Page 36 of Ruined
The breath I’d been holding blew over my lips. “It’s just…” My gaze dropped to my hands as I searched for the right words. They wouldn’t come, so I settled with, “Thank you.”
The grin he rewarded me with had my own lips stretching into a smile as Eli returned to his relaxed position. “Tell me about you, Zoe.”
Tucking my legs under me, I asked, “What do you want to know?”
His face turned serious as he pinned me with one of those heated stares again. “Everything.” The gravel in his voice did delicious things to my insides. “But let’s start with something simple, hmm? Is your family close?”
Now that was a subject I had no problem discussing. “My parents used to live in Texas City, but they moved to Jameson Falls not too long ago—” I went on to tell him about my brother’s accident and how my parents weren’t handling it very well. It was difficult to explain, but the words came easy with Eli.
We went back and forth, learning about each other. He told me how he’d lived in Willow Creek his entire life, except for the time he’d spent in TC for training. I couldn’t believe that we’d once been in the same city at the same time.
I loved the way his eyes sparkled when he talked about his family and growing up on the ranch. I knew from Kenzie’s wedding reception that the Jackson ranch was absolutely breath taking and that his parents were really nice people.
“You’re very lucky,” I finally said. “Now that I can’t hop into the car and drive to my mom and dad’s, I regret not seeing them more.”
“Yeah.” Eli ran a hand over his jaw. “Family is important. I couldn’t imagine not visiting with Mama and Pops every week, especially when it comes to Molly. I wouldn’t have been able to get that girl to her first birthday if it wasn’t for my mom.”
“You and Molly have been alone since she was a baby? Where’s her mom?” The words left my mouth before I had time to think them through. Absolutely mortified, I quickly added, “I’m sorry, it’s none of my business.”
Eli shook his head, a smile playing on his lips. “It’s a long story, but yeah, it’s only been me and my girl for the last seven years. Speaking of—” He sat up straighter, looking nervous all of a sudden. “As I left Logan’s, she made me promise to invite you over for dinner sometime this week.”
That little girl was crawling so deep into my heart so quickly it should’ve scared me. It didn’t, though. “Your daughter is the most adorable little person I’ve ever met.”
“She gets it from her dad.”
I stared at him for a moment before I couldn’t contain the laughter that wanted out. “Let’s hope she gets your modesty too.”
Eli chuckled, then his face turned serious. “So, you’ll have dinner with us?”
Oh, the invitation was real? I’d thought he was merely making conversation. While his intense gaze roamed over my face, there was a question floating around in my head that I needed an answer to. “Why are you being so nice to me?” His brows pulled together, so I explained, “I was under the impression that you weren’t all that excited about my presence here in Willow Creek.”
He nodded tentatively while his Adam’s apple bobbed as he worked down a swallow. He scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck then scooted closer. “I’ve been an ass, haven’t I?”
“Yes, you have.”
“You see,” he kept moving closer and closer, as much as I needed to get away, I had nowhere to escape to. I had no idea how it happened, but I blinked and he was right there in front of me. His breath blowing over my face, the heat of his body filling the little space between us. His gaze dropped to my lips, his voice thick, “I’ve spent almost every waking moment thinking of you and your hot little mouth on mine.”
There was no mistaking the heat in his darkened irises the instant his eyes met mine again. His hand came up, his fingers disappearing into my hair. “I’ve never been this…affected by a woman before. When you showed up looking like you’d just stepped out of one of my fever dreams, I had no idea how to handle it.”
His admission knocked the breath right out of me. What was I supposed to say? Turned out, words weren’t needed because Eli closed the small distance between our faces and pressed his lips to mine. I was helpless to stop my eyes from fluttering closed at the contact. The tips of his fingers pressed into my scalp at the same time a groan sounded from the back of his throat.
The kiss escalated fast, becoming hotter, wetter. His tongue plundered, tasted, devoured. More groans rumbled from deep inside him, sending vibrations pulsing through my veins. I ached to have his hands all over me, but for some strange reason anxiety started prickling down my spine. I’d never felt this confused. I pressed my hand against his chest and could feel his heart thunder against my palm.
A second, that was all I needed to catch my breath.
I broke the kiss by pulling away slightly and damn if I didn’t want to dive back in as soon as I met his hooded gaze. The man looked all kinds of sexy. Slowly, his eyes roamed my face until they finally settled on mine. Something he saw had a undecipherable expression marring his features as he pushed off the couch.
“Shit.” He dragged his hands through his hair as he paced in front of me.
“Eli?”
“I shouldn’t have done that,” he went on as if I wasn’t even there. “Why did I do that?”
Getting to my feet, I placed my hand on his forearm and repeated, “Eli.”
Finally, he stopped to face me. I was even more confused when his face held a pained expression. “I’m sorry.” His words were whisper-soft. “I didn’t mean to just…pounce like that.”
My lips curved upward. “I didn’t mind.”
