Page 26 of Baited

Her hooded, smoky eyes softened and her breath sucked in. “I need a distraction right now, Ethan.” Her voice grew distant, pained.

His guts wrenched. Heat swirled inside him. Sharper than that was the excruciating need that ripped through him. Sex shouldn’t be a distraction. Not like this. He let go of her hand and stepped back to pull his shirt over his head.

She moved to his body like a lithe cat to a pillow. Her hands smoothed over his chest. “Mmm…this is nice.”

“Thanks.” He fit his shirt over her head. The material covered the top of her body. Her brows pinched together. He pulled the string at her neck, then reached behind to the one at her back and tugged that too. Her bathing suit top fell to the floor.

“What are you doing?”

“Putting you to bed.” He worked her hands through the armholes. Giving her his shirt was much easier than trying to find pajamas and helping her change. “Now come on. It’s late.” With his hands on her waist, he edged her out the bathroom and toward the bed.

“I’m not tired, Ethan.” Her steps zigzagged one in front of the other. All he had to do was get her to lie down. She’d pass out. And if she didn’t… he was in trouble. He couldn’t sleep with her. Not now. If he did, he was no better than the idiot he’d just scared off from the beach.

She flopped on her stomach on the bed. A muffled giggle sounded from the pillow. The T-shirt bunched up around her hips, leaving her ass on display in the denim shorts. His hands ached to touch her. Every atom in his body craved her. The image of her hot and panting beneath him seared his brain.

He needed some space.

“I’m going to get you some water. I’ll be back in a minute, okay?”

She mumbled something from the bed and he slipped out of the room.

He made his way to the kitchen and took a deep breath. He flicked the light on and scrubbed his hands over his face. He couldn’t leave her alone, unattended. Hell, a few minutes ago she’d tried to get in the shower. Chances were she’d be out for the night, but he couldn’t risk leaving her alone. He’d spotted a spare room across the hall. He’d leave the bedroom doors open and be close by if she got up in the night.

He grabbed a glass from the cupboard. She was aware of his attraction for her. That had been why she was pushing him away. Jesus, was he that obvious? He turned on the faucet and filled the glass. He checked his watch as he turned from the sink. With any luck, she had passed out.

He shook his head. Nah, he wasn’t that lucky. He moved quietly toward her bedroom and stepped in the room. She lay on the bed, her face pillowed in her palm, her other hand flung out over the edge of the bed. He lowered the glass to the nightstand.

His breath sucked in. On the floor next to her bag were her miniscule denim shorts. A lump hardened in his throat. He bent down, picked them up and frowned. They weighed more than they should have. His hand closed over something hard in the back pocket. He reached in and slid it out. A switchblade.

He cursed under his breath. What did she think she was going to do with that? Tomorrow, they were going to have a talk. A serious one. He balled up her shorts and a small, plastic baggie slid out and danced to the floor. The air left his lungs as he crouched to pick up the object. He’d seen the tiny ziplocks in many cases through work. They were the perfect, convenient size to hold small amounts of drugs.

Five or so white pills filled the inside of the bag. He studied the markings on the pills: roofies. He’d seen one too many ofthese in rape and homicide cases. He tightened his fist around it and put it back in her pocket.

Riley didn’t fit the bill of a drug user, but what the hell was she doing carrying these around? Roofies weren’t a party drug one made the decision to ingest for a high. But as a hypnotic sedative and muscle relaxant, they were known as the date rape drug. He pushed to his feet and dropped her shorts on the nearby chair. Now wasn’t the time to question her.

Her eyes fluttered open. Her forehead crinkled into a grimace.

“Try to drink some water, okay?” She shifted under the covers, took the glass from the nightstand, and sipped. “Call if you need anything.”

Her hand caught his wrist. “Where are you going?”

“I’ll be right across the hall in your spare room.” If she expected him to leave she was in for a rude awakening. He eased her to lay back. Her eyes moved over him and his skin prickled with the lack of material to shield his chest and abdomen from her view.

She snuggled lower in the covers and let loose a deep yawn. “Sleep with me.”

Shit. The muscles in his neck tensed.

“Please, Ethan,” she whispered. Her lips moved into a pout. He swallowed. Cuddled in the same bed as Riley was dangerous. He needed that like he needed his knee shot out again. Her big green eyes grew heavy, her lids struggled to stay awake against the weight of sleep. She was half naked.

Slowly he nodded. “Sure.”

A soft smile touched the corners of her eyes.

This was a bad idea. All of it.

He should have said no. Her sweet, gentle voice had made it impossible. Oh well. He’d have to deal. He was a grown man, he could handle it. Even if she wore nothing else but his T-shirt.Any other circumstance and he’d be all over that shit. Hell, if their relationship had been different up until now, he couldn’t say he wouldn’t have taken the bait in the bathroom. But it was different.

He respected her and he would refrain if it killed him. Even if he was in physical agony. He walked around the bed and shifted the hard bulge in his pants. Damn, he wished he could at least run to his house next door and get comfortable pants to sleep in. No way in hell he trusted himself to strip down to his boxers. Riley gave a whole new meaning to the term blue balls.

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