Page 8 of Home Town Knight

“Thanks for keeping my mind off my problems.”

“Back at you.” I slid off my stool, and Tex got up too, his movements slow and reluctant. He was covering his disappointment with a small smile, but I saw through it.

The guy thought he’d struck out.

We walked into the lobby, which was just as quiet as the bar. Outside, snow had built up on concrete, and the trees and mountains beyond were silhouetted against the dark gray sky. I stopped near the elevator, then spun around to face him. He’d already put his coat on.

“I wasn’t looking forward to this trip, but you turned it around.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” His smile brightened into a real one. “It was my pleasure.”

I pushed the button, and the elevator doors slid open. Itook a step inside, hand pressed to one door to keep it from closing. “Are you coming up?”

I sounded confident and relaxed, but my whole body was tense with nerves. Even though I was sure he wanted this too.

For a long moment, he stood there. Then his teeth dug into his bottom lip. I expected a clever quip in response. Something flirty and cute, because I knew he had that in him.

But he went back to the polite, sincere cowboy. “If you want me to, then yes. I’d like that very much.”

I nodded, and adrenaline hit my system.

We were really doing this.

CHAPTER FOUR

Genevieve

Owen walked into the elevator,and I had to back up to make room. The doors closed behind him. “What floor?” he asked.

“Three.”

He hit the button and leaned up against one wall, all casual with his ankles crossed. But I felt his eyes raking over me. It was just a few seconds before we reached my floor, and I went into the hall first. The room key was trembling in my hand.

I stopped in front of my door. But before I could open it, Tex gently plucked the key from my hand. “Hey. You all right? You seem anxious.”

“I just…don’t really do this kind of thing. One-night stands.”

“We don’t have to.”

I looked up at him, my back up against the hotel room door. “I know. But the thing is, I really,really, want to.”

His eyes glittered. Two sparks of sapphire flame. “How about I kiss you. If you like it, I’ll come inside. If not, you can tell me to get the hell out of here, and you’ll never have to see my ugly mug again.”

I laughed, the tension defusing. “I told you I think you’re handsome. Don’t act like you forgot.”

“You got me.” He braced his forearm on the door by my head. Leaned in. His exhale ghosted over my cheek. Peppermint, like the candies Dean had handed over with the bill. “But I think you’re downright breathtaking.”

Slowly, like he was moving through molasses, he eased his mouth over mine.

I grabbed onto the back of his collar, the hairs on his neck soft beneath my fingers. Our lips met lightly at first. Then with more urgency at each pass. Until we both opened up, the tips of our tongues dancing in the middle.

Sweetness hit me. Mint, but then something wilder. I moaned. Tex pulled back, and automatically I tried to chase the kiss, not ready for it to end. But he shook his head, grinning.

“I need an answer first. You ready for me to come in?”

I jerked the keycard from his hand, waved it over the lock, and pushed inside, dragging him by the sleeve of his coat.

As soon as the door closed, Tex crowded me against the inner surface of it, and he kissed me again. A mirror image to before. But now, he wasn’t as gentle. His mouth slanted over mine, his tongue licking the seam of my lips until I let him inside again. No more teasing dance. This kiss was deep and commanding, a preview of what it would be like later on, when we would be naked in bed and a different part of him would be moving inside me.

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