Page 62 of Legacy of Lies
Chapter 15
She nearly crawled out of her skin and into his.
“I can’t stay here.” Her voice sounded too breathy. Not a confident refusal at all. “You need to deal with the fire damage and everything, and I’ve got school in the morning. If I stay here, I will be in the way. A distraction.”
“I want to be distracted by you, Sara.” Even a deaf woman could hear the rumble of male interest in his low voice.
“I, um—”
“Please.” Spoken like he ripped the word out of his chest. “I need you here tonight. Need to know you’re safe.”
Distraction? Safe? Disappointment crushed her heart. Yet despite his scowl, his eyes glinted and his chest rose and fell faster than normal.
Maybe she hadn’t misread his interest. Maybe their close encounter earlier this evening wasn’t a fluke.
Well, then. Nothing like throwing all caution to the wind.
When she leaned forward and laid a hand on his arm, the muscles bunched up. She looked up into his shadowed face. “You can think of no other reason for me to be here?” Her lips quivered despite her attempt to flash him a confident smile.
His jaw muscle jumped. Good.
She reached up to trace the lines of his strong mouth with her shaking fingertips.
His shudder cut the quiet atmosphere, but he didn’t stop her.
Against her fingers, he said, “I want you. So badly.”
Caressing his lower lip with her index finger, she said, “I don’t have your knack of telling the truth. How do I know you’re not lying to me?”
He caught her finger with his square, even teeth. Not hard enough to hurt, but he didn’t let go.
In fact, the sweep of his tongue over the sensitive fingertip turned her bones to water.
Encircling her wrist in his hand, he held her hand still while he sucked one and then two fingers into his mouth. The swirl of his rough tongue sent a frisson of desire into her pelvis, where heat grew and expanded.
Her heart couldn’t beat fast enough to compensate for her plummeting blood pressure.
Right as her knees gave out, he pressed her into the wall and stroked her neck with one hand. With his other hand, he teased the sensitive skin under the hem of her sweatshirt, drawing out goose bumps and shivers.
Well. She’d gotten his attention all right. She’d also deduced an answer to the question of why she should remain here. Message received, loud and clear.
His lips plied hers with a hot, building rhythm. Every inch of his tall, solid body leaned into her, including a hardness in his groin that hit at the perfect location on her lower belly. Delicious coils of happiness worked their way lower and lower until she pressed her hips into his. Hungry, searching, wanting.
Rubbing her hands over the shifting bands of his arms, she sighed.
He groaned and plunged a hand in her hair, tugging her head back. His tongue slid between her lips, stroking inside her mouth faster and deeper.
She couldn’t move. Didn’t care. Wanted more. More touches. More kisses. More Garrison.
When his mouth moved to her earlobe, she whimpered. Holy Mary, they couldn’t possibly ... here in this house? With his family around? Heck, his kid was upstairs. That would make for an A-plus show-and-tell in class tomorrow if Zach saw her with his dad.
Tugging her hands free, she dropped her arms to his broad shoulder. “Garrison, what about ...?”
“Sh. I need this. I need you.”
“But your family—”
“Don’t care. It’s a big house. With a guest wing.”
