Page 40 of Backed By You
She smiles, and even in the dim light, it does something to me. “Is that why you smell like a distillery?”
I chuckle. “That obvious, huh?” I run a hand through my hair, feeling strangely self-conscious.
“Just a little.” She pulls herself to a sitting position, the covers falling to her waist. She’s wearing one of her loose, silky tank tops, a slim strap slipping off one shoulder. “Are you drunk, Beau?”
“Not drunk,” I clarify, though the room does have a slight tilt to it. “Relaxed.”
“Mmhm.” She doesn’t sound convinced. “You know what I think?”
“What’s that?”
“I think you’re tryingveryhard to look sober right now,” she says, amusement in her voice rather than judgment.
I can’t help but smile. “Maybe a little.”
“Don’t let me stop you.” She gestures toward the open bedroom door, but as I start to move, she reaches out and catches my wrist. “Wait.”
I stop, looking down at her hand on my skin. Cool to the touch, yet it ignites a fire deep inside me. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She tugs gently. “Will you…come here a second?”
I hesitate, then sit on the edge of the bed at her request. Hulk gives a soft snort from the foot of the bed, but doesn’t move. Clearly,he’sthe one judging me tonight.
“I was worried,” she says quietly. “You didn’t text me back.”
Guilt gnaws at me. I meant to, but the night got away from me. “I’m sorry. Things got rowdy and Stan was threatening to take away phones. I forgot.”
She’s quiet for a moment. Her eyes, soft in the moonlight, search my face. “Did you at least win some money?”
I chuckle. “Actually, yeah. About three hundred. If you think I’m a shit liar, you should’ve seen Duke. He quit after the second round.”
She smiles softly. “I’m glad you had fun.”
Her fingers are still around my wrist, her thumb absently stroking my pulse point. Does she know what she’s doing to me? Can she feel my heart racing sitting beside her?
Something about the way she’s looking at me makes everything slow down. Disappear. Refocus.Fuckin’ hell, she’s beautiful. “Callie…”
“You look good,” she says out of fuckingnowhere. Her gaze drops to my mouth. My cock thickens at the mere glance. “All rough and…you know.”
I have no idea what she’s talking about, but I can’t stop staring at her. “Yeah?”
The air between us shifts, charged with whatever energy she’s putting out. And whatever the hell it is, I’m drawn to it. A moth to her flame.Only her.
She nods, then sits up on her knees in an attempt to match my height beside the bed. Her hands dance up and down my forearms. Her touch is light, but it sends heat racing down my spine at the thought of her hands elsewhere.
“Yeah,” she breathes.
“I should shower,” I say, not moving an inch. “I smell like—”
“I don’t mind,” she cuts me off, her voice dropping lower. Seductive. “Not right now.”
I may have been out of the dating game for many years now, andfuck…
It’s been a long time since I’ve been with a woman.
My heart hammers against my ribs as she leans closer. I can smell the faint floral of her shampoo, see the flecks of gold in her eyes. Gorgeous.You have no idea how bad I want you, sweetheart.
“Callie,” I say again, my voice rough from all the whiskey and smoke. I need to get my shit together. Figure out what’s going through her head. Because if we do this… “What are we doing?”
