Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 84700 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 424(@200wpm)___ 339(@250wpm)___ 282(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84700 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 424(@200wpm)___ 339(@250wpm)___ 282(@300wpm)
I wasn’t going to get inside unless I charmed my way in. I held up the bottle of gin. “Thirsty?”
She glanced at it, a bit intrigued.
I shook the bottle. “It’s the good stuff.”
She stared at the bottle for a second before she shut the door and unlocked the chain.
Yes.
She opened the door, grabbed the bottle from my hand, and then shut the door in my face.
Damn. I knocked on the door again. “You can’t drink that all by yourself.”
Her voice sounded through the door. “Bet your ass, I can.”
“No one likes to drink alone.”
“I disagree.”
“Annabella, come on.” I knocked again. “I wanna talk.”
Silence.
“I’ll stand out here all night.”
She opened the door and handed me a glass of gin before she shut the door again.
I stared at the glass and chuckled. “Sexy and funny…I like it.”
Flattery worked, and she opened the door. With one hand on her hip, she nodded for me to come inside.
I followed her and set the glass of gin on the counter. She was in lounge clothes, wearing pajama shorts and a black spaghetti strap top. Her hair was in curls around her face, and her makeup highlighted her beautiful features. She stood leaning her hip against the counter and took a drink. She was more beautiful than I remembered, so I couldn’t help but stare. Her long, tanned legs were the most hypnotizing of all her features. Lean, toned, and a sexy golden color, they were flawless.
“You wanted to talk?” She took another drink.
I got lost in her features and didn’t realize how long I’d been staring. “Yeah…” Now I wished I’d taken a drink to cool my nerves. I wasn’t easily intimidated, even when a big-ass guy was telling me off, but her beauty, humor, and intelligence made me quiet. “Don’t blow me off.”
She set her drink down before she crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m not. I just don’t like to waste my time.”
“I’m not a waste of time.” I blurted out the words without thinking, desperate to change her mind. I left my drink behind and came closer to her, reaching the empty space between the kitchen and the living room. “You caught me on a bad night.”
Her eyes were glued to mine, forbidding towers blocking her entire perimeter. “You didn’t call all week, and when I did call you, you seemed annoyed. If you aren’t into me, that’s fine. If you think I’m a bad kisser or a bad lay, that’s fine. I really don’t care about your opinion because another man would be happy to take your place.”
So sexy. If only more women were that confident. She made her statement without breaking eye contact with me, not the least bit intimidated. “Trust me, I know.” There had been one in my office that afternoon, gripping her as tightly as possible so she wouldn’t slip away for good. “I was swamped that week, and then shit hit the fan. I’m not playing games.”
Her arms loosened on her chest as her defenses came down. She must have seen the sincerity in my eyes, must have felt it in the energy in the room. “I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. But that’s only because I like you.”
I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my face. “I know. My jeans told me.”
She smacked my arm playfully, a suppressed smile on her face. “Jerk.”
I chuckled then circled my arms around her waist. The affection was instinct, like my hands knew what they wanted to do before my brain realized it. My hand flattened against her lower back, and I tugged her to me, bringing our faces close together.
Once I could feel her warmth, smell her perfume, all playfulness evaporated. I could see the beautiful color of her blue eyes, the way they sparkled like sapphires in the sunlight. There were a couple freckles on her cheeks, but so small they were hardly noticeable. With a perfect complexion and the sexiest set of lips, she was like a collectible doll.
Her back arched at my touch, and her hands immediately went to my chest, her body reacting to mine in the same instantaneous way. Her breath halted in her chest, and she stared at my lips like she wanted to rekindle that heated night in her hallway.
I wanted to kiss her, but I was paralyzed by the intensity of the moment. There was so much electricity in the simple touch, so much ecstasy as our lungs held our breath. The air burned with chemistry like two chemicals that exploded the moment they came into contact. I was the fire, and she was the gasoline. A quick splash and I was an inferno.
Her hands slowly slid down my chest as her chin dipped to the floor. She stared at my body while her fingers mapped out my pecs and abs. Her fingers pressed harder into me, wanting to feel every groove that my large muscles created. As if I wasn’t even there, she explored me through my clothes.