Page 62 of Hot Pursuit
Everything he hated. Everything he fought to destroy.
And yet, she was so much more. Warm and exciting. Full of wonder and joy. A bright spark igniting a fire within him, burning hotter than anything he’d ever felt before. They didn’t make sense. They never would. And yet, being around her felt right, felt perfect for those few seconds when he could forget the world and focus only on them. She made him want to share parts of himself he’d never shared with anyone. Being around her was like riding a bike for the first time—thrilling, exhilarating. He never knew what came next. There was a bit of fear, a bit of risk, but most of all there was a sense of fun, of wonder, of hope, a sense he’d thought he’d lost a long time ago but had somehow found with her.
Being with her would break all the rules.
His life would no longer be black and white.
But maybe there was a different sort of glory to be found in shades of gray. A different kind of beauty, if he’d just open his eyes and see, if he’d only let her show him.
Nate lifted his forehead from her shoulder.
Jo sighed.
She dropped back to her heels.
She let her hands fall down his chest and started to turn.
In that split second, Nate saw a future where he let her go, let her walk away, let her leave. He saw her slip around the corner, gone forever, no trace left behind. And his world went dark. As though there was no light without her.
“Stay with me.”
The words tumbled out before his mind could stop them, propelling straight from his heart and into the world, like a bullet from a gun.
Jo hesitated.
He gripped her upper arms.
Time rushed forward. A single second turned to an hour. The world blurred, moving faster and faster, moving on without them, as they froze, halted in this moment. Those big green eyes were the only things in acute focus. Those eyes and the decision his heart had made long before his mind had caught up.
“Stay with me,” Nate said, louder this time.
Confident.
Firm.
Convincing.
Jo opened her mouth to answer, but Nate didn’t let her. Whatever her response, it was swallowed by his lips as he lifted her to her toes and brought her face close, bending his to meet it. Their mouths crashed together, as inevitable as a wave against the shore, impossible to fight, impossible to stop, as nature intended, somehow meant to be.
- 21 -
Jo
At first, it had all been a game. Dance with Nate. Seduce Nate. Tell him what he wanted to hear so she could get where she needed to go—to his room, to his files, to her information. But with each passing second, with each consecutive word, the game changed, bit by bit, until his lips finally touched hers and everything shifted. No more rules. No more tricks. No more deceit. Jo realized every confession that had spilled from her mouth had been real, honest, pulled straight from her heart, and it sent her world off its axis, leaving her unbalanced and unsteady, forcing her to hold on to Nate as her anchor in the storm.
She wanted her freedom.
She wanted her bakery.
She wanted her dreams.
And there was no more denying that she wanted Nate Parker too. He was her something to lose, just as she was his. But there was only one way to keep him—betray the other two men she loved.
Jo pushed that thought away for another time and snaked her arms around Nate’s back, digging her fingers into his shoulders as she pulled him closer, deepening their kiss, getting lost in it. A groan stirred deep in his throat as his palms slid up her arms and into her hair, fingers gripping her scalp, possessive and commanding, yet somehow gentle and tender. He tilted her head as his lips shifted, peppering across her skin in scorching touches that were too short, too urgent, trailing down her neck until he found that sensitive spot along the curve, eliciting a sigh as her head fell back. His tongue flicked, fast and searing, making her toes curl in the tips of her heels as her vision spotted, overwhelmed by the magic of his touch.
“Jo,” he rasped, voice deep and demanding. The warmth of his breath sent a shiver down her spine. “Stay with me.”
He captured her lips again, hungry and hard, smashing any protest as she melted into his embrace, muscles turning weak.
