Page 60 of Mr. Dangerous

I couldn't help but think about how this warm, teasing meal was the opposite of the strained brunch I'd shared with Rob and Mitch. As Dad re-told an anecdote that I'd heard many times before – one that might have made me slightly exasperated if not for his joy in the re-telling – I thought that for all Rob's wealth, I wouldn't swap this lifeforhis.

Maybe my life would be more fun with his money. But his life would be more fun with all the love I felt in my family and community. Luckily, if we were – in some crazy fantasy world – to get married someday, then we would each get the blessings the other's life had to offer. No need to swap. It would all beshared.

I took another sip of wine and pushed those crazy thoughts away.If we did get married.What a loony thing to be thinking about, a few days after my teenage crush came backintotown.

But it was a nice kind ofloony.

By the time I drove back to the Delaney house, I was embarrassed by my eagerness to see Rob. The porch lights were bright against the evening gloom. I found myself smiling as I let myself into the house, and I bit down on my lip instead. What was wrong with me? It had been a whirlwind of a day. I needed a break, to clear my head. I was enchanted by him. But I couldn't let myself get all wrapped up in Rob Delaneyagain.

When I walked into the foyer of the house, though, I found it quiet and empty. I hesitated, listening for sounds of life. If Rob was on a different floor, I'd never hear him anyway. He could be showering, or napping. I could join him as he stood under the drizzle of the shower, his dark hair slicked to his head, water beading across his powerful shoulders, or slip into the bed beside him, settling my head into the crook ofhisarm.

"Rob?" I called, walking through the dark-wood-and-marble rooms. Disappointment settled in my stomach, replacing the flare of fantasy. Joe had mentioned that Mitch had always had a bodyguard for a reason, and he had looked concerned for Rob. Rob might have laughed it off --I am a Navy SEAL, you know-- but I couldn't shake the feeling something could have happened to him. Or what if he had gone out into the ocean by himself? He was too sure of himself. That confidence -- which came through in the lithe, agile way he moved, the quiet but certain way he spoke -- was magnetic. But I was afraid he was tooconfident.

I went upstairs, pace quickening as I moved from empty room to room. The big house had always seemed unsettling, too much space when I was cleaning alone. I'd had to play music when I was cleaning upstairs that day Rob came, turning it up so I could hear it in adjacent rooms lest I hear phantom sounds amidst the slow rush of theoceansurf.

I jogged down the steps, fear clutching my stomach no matter how much I told myself I was being ridiculous. Rob knew we were on a tight schedule to meet his brother, and he couldn't even drive. Where would hehavegone?

I tumbled around the corner into the kitchen, thinking I would go on the deck and see if I could see him anywhere on the property. The door to the basement swung open and Rob meandered in, distracted and texting on his phone as he walked. He wore board shorts and a wet t-shirt that clung to his broadshoulders.

Rob looked up at me and as his cool blue eyes met mine, they softened, even at this distance. Bedroom eyes. I'd never known what that meant before. But I knew when I met his eyes, which were soft with a haze of desire and affection. I could have melted into a puddle and flowed the rest of the way intotheroom.

He looked at me curiously. I took a deep breath, trying to slow my excited breathing from the worried search through the house. Feeling self-conscious, Isaid, "Hey."

"Hey." He was still looking at me curiously, but let it pass. He slipped his arm around my waist familiarly. I felt a spark of emotion at the ease with which he touched me, the warmth of his hand against the small of my back. "Missedyou.”

"Missed you too," I admitted. I had a feeling all the emotions I'd tried to corral burst out when I smiled helplessly at him. He was gorgeous, larger than life, and he was–kind of, just alittle–mine.

"I went out for another swim," he said, indicating his still-plastic-wrapped cast with a nod of the head. He winced slightly, touched his arm right above where the cast began. "Probably not mybrightestidea."

"What, you couldn't get enough of a workoutwithme?"

"I definitely got a workout with you," he murmured, his arm tightening me to his side. I found myself pressed between his powerful bicep and his thigh, my hand instinctively rising to touch his warm, tight abs. Everything about him exuded heat and masculinity. "Even if it was cut short.Speakingof…"

"Maybe we can make up for lost time later," I said, although I didn’t want to pull myself away from that hard-angled body. “We should’ve left for the airport like, tenminutesago…”

“Lucky us, his flight was delayed by half an hour.” The way his lips quirked up close to mine made me melt. “What can we do in twenty minutes, Naomi? We can’t fit inaswim…”

“You’re incorrigible,” I murmured, our lips inchesapart.

“Hopeless,” he agreed, closing the distance between us, his upper lip almosttouchingmine.

“Awful.” Our lips brushed as I exhaled the word in awhisper.

He kissed me hard then, and I felt my fingers tangle in his short hair, wanting him close to me, kissing him back wildly. Our tongues slipped together, and I flashed back to his strong, pink tongue slipping around that ice cream cone. I could almost taste the mocha ice cream on his lipsagain.

He slid his hands under the hem of my shirt. His fingers across my bare flesh sent sparks flying up my spine, and I felt my core tighten in desire. His hand dipped lower, down my waistband, his fingers sweeping over the curve of my ass. I rested my cheek against his muscular shoulder, feeling the hardness of his muscle even through the soft, weathered t-shirt.

“We shouldn’t do this here,” I murmured. We probably shouldn’t do this at all. But we definitely shouldn’t do it in the enormous two-story foyer, with the elaborate silver-and-crystal chandelier above blurring into onebrightglow.

“No one’s going to catch us, Naomi,” he murmured playfully into my ear. His voice, so low and sexy, always made butterflies rise in my stomach. “You’re the one who’s in ahurry.”

“I’m not in the kind of hurry that says let’s-get-naked-in-the-grand-foyer,” I said, and as soon as the words were out, they sounded like a better and better idea. His hand swept down the inside curve of my ass. I sagged against him as a thrum of desire ran through me, stronger than sense. It wasn’t fair, so I reached out and grabbed him hard, squeezed him through his jeans, and when he kissed me again, I felt his lips smilingagainstmine.

Okay, fine. I was in exactly that kind ofhurry.

He unbuttoned my jeans, sliding his hand down the front of my pants this time. His fingers found my clit and began to strum it like this was a familiar instrument, sending notes of pleasure coursing through my body every time his thumb traced a circle. I moaned into hisshoulder.

Then I said, “Oh, no, you don’t.” I broke away, even though it left my breathing ragged, and concentrated on untying and then sliding his wet trunks down over his lean thighs. His cock bobbed free in front of his chiseledlowerabs.

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