would be to shift all of my focus to work, but after you left, all I could think about was you. You may be a distraction, but you’re also the most beautiful thing that’s ever happened to me.” He takes a deep breath, and the air from his nose tickles my chin. “I can do that, Kinley. I want to and will do that for you.”
A sigh of relief escapes my chest as tears prick my eyes. “Okay.”
He cups my cheek, his thumb sliding across my skin. “We need to get something else straight right now before I show you how I really feel about you.”
The heat traveling over my body is warming my skin to the point of combustion, and my heart is fluttering in my chest. With a swallow, all I can say is, “Okay.”
Taking the cup from my hands, he sets it on the counter to the side as he steps closer. My head tips back as the heat of his body wraps around me. “I will never send someone else to get you. I don’t care how much you’ve managed to piss me off or how pissed off you are at me. I will always come get you.”
Holy shit.
The hand on the counter wraps around my back, and my stomach presses against his hard length, sending all sorts of tingles right to my clit, and my arousal makes me slick.
His other hand grasps my jaw as he holds my eyes captive. “I will never lie to you. If I tell you I’ll protect you, I will fucking protect you.”
My nipples are peaked like hard pebbles and rubbing against his ribs. Sliding my hands up his back, my fingers travel across the hard planes and dips of his muscles.
