Clover County was the second largest county in Texas, covering over five thousand square miles. Brewster County beat us, clocking in at six thousand one hundred and ninety two. So my question was, why? Why did he have to be on the side of this road when I had my unfortunate accident? There were five thousand other miles he could’ve been patrolling.
My pulse sped like I’d been mainlining coffee as he began walking back towards my vehicle. I couldn’t read the expression on his chiseled-to-perfection face. His eyes were really the only thing that ever gave a hint as to what was going on beneath his calm all-alpha-all-the-time demeanor. And since the windows to his soul were currently concealed behind dark aviator glasses…I was screwed.
With each step he took my fight or flight instinct intensified. My initial impulse was to just backup and drive away. But a voice in the back of my head piped up saying that fleeing the scene of the crime (no matter how harmless) would only make matters worse. With that option vetoed, I cut the engine and knew that I had to talk my way out of this. My mind began racing with plausible explanations…AKA excuses.
“Stay.” I once again instructed the terrified bundle of evidence to remain in my backseat and—fingers crossed—out of sight.
The only hope I had of getting out of this unscathed was to put out this small “blaze” before figuring out how to extinguish the larger wildfire I’d set when I’d freed Romeo from behind bars.
Closing my eyes, I tried to focus on the matter at hand—the fender bender. I could say that there was a turtle in the road that I swerved to miss and ended up barely tapping his bumper. No. He would just look to see if the turtle was still there. Those suckers didn’t move that fast. A deer, maybe? No, I didn’t think there was a large deer population in the flatlands of Clover County, Texas. What if I said I’d suffered a mini stroke and lost the feeling in my arm? No. I was pretty sure that medical conditions could be easily disproven.
A knock on the glass beside my head startled me and I knew that my time was up. From the backseat, Romeo barked loudly, then jumped into the front.
So much for hiding the evidence.
I knew my canine companion was only trying to protect me from what he perceived as a threat, which was sweet. Unfortunately, the only physical threat that the man knocking on my window posed was to my heart, and there was nothing my four-legged defender could do to shield me from that.
“Romeo, sit.”
At my command, Romeo’s hind legs lowered and he sat obediently in the passenger seat.
Why can’t men obey like that?
“Good boy.” I praised him.
The knock sounded again and, going against every self-protective instinct that was screaming at me not to do it, I placed my finger on the button that rolled down the window. Stiffening my back, I made sure all of my internal armor was secured before pressing it.
Emotional walls up? Check.
Swoon-guard in place? Check.
Arousal blocker activated? Well…two outta three ain’t bad.
Just the knowledge that Hud was standing on the other side of the steel and glass that separated us had tingles—that would make a nun blush if she felt them on the tip of her pinky—spreading through my entire body.
“Here goes nothing,” I said, as I pushed my index finger down.
Before the glass even reached the halfway mark, a deep, sexier-than-sin voice filled the small space in my sedan. “License and registration.”
“You’re joking, right?” Irritation replaced the lovely sensation that had been rolling through me in pleasure-filled waves.
Thank God!
Anger, aggravation, frustration—all of those were much easier to deal with than the alternative. I shot a look up at him to let him know that he was crazier than a Betsy bug if he thought that I was going to hand over my license and registration.
“License and registration,” he repeated, his jaw was set in a stone cold expression.
“Hud, you were at the hospital when I was born. You know who I am. You’ve been to every single one of my birthday parties. Including my twenty-first, where I received this car from my parents as a gift. You know this is my car.”
Was I grabbing at straws? Yep.
Was I being ridiculous? Absolutely.
Was it all I had? Unfortunately.
If there was one thing I’d learned being the youngest of nine and the only girl, it was to be on the offensive rather than the defensive, even if you were the guilty party. Especially if you were the guilty party. After establishing your foothold, you could never back down. The longer and harder you stood your guilty ground, the better chance you had of wearing down the person that was firmly planted in the right.
“Want to tell me what happened?” His no nonsense, all business tone should not have been a turn on…but dear Lord, it was.
Hud had a special talent of reducing me to a puddle of lust with a look, a word, or a grin. No other man affected me the way he did.
Clearing my throat, I tried to ignore my traitorous body. Since Romeo had already blown his cover, I opted for telling the truth. “Romeo is scared of thunder and that last one really got him. He jumped in my lap and next thing I knew I was kissing your bumper.”
The corners of Hud’s mouth twitched and his right brow rose. “Kissing my bumper?”