“Sure,” I say, settling onto a tall barstool beside the counter. Water is still running from my hair. Hers too, but she’s not looking at me. I sense a sudden shift between us and cross my arms on the counter in front of me.
“Cream? Sugar?” she asks, moving briskly around the kitchen. The languid sensuality of the past hours has evaporated.
“I take it black,” I reply. She sets a cup in front of me, and our fingers brush. I pull away. The tension I’m feeling from her has me rethinking everything that’s just happened between us. When her eyes meet mine, something flickers there.
“So, did you get me a ring?” she asks abruptly, and I choke on my coffee.
“I… What?” I splutter out.
“Now that we’re fucking, we’ll get married, right?” she says, taking a sip from her mug. I’m pretty sure my eyes bug out. And then she laughs.
“I’m joking, Mateo.” She makes a snorting sound. “Fuck, you should’ve seen your face!”
I shake my head, not quite understanding.
“I’m not expecting anything more from you, Mateo,” she goes on. “I like men…they’re great for sex. And you’re one hell of a good lay. That cock… Lord help me! I could ride that big boy all day. But that’s as far as it goes. I’ve learned my lesson the hard way when it comes to guys. And I don’t trust you lot – no offense. I don’t do relationships or love or any of that shit. You get that?”
“Sure,” I reply, taking a sip of my coffee.
“If I don’t get railed regularly, I can’t focus,” she says casually as she wipes down the counter. “So now that we have that out of the way, we can get down to figuring this shit out.”
“Sounds good,” I answer. “I’m taking you back to Vegas.” I stand abruptly, setting my cup down.
She stares at me for a second. “Wait! You can’t just—”
I don’t hear the rest of her sentence because I’m already heading back to the bedroom. She’s behind me as I retrieve my clothing, scouting around for discarded socks and underwear.
“You can’t just tell me what to do!” she says sharply.
“Yes, I can,” I reply, pulling my pants on. “Your little ‘disappearing act’ was a complete fuck up. I promised Dario and Nikki I’d take care of you. I’m taking you someplace safe.”
“But this place is safe!” she says firmly.
“Oh, really?” I respond, extracting my rumpled shirt from a pile of bedclothes that are still fragrant with our sex. “I found you in under a day. You know I wasn’t the only one looking for you. We have to get out of here. Now!”
“No!” she half-yells. “I know what I’m doing. I can hide out here till things cool down. I can—”
“I’m taking you home!” I bark back. This woman is impossible. Though her mouth is so damn kissable when she’s angry.
But then something flickers in my peripheral vision, and I don’t listen to the next words she yells.
“Get down!” I shout. She frowns at me as if I’ve lost my mind. Her mouth opens again, but I don’t give her a chance to speak.
I dive for her, and we hit the ground just as the first hail of bullets shatters the plate-glass window overlooking the sea view.
Chapter 14
Mateo Ricci
This goddamn woman will be the death of me, I swear it. She’s still fighting me even as we hit the floor. Her nails rake down my bare chest as bullets fly overhead.
“For fuck’s sakes, cut it out!” I hiss beneath my breath, using my weight to pin her down as I raise my head to peer over the top of the bed. Another round of gunfire opens up, and I duck again.
Dammit!
If I hadn’t been so busy staring at her mouth, I would’ve seen the fucker standing just outside the window.
Fucking rookie mistake.
