Page 29 of Baited

“Thanks for waiting,but I’m fine now.” After she’d gotten out of the shower, she’d been relieved to see he wasn’t in the bedroom. She quickly dressed, but found him in the kitchen. It took every effort not to ask why he was still here. But a small fist of guilt kept the words at bay. She didn’t want to think about what would have happened had he not shown up last night.

He leaned against the kitchen counter and shoved his hands in his denim pockets, accentuating the bulge in the center. Her pulse beat wildly against her throat. Good lord he was huge.

“Glad to hear it. So tell me Riley, what the hell was going through your head last night?”

The urge to tell him to mind his own business burned her tongue. Nope. She wasn’t taking the bait. Every time he set her off, it seemed to draw him closer. It might kill her, but kind and patient was the road she was going to take…or try to.

“I went to a party, Ethan. That’s all.”

His left eyebrow cocked. “C’mon. You don’t expect me to believe that was your motive.”

Geez. Was he always so skeptical? She dragged her fingers through the wet strands of her hair. She hadn’t bothered to put on makeup even though of all days, today was the one day she needed it. “I heard about the Beach Bash and thought it’d be fun. That’s all.”

Ethan crossed the kitchen, pulled out a chair from the table and sat. “So like the casual sex you were after that night at the bar?”

Her teeth sunk into the inside corner of her mouth and her chest flamed. “I appreciate you ensuring I made it here safely, but I’m a big girl and don’t need to explain myself.” Her lips stretched into a smile, hurting her face.

He scowled. “Did you hit your head or something?”

“No, damn”—she licked her lips—“I mean, no. I’m fine.”

He snorted and his eyes flashed with humor. “You suck at trying to be nice, you know that?”

She glared at him through lowered lids.

He laughed and caught her hand, pulling her closer and her annoyance melted. “I like it when you’re feisty.”

The icy irritation melted from her body. Being around Ethan was like her body reacting to rapid global warming. One minute she wanted to throttle him and the other she wanted to straddle him.

Ethan let her go, rubbed his hands on his knees, and stood, bringing the length of his body right against hers. “You don’t have to talk if you don’t want to…but I wish you would.”

She rubbed her fingertips together at her sides. Ethan had a way of draining her willpower with the force of a sinkhole. The urge to let everything loose ebbed through her, but god, where would she start?

When she didn’t reply he nodded slowly, but his blue orbs darkened. “I’m going to head home,” he said.

She nodded and followed him out the kitchen door, her arms folded tightly across her chest. Her loose, gray T-shirt hid her slight curves and covered the waistband of her shorts. Though her shorts were still short, they weren’t dangerously so like the ones that she’d worn last night, now tucked safely in the laundry.

He slid his sandals on and opened the front door. The warm morning sun danced across the front of the porch, warming her feet as she stepped out.

“Are you hungry? We could swing by the diner and grab a bite.” He grinned at her and her heart palpitated. Her stomach rumbled and she pressed her hand against it to quiet it. She needed food, but right now she also needed distance. If she spent another minute with Ethan, she would come undone.

“No. I’m fine, thanks.” She squinted against the sun’s rays and the playful glint dimmed from his eyes.

“I seriously doubt that you’re not. But if you want to be stubborn, fine.” He flashed her a smile. His sky-blue eyes twinkled.

She let out a breath. “Do you have to challenge everything I say? Or are you always this pleasant?”

“I’m always pleasant.” He turned and moved toward the porch steps but didn’t descend. “But I think you know that. You’re the one with the stick up her ass.”

Her temper soared. “I do not have a stick up my ass, Ethan. I feel like shit and you keep pressing my buttons.”

He slipped his aviator shades over his eyes. “Sorry, I’ll be sure not to ask if you need anything again.”

She moved her tongue across the inside of her teeth.

A beat passed.

He wiped the front of his shirt where a wrinkled creased it and then dropped his hand to his side. “I know I’m pushing you, and I’m sorry.” His tone was soft, caressing. “To be honest, you have a big, thick wall of armor around you and I’m trying to get inside it.”

---