My heart speeds up. The entire situation feels way too intimate. My tongue flicks over my dry lips as my gaze sweeps over the room in a desperate search for Mandy.
Where the hell is she?
“She’s upstairs,” Kellan says coolly. “I offered to let you both stay.”
“We agreed on three hours. We’re leaving tonight.” Gosh, why does my voice sound so clipped and hoarse?
“She told me your car broke down.”
Damn my car.
We’re stuck here. The realization makes me freeze in sudden panic. The fact that he’s looking at me with a strange glint in his eyes doesn’t ease the unnerving tension I feel in his presence.
“I’ll be happy to send for a mechanic, but he won’t be here before tomorrow. You’re free to stay the night.”
“Why the change?” I can’t help asking.
Slowly, he lifts off the sofa, stretching up to his imposing height. “What do you mean?” He steps closer. I want to run, but instead, I find myself strangely enthralled by his green gaze, his stunning eyes keeping me captured on the spot.
“You wanted us gone,” I say. “Why the sudden change?”
“I’m still torn about this.” He shrugs. “But I know you’ll change my mind.”
The abrupt shift in his tone doesn’t escape me. He’s gone from broody and serious to mischievous in the blink of an eye. I can’t figure him out. I can’t keep up with him.
“I won’t do anything to change your mind,” I say.
“Why’s that?” His fingers curl around mine and press them against his chest, right where his heart is. His pulse thuds rhythmically against my fingertips. “I’ve never disappointed.”
His tone is so hoarse and erotic, I feel the urge to jump a step back.
The double meaning in his words is subtle, but there’s no mistaking it.
A few seconds alone and we’re drifting back onto dangerous territory. My heartbeat speeds up, and excitement courses through me.
I don’t know the guy, but he has this knack of getting under my skin in a hundred possible ways, when all I want to be is the epitome of Zen.
“So you say,” I mumble under my breath.
“Try me.”
I blink in succession. No one’s ever propositioned me like this.
It’s so damn hot, I almost say yes.
But only almost.
A one-night stand is not my style. Not because I don’t enjoy casual sex. I just like all the other things that come with a steady relationship, like falling asleep in each other’s arms and waking up to a hot session of morning sex.
For some reason, Mr. Sex On Legs doesn’t strike me as the guy who’d sleep over, and most certainly not someone who’d let you fall asleep cradled in his arms.
“I wouldn’t try you if you were the last man on earth,” I hiss, but for some reason, my low voice doesn’t convey the disgust for cheaters and arrogant jerks I’m trying to go for.
“You’re so ready for me, I could have you panting my name in seconds. I bet you’re soaked down there.”
Who says things like that to a stranger?
I yank my hand from his fingers and push him away, without much success. “I bet you think being obnoxious is part of your charm.”
“So I’ve been told.”
“There’s nothing charming about you.”
“Obviously you haven’t seen me naked yet,” he says.
He’s so arrogant I can’t bear his ego anymore.
He inches just a little bit closer, until I can catch the tantalizing scent of his aftershave. He smells so good I want to wrap my arms around him, close my eyes and inhale his scent until it’s all that fills my mind…and anything else that needs to be filled.
“Your bedroom’s upstairs. It’s the one with the animal print bedspread.” He leans forward, and for a moment I fear he’ll kiss me. My gaze is glued to his enticing mouth, and my lips part involuntarily, ready to grant him all the access he might want. His lips brush my cheek as they trail their way to my earlobe, his hot breath making my skin tingle. “It’s also conveniently situated next to mine. Tonight, when you switch off the lights, I want you to know that I’m going to be jerking off to your picture in my mind. It won’t be the first time.”
F.U.C.K!
My air supply is cut off as I stare at him like an idiot. He’s done it before? When? How?
I wish I had the confidence to ask him to let me watch. Instead, I find myself muttering, “You’re such a creep.”
“Don’t pretend like you didn’t do it after our brief meeting at Club 69.” He laughs at my horrified expression. “Come on, Ava. Stop the double standards.”
My face catches fire. I can’t deny his statement. I’m too bad of a liar, and he’s too full of himself to believe me.
Without waiting for a reply, Kellan turns and leaves, calling over his shoulder from the door, “If you need someone to help with your bags, you’ll find me upstairs. In my bedroom.”
The invitation’s there. Unspoken but obvious.
“Thanks, but no thanks,” I mutter, and then I head outside to grab my bags, my body hot against the chilly wind. At least, the rain has stopped.
CHAPTER SIX