Page 97 of Shadow Sabotage
“What did the family do?”
“Well, he and the girl kept up the charade for a few weeks. When he finally broke things off with her, the family was so relieved they never hassled him again. I guess his mom decided there were worse things than being single.”
I mulled it over. “Hmm. Maybe Ishoulddo something like that.”
“Do you have any friends who get a kick out of being deliberately annoying?”
I shook my head. “No. And I don’t think that part of it would work anyway. Trust me, I’ve brought home some terrible boyfriends. That won’t get Mom off my back. If anything, she’ll just start trying harder to set me up with someone else. But if she thought I was with someone awesome, someone she’d totally approve of…”
“There you go,” Vance said, shrugging. “Get her off your back by thinking the problem is already solved.”
“Exactly.” Although, for the life of me, I couldn’t think of anyone awesome to invite—except Vance. And while everything in me wanted him next to me that day, I knew there was no way I would be able to pretend it didn’t mean anything.
With him, I couldn’t pretend at all.
He cleared his throat. “You know, I could go as your wedding date. Keep you from having to hang out with Cody, at least.”
I swallowed hard. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why?” He kept his eyes focused on the dark scene in front of us.
“Because I want more than just a date with you,” I said softly.
He turned toward me and stared into my eyes. Then his hands were in my hair, pulling me to him. His lips crashed onto mine in a kiss that was as demanding as it was arousing. The taste of him mixed with the whiskey we’d shared was intoxicating, and all I could think wasmore,until I found myself whispering it against his mouth.
“Define more,” he said roughly, his lips still tantalizing close as he repeated the question I’d asked him what somehow felt like a lifetime ago.
I closed my eyes and put my hands on his chest, pushing away, trying to get a moment of distance from him so I could put together a coherent sentence. Then I put my hands beside me on the fence, gripping the rail like my life depended on it.
Nothing else could make me lose my head the way Vance Weston could. Not wine, not whiskey, not another man. Nothing compared to the pure intoxication of his hands on my body while he teased me with his tongue.
If just kissing was this good, I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like if we went further.
His hand came to my chin, gently turning my face toward his. “I asked you a question,” he said, his piercing eyes holding my gaze.
“I don’t have an answer. My version of more doesn’t work for you.”
“Because of New York?”
I nodded.
He released my chin, putting his hand over mine on the fence rail. “It’s great there. You might like it. You could visit, give it a try. You never know, you might fall in love with the energy of the city. There’s lots of fast-paced work you could do there.”
I forced a smirk. “The winters are still cold, but without the beauty of Wyoming to make up for it. And me, living in a place with millions of people and no wilderness?” I pulled my hand away. “I don’t see that working.”
“Yeah, I guess I don’t, either,” he said slowly.
He started to say something else, but my phone buzzed. I pulled it out and read the text with a sinking heart.
“What is it?” He nudged me, a concerned look on his face.
“I–I have to go.” My brain felt fuzzy from the whiskey—fromhim—but I jumped off the fence, knowing I had to pull myself together. Quickly.
I fired off a couple of quick texts and began to formulate a plan in my head.Coffee.I needed coffee.
He stared at me. “What do you mean?” When I didn’t answer him, he jumped off the fence and grabbed my arm. “Claire, what is it?”
I looked up at him and took a deep breath. “There’s a missing girl. I have to respond.”
