Page 32 of Ricochet

“Well, I am,” she offered defiantly.

He grinned. “But I have one condition.”

Flirting didn’t mean he wanted sex. Adelia needed to believe that, but restlessnesstwitched in her back, and the urge to run whispered memories of her past experiences with men—though that wasn’t how Colin or his Delta teammates behaved. “One condition?” Did he hear the tremble in her voice?

“What’s that?”

“You have to trust me—even if you’re scared of heights.”

She laughed, more at herself than him. “That’s two things.”

“What? Nah.” He ran his hands over her biceps, tuggingher close.

“One and a half.” Her nerves thawed, and it wasn’t that boyish smile that hitched on one side or his hard body that held her like she could break that urged her to cuddle into the protective cavern of his hug. “I feel like I’d always be up for an adventure with you.”

He kissed the top of her head like they had a special, silent language they’d honed over the course of decades. Shecouldn’t explain how his lingering lips made her shiver or why her eyelids drifted closed like she might be high when he breathed her in. “We need…”

And she knew that whatever he said next wouldn’t send her into a tailspin, even if he wanted to leave with her, he wasn’t on a mission for sex. Her senses were alive, and she wondered what his kiss might taste like. How his lips might feel… Whatwould the rough touch of the pads of his fingers feel like sliding over her skin?

She hadn’t wanted a man like Colin. She simply hadn’t wanted much of anything.

Sex was a commodity. Mayhem used it, and even at the times that she thought that she might burst from need, there weren’t many interesting options. Hot? Maybe… But options that made her feel something other than a hormonal reaction?Nope. She could take care of herself if she didn’t feel like wasting her time. There was nothing worse than a drunk guy trying to finger her to orgasm for the sole purpose of getting a blow job. “What do we need?”

He eased away, searching the reception hall. “A couple of table cloths.”

“We do?” She grinned. “What else? Maybe a few plates?”

Colin winked. “Don’t be ridiculous.” He locked hiselbow with hers, and they made their way to the back corner of the room.

“I don’t see a pile of table cloths.” There was nothing but a service station lined up for the catering staff to drop off glasses and grab refills.

Colin lifted a carafe of coffee. “Do you take cream or sugar in your coffee?”

“Um, both…”

“Should’ve guessed.” With the coffee carafe in hand, they headed toward a half-emptykids’ table where munchkins devoured wedding cake.

“Don’t mind us,” he said, and then lifted two untouched coffee cups, handing them to her. He stuffed one with sugar packets and the other with creamer. “Don’t spill.”

Her eyebrows arched. “Okay.”

The table of kids giggled as she made an over-the-top confused face for him, playing it up. He lifted the floral centerpiece to take with them andcocked his head to the side, giving the children a wave with the flowers.

“Where are we going?” Adelia concentrated on her creamer-filled cup and followed him out of the reception hall to the hallway.

“If I told you, it wouldn’t be an adventure.”

That sounded like it should be on a fortune cookie, but she pocketed that bit of fast -food wisdom for a rainy day and decided to remind him thattheir sense of adventure might operate at varying levels. “You jump out of helicopters for a living.”

“Who told you that?” he joked.

“I might consider balancing a clattering creamer in a coffee cup while wearing high heels after an evening of wine an adventure.”

He stopped and turned around, and she stopped abruptly, realizing she’d been staring at the cup. “That sounds like a challenge duringour adventure.” He put the coffee carafe on the floor and tested the handle of an unlabeled door. It opened easily, and he stepped into a dark room, returning a moment later with an arm full of linens. “Tablecloths.”

“I can see that.”

“We’re about to have your second challenge.”

---