Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 102071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
Damn, that woman could dance.
18
A HOT AND REASONABLE DOUBT
Ruby
Shorts and T-shirt, skirt and tank top, or sundress? What on earth did you wear to a…stakeout?
Was this even a stakeout?
No, I decided. It was an intel-gathering mission. My role was getaway driver and diamond babysitter.
That didn’t help me decide what to wear though. My hotel bed was littered with clothes. I grabbed the pink bikini with polka dots, tugged it on, pulled a sundress over it, and slid my feet into flip-flops. There. Seemed a suitable choice.
As I grabbed my purse, someone rapped on the door, and I froze. I wanted to be in the lobby to meet Jake at two. Last night, my resolve hadn’t wavered—it had collapsed entirely at the club when I’d dragged him into the bathroom and demanded an O. Jake in my room? That would be too tempting.
But I’d have to woman up. Stay strong. Resist that dirty-talking, cocky, I-can-pick-a-lock-and-make-you-come-hard man.
Another knock sounded.
I smoothed my dress. I was steel. I could do this.
But my willpower took a hit as soon as I opened the door. Even in the cheesy palm-tree print button-down shirt and touristy hat, Jake just did it for me.
Those arms, so firm and powerful. That ink that hinted at his secrets. His hands, so powerful as he’d grabbed my hips and held me still when he devoured me in the club’s bathroom.
Then, those eyes. Those see-into-my-soul green eyes that crinkled at the corners.
But most of all, my gaze lingered on his lips. I was intimately acquainted with his talented mouth.
I drew a steadying breath. “Let me just grab the stone,” I said.
I started to close the door so I could leave him in the hallway before I spontaneously combusted, but he stuck his foot out, stopping me. “I’ll join you.”
I waved him off. “That’s okay. I’ll be super fast.”
He flashed me a dirty grin. “I want to test my willpower to resist you.”
Well, if it was going to be a challenge…I opened the door and beckoned him in. “And mine,” I muttered.
“I didn’t see much of yours last night,” he said, lips crooking up.
“Same for you,” I said as he walked inside.
“I showed you other things though,” he said with a smirk, reminding me why I’d liked him so very much when we’d met. He had charisma and charm.
“Nice costume,” I said, turning to a lighter subject as I shut the door behind him. The more we talked about touching, the more likely I’d shed my willpower all over again.
Jake gestured to his getup. “I know you’re a big fan of the way I look in Hawaiian shirts.”
“You definitely look one hundred percent tourist.” I gestured to the small room. “Home sweet home…for now,” I joked. My tour supplies—snorkels, mesh bags full of underwater masks, as well as plenty of climbing gear—were distributed over the beige tile floor. The nightstand held both a paperback and my Kindle, and the bed was covered in clothes and my assortment of bikinis.
“You could start a bathing suit shop,” he remarked.
“I’m considering buying stock in bikinis.”
“It’s like an explosion.”
“I couldn’t decide what to—” I broke off. Admitting my indecision about my clothes seemed to be admitting my indecision about other things. Yesterday afternoon, we’d agreed hands off was best, but after we were very hands—and lips—on last night at the club, I didn’t know how to act.
“Didn’t know what to wear this afternoon?” Jake’s tone wasn’t jokey or sarcastic. It was soft and vulnerable. He gazed at me as if he wanted my admission. It made me want to say yes to anything he asked.
This was so much tougher than I’d expected.
I nodded, and he stepped closer. His hand hovered barely an inch over my skin, tracing an invisible line from my shoulder along my breasts, down my belly to my hip. My breath rushed out hard as hot shivers followed his movement. Even without touching me, the sensations, the mere possibilities, ignited me.
This was precisely why I didn’t want him in my room. My body asked for one thing. My mind told me to focus on the job.
“What you chose is perfect.” His voice was low and gravelly and so damn sexy. His fingertips brushed against my waist and my resistance started to collapse.
Somehow, I managed to move away from him and over to the safe. I began to key in the code, but suddenly, Jake was behind me, his hand covering mine, his chest pressed to my back, evoking that same sweet ache he’d sparked on the dance floor and stoked to a flame in the bathroom. It pulsed in my belly, demanding I move closer, right there, where I was aligned with the length of his strong, sturdy body.
“What are you doing?” I asked when his fingers wrapped over mine on the keypad.
He brushed his lips over my shoulder. I wanted to turn, grab him, and pull him to the bed. Push the stakeout back an hour to satisfy this sweet ache.