Page 105 of Lights Out

Josh drummed his fingers over the steering wheel absentmindedly, and I almost whimpered at how it made his tattooed forearm flex. My eyes were drawn upward from it to his bicep straining against his shirt sleeve.

“Why is this light so long?” he said, almost to himself. Fred yowled in response, and Josh glanced in the rearview. “I know, bud. We’re almost there.” He shot me a grin before turning his focus back toward the light. “I told him to go before we left, but would he listen?”

I made a noncommittal sound, too distracted by his profile to talk. God, I would never get tired of looking at him. He had to know how gorgeous he was. I understood that he hid away for fear of someone saying he looked like his father, but I was betting that 99% of the stares he got in public had nothing to do with his dad and everything to do with the fact that Josh was so hot that if he pulled up next to someone and told them to get in his van, he wouldn’t even need candy to lure them. They’d take one look at him and decide that the risk of being serial murdered was worth the potential reward of getting fucked instead.

Or maybe I was trying to rationalize how easily and quickly I was falling for him. My stomach fluttered every time he looked at me. I couldn’t stop watching his mouth when he spoke, like I was trying to memorize the way his lips formed words. His body seemed to take up more space than it should, drawing me toward him like he had a gravitational field, and I was the moon he’d pulled into his orbit.

We’d been in the car for over fifteen minutes, and I hadn’t taken my eyes off him even once. I felt like I physically couldn’t do it. Nothing else was as fascinating as the man beside me. We’d just endured what should have been an incredibly traumatic experience, but all I could think about was Josh fucking me against the shower wall. Thank goodness we’d picked up the morning-after pill. Between my untrustworthy ovariesand the amount of cum I’d cleaned off my legs when we finished, doubling up on birth control felt necessary if we didn’t want to bring a little Josh into the world.

No. Do not,I told myself.You are not allowed to picture him tossing a baseball with a miniature version of himself.

The thought should have freaked me out. We’d just become official. It was way too soon to start thinking about what our kids might look like, and I didn’t even know if I wanted kids. But I wasn’t joking when I told Josh that he’d be the one with the stalker if he tried to end things. My obsession with him was growing to worrying levels. Like, I suddenly understood why he watched me at work because if I had his hacking skills, there was a hundred percent chance that I’d return the favor.

Fred yowled again as the light turned green.

Josh glanced in the rearview before stepping on the gas. “If you hold it until we get home, Daddy will buy you a new toy.”

Shit. He needed to stop saying things like that. It was making me not only want kids, but want them soon.

I leaned toward him and stroked a finger down his bicep. “And what will Mommy get?”

The steering wheel creaked in Josh’s grip. He shot me a pointed look, then glanced meaningfully at the backseat, lowering his voice. “Daddy will tell Mommy later when there aren’t delicate ears within hearing distance.”

I grinned and leaned closer. “I’m pretty sure it’s our responsibility as parents to scar our children. Builds character.”

He grunted and shifted in his seat. “Keep talking like that, and we’re going to need to triple up on contraceptives.”

I glanced down to see the outline of his erection shoved down the leg of his pants. That couldn’t be comfortable. Maybe if I unzipped his jeans and gave him a little “adjustment,” he’d feel better.

I started to reach for him, but he grabbed my wrist. “Aly,” he said, voice low with warning. “We’ll be at your house in less than a minute.”

“I can’t wait that long,” I told him, breaking his hold.

He blocked me again. “Well, you need to because there’s someone in your driveway.”

I jerked my head up. Sure enough, an unfamiliar luxury SUV was parked in front of my house. I was still banned from contacting my uncle, so I hoped it was one of my cousins come to fill me in on everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours and not an undercover cop.

Josh parked next to the large vehicle but kept the engine running.

“There’s no one inside,” I told him, peering up at the empty driver’s seat. “Must be a cousin. Those bastards better not have copied my keys and handed them out to the whole family. I don’t want to have to change my locks.”

Josh frowned at the vehicle. “The real question is, has he just been waiting here for you to come home eventually, or did he know we were on our way back?”

I shrugged. “We can touch the hood when we get out to see if it’s still hot, and then we’ll have our answer. You ready?”

Josh shook his head and gestured toward his lap. “I’m going to need a minute here. For some reason, I don’t think your mob relatives would appreciate my erection as much as you do.”

I grinned. “You might be surprised.”

Josh chuckled and reached out to tuck a stray piece of hair behind my ear.

I closed my eyes and leaned into his hand. “I’ve been wondering something. Maybe you can fill me in while we wait.”

“I can try.”

I opened my eyes. “How did this all happen?”

He frowned. “What do you mean?”

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