Page 28 of Taking Care of the Target

“My past is messy, and my current life’s not much better. You should know that going in.”

Her eyes slowly opened, the pale green translucent and shining with hope. “So there’s an ‘in’ we’re going to?”

Say no, say no, say…

She stepped closer and put her hand on his chest, and then every thought, every thump of his heart, they all filled up with her.

He slid his hand behind her neck and brought his lips down on hers, like he’d wanted to for months. He took in her gasp and parted her soft lips with his tongue, taking his time so he could memorize the flood of sensations and sweet taste of her mouth.

But then she wrapped her hands around his biceps, her nails digging into his skin as her mouth moved against his, and the need to be closer turned into a living, breathing thing. The moan that escaped her drove him over the edge.

He backed her up against the closest tree, bracing his hands against the rough bark as he kissed her again, hungry, desperate, and completely consumed.

Right now, in this moment, she was his.

He’d deal with the guilt later.

Chapter Fifteen

As the clock wound down on her shift, Cassie gave herself an internal pep-talk about how she was a strong, independent woman, who wasn’t going to let a random act of violence deter her from living her life.

Still, she had a moment of weakness when she wished for her beast of a car to take her home and even considered calling a cab, but by the time she pushed out of McCarthy’s, her resolve had returned. Now if her wobbly legs would just get message, that’d be great.

She’d only taken two long strides down the sidewalk when her steps faltered. Not from fear, but the devastatingly sexy guy sitting on the nearby bench, arms stretched across the top of it. Their eyes met, and her emotions switched gears so quickly her knees nearly gave out.

Vince stood, and she fought the urge to run over and fling herself into his arms. Work had been especially long, her fears about walking home alone left her frazzled, and all she wanted was to go home and curl up on her couch. Preferably with the guy who’d kissed her so thoroughly in the park it felt as though he were imprinted on her for good.

Hiding her smile was futile, so she aimed it at him as she started his way. “You know, if you were scared to walk alone, all you had to do was ask.”

One corner of his mouth kicked up, and her heart skipped a couple beats. “Very funny,” he said, taking slow, deliberate steps in her direction. “Now, get over here.”

She halted in place, leaving a couple of feet between them. “Oh, one make out session in the park and you think you can just—”

Vince yanked her to him and covered her lips with his, sending the rest of her sentence right out of her head. She gripped the sides of his waist so she wouldn’t melt to the sidewalk, no chance of ever getting up again. Evidently he’d decided to stop holding back. She was fully onboard with that decision.

“Hey,” he said, his lips brushing hers as he spoke. “Thought I’d give you a ride home.”

“Okay,” she said.

Vince led her to a black Jeep that looked like it ate other Jeeps for breakfast and opened the passenger door. His cologne hung in the air of the interior, woodsy and musky, the same scent that invaded her senses earlier in the park. She lifted her fingers to her still-tingling lips. She’d never been kissed the way he kissed her—deep, urgent, and possessive.

Vince climbed into the driver’s seat and fired up the Jeep. “How was work?”

“It was okay, but way too long. Tyra picked a leaf out of my hair when I first got in.” She twisted a strand around her finger. “I wonder how it possibly got there.”

Vince’s heated gaze slid over her. Her brain was telling her to not go too fast, but the lust pumping through her body didn’t want to listen.Okay, I’ll invite him up so we can get to know each other better, but I should at least date him for a little while before I even think about having sex with him.

As Vince pulled onto the street, she studied his strong profile, the way the muscles in his arms stood out, how every movement he made was so sure.

He’d definitely be an adventure, and Iamtrying to have more of those.As soon as she had the thought, she tried to quickly dismiss it. Adventure or not, she didn’t want to open herself up only to be hurt, and she did barely know the guy.

Vince wrapped his hand around her thigh, and her hormones went into overdrive. This was what happened when you’d only ever had sex with one gangly, semi-awkward guy, and it’d been years ago.

She frowned, wondering if there’d been anyone else and hating the idea that there might’ve been. Surely she’d somehow know, right? Her brain flipped through images of guys she’d crushed on in high school, skipped past her one and only boyfriend who’d turned into her sex buddy and then awkward never-again ex, and then placed herself on the TCNJ campus. Even in her imagination it was hard to picture guys asking her out, but she pushed harder, grasping at wisps that might or might not be there.

A black wall of resistance and an oncoming headache met her efforts, and she shook her head, abandoning her attempt.

“Where’d y—you okay?” Vince asked.

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