Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 92848 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92848 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
When she bares her teeth, my shoulders shake with silent laughter. It doesn’t take long before it spills from my lips.
“Dammit, Ford! That’s not funny!” When her outburst only makes me laugh harder, she snaps, “You’re such an ass.”
“From where I’m standing, it’s pretty damn funny. For a minute there, I thought I was about to witness a homicide.”
“He’s not the one I want to murder.” Her narrowed eyes spark with irritation. “Why’d you cockblock me?”
That question is enough to have my good humor pulling a vanishing act as I drag her close enough for her soft curves to align with all my hard lines. “Because if you’re looking for dick, it’ll be mine.”
“Are you seriously delusional? Why would you think that you actually get a say in who I sleep with? The last time I checked, I’m the one who makes those decisions. Not you. Never you.”
“We both know what’s going on. You’re still torqued up from the other day.”
“The other day?” One brow slinks upward. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Nice try. I’m willing to bet we’ve both been thinking about it.” There’s a beat of silence. “I know I have.” The admission is out of my mouth before I can stuff it back inside.
Surprise flickers across her expression before it’s quickly shuttered away. If I weren’t watching her so carefully, I would have missed it altogether.
“I’m going to be completely truthful with you.” She reaches up onto the tips of her toes until her warm breath can drift across my lips. It’s nothing short of intoxicating. “That sounds more like a you problem than a me problem.”
“Is that so? Because it seems more like an us problem that needs to be solved pronto.”
“Exactly how are we going to do that?”
My gaze drops to her lips. Any moment, the sexual tension shimmering in the air between us will explode, blowing the entire place to smithereens. “Why don’t you take a guess.”
Our gazes stay locked as she drops her voice. “We can’t sleep together, Ford.”
Desire rampages through my veins. It’s so tempting to swallow up the little bit of distance that separates us. I want to hoist her into my arms and carry her out of here.
“Why not?”
“Because we’re related.”
“Actually, we’re not.” Then I tack on, “Not anymore.”
“Crawford’s like a father to me.”
I jerk my shoulders, only wanting to shoot down every obstacle she attempts to throw in my path. “He doesn’t have to know.” There’s a pause. “It can be our little secret. Just like when you used to sneak into my room at night and crawl into my bed.”
Even in the darkness that floods the bar, it would be impossible to miss the color that stains her cheeks when I resurrect our past. It’s never been something we openly discussed.
Especially afterward.
It’s almost a surprise when she doesn’t immediately shut me down. I was expecting more of a battle.
When she remains silent, I press forward, only wanting to secure her agreement. “It can be a strictly friends-with-benefits situation.”
Her gaze flickers away and for a heartbeat or two, I wonder if I made a tactical error. But…
It’s not like Carina wants to date me. Even the thought makes me want to laugh. She’d rather shank me in the eye than actually introduce me as her boyfriend.
Her cool gaze slices back to mine as she silently assesses me from under a thick fringe of lashes. Just as I shift beneath the relentless scrutiny of her gaze, she says, “Don’t you mean frenemies-with-benefits?”
The easy-going grin I’d been wearing now feels forced and brittle around the edges. “You got it, sweetheart. That’s exactly what it would be.” I have no idea what propels me to take it one step further. I press my lips to her ear. “A little hate fucking could be cathartic for both of us, don’t you think?”
Her body goes whipcord tight as she whispers, “Well, I do hate you.”
If her response leaves me feeling hollowed out inside, I shove it away, unwilling to inspect it too closely. “So, we’re on then?”
Anticipation coils deep inside me. All I want to do is lock her ass down tight. I want to know that for a few days, weeks, or whatever, Carina Hutchins belongs to me.
And me alone.
“I’ll think about it and get back to you.”
I pull away just enough to search her eyes. “No one else touches that pussy until I get an answer.”
“You get to decide that as well, huh?”
“Yeah, I do. Do we have a deal?”
There’s a long, drawn-out silence that ratchets up the thick tension between us until it becomes almost unbearable.
“I guess.”
That’s all it takes for my muscles to loosen and the air to leak from my lungs.
I’m one step closer to getting what I want.
One step closer to getting my hands on Carina.
Chapter Thirteen