“Out,” Knox said, opening the door in a not so subtle hint.“Love you all, but you gotta go.”
They teased him mercilessly on the way out, saying, “While you stay?”and “Why such a rush?”and “About time you settled down.”
Laylee had no idea how to react to that last comment.Settle down?She’d barely kissed the man!Never mind that she’d known him for a while now, liked him a lot—okay, more than a lot—and trusted him completely.Trust was a biggie for her, especially because she’d recently been burned.Still, they were missing a few steps in the relationship department.No date, only a minimum of kissing, and no sex.
She really wanted to remedy the sex part tonight.
Actually, any minute now.
Maybelline and Tank wanted to see everyone off.It had been quite the day for them, too.Laylee scooped up Tank before the little rodent could slip out, but she let Maybelline do her thing.The big lug never ran off, and her biggest crime was her slobbery kisses.Not really an awful thing at all.
Because everyone was a lover of animals, they took turns bidding the dogs good night and then, finally, Knox closed and locked the door.
He turned to face her, his gaze watchful, his hands loose at his sides.For several seconds they were both silent until Tank began to squirm.Knox asked, “Do you think they need to go out one last time?”
Tank yapped and Maybelline headed for the back door.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”Gently, Knox took the dog from her.“While I take care of this, why don’t you …” He gestured toward the hall.“Do whatever you need to do?”
“Right.”Unable to think of what she had to do, but certain there was something, she pivoted away.Though she didn’t look back, she heard Knox chuckle.
In the bathroom, she looked around, spotted her toothbrush, and practically jumped on it.It struck her that she was nervous when she was never nervous with men.Good experiences, bad experiences, memorable and forgettable—she’d had them all.So why was her pulse racing and her breath coming fast?
Sudden insight hit her: With other guys, she’d been in control.With Knox, things kept getting turned around and it was … exciting.How was she to know she’d like that so much when men usually let her have her way?
But she did.Or at least, she did with Knox.
Knowing the dogs wouldn’t take long this time of night, she quickly brushed her teeth, removed the ruined remnants of her makeup, and brushed her hair.She thought about changing her clothes but then decided against it.
She wanted Knox to undress her.
And she wanted to undress him.
When Knox looked past the open bathroom door, Laylee was still standing there daydreaming.“Oh.Hi.”
Smile curling, he said softly, “The dogs bedded down in the kitchen.Is that where they sleep?”
She answered just as quietly.“Usually.As long as it’s not storming.Or I’m not up reading or watching TV.”Or just being restless.“You turned out the lights and locked the doors?”
“Yeah.”He reached out and caught her hand, bringing her forward into delicious contact with his body.“You okay?”
“Anxious.”Nuzzling her nose into his neck, she breathed in the scent of his warm skin mixed with the humid outdoor air thatclung to him.Everything in her tingled.Oh, man, she had it bad.“Let’s get this show on the road.”
She tried to urge him along, but Knox didn’t budge, and when she glanced at his face, it was to see a hot glimmer in his dark eyes and a slight, sexy tilt to his mouth.The tingles sparked into a heat wave.Seriously, she couldn’t wait a second more.
CHAPTER6
Knox loved the way Laylee tried to charge through life—but he wouldn’t let her rush him, not with this.Not with her.
It seemed like a good idea to take all his slow, smoldering intentions to the bedroom behind a closed door, before the dogs decided to investigate the whispers.That thought made him frown slightly.
He took the lead, now knowing which room she used, and once he was inside, he saw that she still hadn’t tidied up.Clothes were stacked and strewn over several surfaces.A bra on a chair.Skinny jeans on the floor.Two—no three—pairs of sandals kicked here and there.A sheer sexy blouse half on, half off the dresser.
Lifting his brow, he started to tease her, but she beat him to it.
“I’m messier when I’m stressed.”She quietly closed and locked the door.“And I was stressed about that pregnancy test.”
He pulled her into his arms.“I’m glad you didn’t make the bed, since we’re just going to mess it up again.”
