Page 13 of Sheltering Lawson
My stomach reacting, my expression frozen as I stared at him. Of all the things I might have expected from him, this was not one of them. Realizing he was watching me with a steady, unreadable look, I gave myself a mental shake.
“Then stay awhile,” he said gruffly.
I covered my eyes, unable to absorb how much I wanted to stay forever. Unable to see through a fresh blur of tears, I took a shuddering breath.
His tone rough with concern, he said, “Don’t cry, sugar.”
I stared up at him with so much regret, wishing that things could be different, but they weren’t. What I was going to regret, I realized with a sudden wrench, was that my time here was going to be calculated in weeks, or, if I was lucky months. And when I left, I would regret leaving this man behind.
“Ah, babe,” he whispered roughly, an agony of feeling in his softly spoken words.
He wrapped his arms around me, and I sagged against him. He was so warm, so strong, I huddled in his arms, pressing my face against his jaw. My breath catching on a sob, I wound my arms around his neck, despair slicing through me.
It was comfort, pure and simple. It was beautiful, this feeling that I hadn’t known for so long. As he held me, things changed. A strange sense of desire and anticipation crept along my nerves. If I leaned forward, he would kiss me. I could see the promise in his eyes and felt something wild, reckless and completely foreign to me raise up in answer, pushing me to close the distance, to take the chance. His eyes urged me, his mouth lured—masculine, sexy, lips slightly parted in invitation. What fear I felt was of myself, of this attraction I couldn’t want.
I stepped back, but couldn’t seem to let what I couldn’t do stop me anymore. My hand lifted and I smoothed it along his jaw. He closed his eyes at my tender touch.
He took a step, and I stopped moving…stopped breathing. My gaze locked on his face. My body was very aware of his nearness, responding to it in ways that were instinctive and fundamentally feminine—warming, melting. I was backed up against the wall, caught between an immovable object and an irresistible force. He lifted a hand to stroke my hair, lowering his mouth toward mine inch by inch.
I should have moved. I should have stopped him. I didn’t know much about this man, and what I did know was all so good. He was—a warrior, protector, white knight. He was a man who could deliver on every one of those.
I shivered at the first touch of his lips, blinking as if the contact had given me a shock. He held my gaze, his eyes dark and intense, mesmerizing. Then he settled his mouth over mine, and thought ceased. My eyes drifted shut. My hands wound into the fabric of his shirt. He pulled me close, slanting his mouth across mine, taking possession of it.
He savored me, his mouth moving over mine like it was nectar. I opened my eyes when he stepped away. I felt dizzy, weak. Scared.
“I’ll get your stuff, and you can have yourself a shower, a pampered night, clean linens and a bed to rest in.
And that was that.
Before I knew it, all my stuff was inside and he was at the door. He reached out and snagged my wrist. Dropping a key into the palm of my hand, he said softly, “Sweet dreams, Lawson.” Then he was gone.
I closed my hand over the key, watching those broad shoulders disappear. Oh yes, there was fear. Ethan Fairchild scared me…but not in that big, muscle-man way. I knew how hands like his could hurt. No. It was his gentleness, his attention and those protective-warrior lights in his eyes that made me want to run for the hills. I was a damsel in distress, but no one…not even a gorgeous knight like him…could save me.
Chapter 6
ETHAN
I couldn’t seem to get the stupid smile off my face the next day, the same stupid smile I had gone to bed with the night before. Even as I made coffee in the small apartment behind the Sutton and Fairchild’s Bait and Tackle shop. The one Chase had built to live in, but then turned over to me when he moved in with Samantha. I had been living with my parents, and the constant pressure from my daddy about my future and the specter of the seminary looming over me every day had been stressful. So getting out and having my own place was a relief.
Almost as much of a relief as having Lawson close her hand over that key. Then that kiss. The feel of her soft lips, the low urgent sound she made only enticed me to open my mouth against hers. The bolt of pure, raw sensation had knocked the wind right out of me. I wished I was going to see her, but I had Sunday lunch with my parents and sister and had taken off from bartending. I had half a mind to cancel.
“Ethan?”
I jerked to the sound of Chase’s voice as I stood at the counter, not sure what I had been doing. His words were a bit strident as if he’d been trying to get my attention for a while. I focused on his face as he closed the cooler door. I frowned.
“You left the door open, and it took me like five minutes to get your attention. You okay?” I stared at him and sure enough, that stupid smile was on my face. “Let me rephrase that. What are you smiling about?”
“I showed Lawson the space we redid for her. She was overwhelmed and grateful.”
Chase’s brows rose. “Um, is that the PG version?”
“I don’t kiss and tell.”
“You kissed her?”
I looked away, but couldn’t keep my face neutral, so unlike me. I was the king of neutral expressions. You had to cultivate them in the Marines. That blank look kept me from any kind of scrutiny. “What did I just say?” I tried to get rid of that grin, but it wouldn’t go.
Chase chuckled and set his hands on his hips. “I’m not surprised. Samantha saw the way you were looking at her in Outlaws. She said it was just a matter of time.”
