Page 51 of Welcome Home for Christmas
“Really?” She rolled into him and propped herself up on an elbow.
“No. I just thought it sounded cool.” He grinned.
His sister-in-law was right. He was always playing. A big kid at heart. And he would play her, undoubtedly, if she let him.
“Do you still want coffee?” she asked.
“No. It’ll keep me up all night.” He tightened his arms around her, pulling her toward him. “And I have other ways of staying up all night.”
“Again?” she asked, surprised that her body readied at the suggestion.
“And again. And again.” He kissed her. “And again.”
—
Allison awoke on Friday morning to the sound of someone’s deep breathing beneath her. A man’s breathing. Her cheek was pressed against Troy’s chest. She’d fallen asleep somewhere between rounds of sex. Nestling against him, she listened to his rhythmic heartbeat. And then those pesky thoughts returned: She could get used to this. What if they didn’t part ways after the weekend was over? What if this was leading to something real?
Troy stirred beneath her. She opened her eyes and lifted her head.
Reaching with a finger, he smoothed the hair away from her face. “Even more beautiful like this,” he whispered.
“Doubtful.”
“It’s true. What time is it?”
She glanced over at her nightstand. “Six a.m. Morning time.”
“I’ve got to go to work,” he said, starting to move his limbs.
She pulled her body away from his, rolling onto her back. He got up, fully naked and seemingly unconcerned about it. Why should he be? He was male perfection. Except…“What’s that on your, um, on your…?”
He looked back and followed her gaze to his ass. “Oh, yeah. That.” He nodded, bending to retrieve his jeans. “It’s a tattoo of a bullet hole.”
She raised her brow. “Bullet hole? Is that somehow meaningful to you?” she asked, unable to keep herself from smiling. She was always smiling around him.
He stepped into a pair of boxers and pulled a T-shirt over his head. “Yeah. Every time I see it, it reminds me not to lose bets when I’m drunk. My brothers are evil.”
Allison threw her head back and laughed out loud. “I would love to meet your brothers one day.”
Troy shook his head. “I think it’s best if I keep you far away from that crowd. It’s bad enough that Rhonda got a hold of you and told you all my secrets.”
Allison’s eyes moved to his butt. “Is that why they nicknamed you Bullet?”
Troy grinned. “That’s a family secret. I’d appreciate if you kept this tidbit to yourself. I know how girls talk. If you tell Julie, she’ll tell Lawson. Then all the guys at Heroes will get a kick out of teasing me next time I show up at the bar.” He crossed the room toward her. “Can I trust you with my secrets?” he asked, lowering his voice.
She nodded.
“Can I see you tonight?”
She didn’t even hesitate. “Yes,” she said as if she’d been waiting for him to ask. “Another romantic outing?”
He shook his head. “Not necessarily. How about I pick you up at seven? I have somewhere I want to take you.”
“Where?”
“My place,” he said. “It’s a fixer-upper house that I’m kind of proud of. I want to show it to you.”
“That sounds perfect.”
