Page 22 of Keep Me Close

There’s a moment of silence. “Right now?”

“No better time than the present.”

If we stay here a second longer, I’m either going to kiss her or say something I can’t take back, and I’d rather not implode on night one. We’ll save that for night two.

Wanting Chey is a problem all on its own. Getting used to having her here, taking up space like she belongs, is a whole different kind of trouble. And I have no idea how to handle either of them.

She studies me a moment longer before shrugging. “All right.”

I pull out my phone and shoot Laiken a quick text.

Me:

You home?

Goalie Man:

Yeah. Why?

Me:

We’re coming over

Goalie Man:

We?

I don’t bother with a response as I pocket the cell. Laiken and Kia are safe options. They’re steady. And Elody is even better. A few minutes around that kid and it’ll be damn near impossible to stay twisted up inside.

Chey watches me. “So, are you going to fill me in on where we’re going?”

I straighten to my feet. “Just a friend I want you to meet.”

She rises, following me to the elevator. The top three floors of our building are penthouses. Mine is on one level, and Laiken’s is directly above it.

Even though the ride up is made in silence, my insides remain a jangled mess. I couldn’t be more aware of the woman standing next to me.

What doesn’t make sense is that I’ve never been like this around the opposite sex. I’m usually smooth. Women don’t make me nervous. Not even when I was a teenager.

I cut her a sidelong glance because there’s no denying this one does.

And I hate even more that, on some level, she probably senses it. Whatever game I usually play vanishes the second Cheyenne steps too close, her delectable scent wrapping around me, blowing a hole through my confidence and self-restraint.

When the elevator car shifts, her shoulder brushes mine. The touch is accidental, and yet it’s enough to have everything inside me leaping to life.

How am I going to make it through a few weeks living together? How am I going to survive her wandering around barefoot at night or sitting on my couch with takeout or brushing against me in the kitchen, as if none of it’s a big deal?

Just when I don’t think I’ll be able to take another second in this fucking box without pouncing, the elevator stops and the doors slide open.

Elody hops from one foot to the other in the entryway. “Uncle Knox!”

I crouch automatically, and catch her as she throws herself into my arms. “Hey, wild thing. Causing your usual madness and mayhem?”

She grins as I lift her up and toss her gently into the air. Her infectious laughter echoes off the walls. It’s exactly what I needed to break the tension coiled inside me.

Laiken appears behind her. “You two are going to break something.”

“Nah. It’ll be fine, old man,” I say.