Still, I wonder if I could fit the cookie container into my purse when I leave.
How would anyone know?
“Thanks for your help.” Reed hangs the dish towel on the oven door. “Well, that’s it for me. I’m out of here.”
Disappointment pinches the back of my throat. “Oh? Do you have to work tomorrow or something? I thought you were staying the night.”
And I was planning on showing back up here tomorrow to pick up something conveniently left behind so I could run into him again.
Yes, I’m pathetic like that.
“I’m on bereavement leave for another few days.” He bunches up one side of his face into a cringe. “But I’ve hit my quota of family time.”
I can’t help but feel like I’m included in that group. Did hanging around with me for twenty minutes push him over the edge?
Nah. That’s just my negative self-image talking. Adult Reed has never shown me even a drop of disdain. He might be messing with me, but it’s all in good fun. Between the interaction with his mother and the one that followed with Kenzie, he’s well within his rights to be unwilling to stay here.
But I still want him to. Because I’m ridiculously selfish.
As if my mouth is on a mission to change his mind, I say, “It’s a long drive home from here. Maybe it’d be safer to leave in the morning. You’ve got to be tired.”
What am I doing? He lives near Orlando, which is only about ninety minutes away. Plus, it isn’t all that late, and he hasn’t been drinking. He’s gonna see through my pathetic attempt to spend time with him.
Holding my eye contact, he reaches over to flick the light switch on the wall. I blink as my eyes adjust. There’s light shining in from the family room, so we’re not in the pitch dark. That doesn’t stop my mind from imagining all the things I’d love to do with Reed in the dark, though.
As fantasies assault me, my feet stay rooted in place. He prowls toward me like a starving lion stalking his prey.
Yes, eat me. I promise I’m delicious.
His sustained eye contact is unnerving in the most tantalizing way. All his intensity is squarely on me. I’m flooded with warmth.
Seriously, did someone turn the A/C off?
Finding courage from a reserve I didn’t know I possessed, I don’t back up. Instead, I let him get as near to me as he wishes. Turns out, he wants to be within sniffing distance. Works for me.
Standing mere inches away, he puts one of his strong hands on my hip, sending ripples of electricity throughout my body. “Cookie, if you don’t want me to leave, just say so.”
The confession burns my tongue until I set it free. “Okay. I don’t want you to leave.”
One thing nobody teaches you is where to put your hands when you’re in a situation like this. Do I put them on my hips? Around his shoulders? Down his pants?
Down mine?
Glancing at my mouth, he says, “Well, we’ve got a problem then. Because I can’t stay here any longer.”
By sheer force of will, I refuse to pout. Barely.
With his next words, he makes his intention crystal clear—even to someone as clueless as me. “Any idea where I can sleep tonight? You got a spot for me at your place?”
“Reed,” I breathe out his name like I’m chiding him.
He doesn’t laugh it off or pretend it away.This thingthat’s happening between us. Nope. Not Reed.
Undaunted and fearless, he’s doing what he’s always done—setting his sights on a goal and making it happen.
And unless I wake up from this dream soon, he’s going to get exactly what he wants.Me.
His hand pulses around my waist. “I don’t want to be alone tonight, Lila.”
