Page 27 of Tempting Levi
“We’ll survive without them for one night.”
“But—”
“Here.” He handed her a small black swath of silk fabric. “This should take your mind off things for a minute. You said you do bow ties?”
And that was when Emily moved past her phone panic and really took in Levi. He wasn’t wearing the slacks and dress shirts that pulled against biceps too large for the average businessman, fitting him in all the right places. Or even the sexy suits that had her drooling. No, Levi wore black tie tonight, and Emily questioned whether her heart could take it.
The whooshing in her ears was deafening, her face flushed to stinging levels, and her hands had turned clammy. In short, her adrenal system was freaking the hell out. “Who dressed you?”
Stupid, stupid—what was she saying?
Levi chuckled. “I dress myself these days. But I could use a hand with…” He gestured to the tie again.
She let out a careful breath, which came out hot on her lips. “Let me just…” She walked over and grabbed a stepping stool she used to place books on the tops of shelves.
Moving the stool in front of Levi, she stepped up, putting her nearly at eye level with him. Which wasn’t helping her adrenaline rush. She avoided his eyes. “That’s better. These ties are a little trickier.”
Levi’s hands came up and held her hips in place, as though to steady her.
Her hands halted. Her breath too.
Breathe.“Thank you.” She cleared her throat and wrapped the tie around his neck and below the collar of his white tuxedo shirt. The lapels of his jacket were thin and refined, the shoulders squared and fitting his naturally larger build. “You even smell good,” she murmured, frustrated.
It wasn’t right. Her attraction to Levi was supposed to decrease after they spent more time together, not grow stronger.
“Thank you, I think.” His voice was lower than normal, a touch gravelly. “I guess I should come clean about the penguin suit. Adam picked it up for me. Sent over some Italian guy to take measurements. My brother knows me a little too well. I would have rented one.”
“Adam’s the brother I met with his fiancée the other night?”
“The one and only.” His eyes seemed to drop, taking in not only her hands as they busily worked the tie, but her dress as well. “You know—you look lovely tonight. And you always smell good.”
She glanced up to find his blue gaze on her face—her lips.
Her eyes were gray. Not blue or green. Just gray. But Levi had light blue eyes that swirled with shades of green. She swallowed. “You smell me?”
She did not just say that. Because if she said that out loud…
His warm palms on her hips pulled her closer, and he leaned in, pinning the hands working his tie against his firm chest. He paused a hairsbreadth above her mouth. “Every chance I get.”
And then he kissed her.
There was no tongue, and the kiss was barely long enough to be defined as more than a graze of lips, but his mouth was firm yet super soft and his arms were still holding her to him.
She blinked, staring at those blue eyes that had suddenly grown darker. “You kissed me.”
“Yes.” His eyebrows pinched together, but he didn’t look away.
“I’m Lisa’s little sister.”
His body stiffened. “I don’t need the reminder, but…does that matter?”
“Does it matter toyou?”
He didn’t answer right away. Then his gaze fell to her mouth again and his hands slid up her back, causing all kinds of heated, electrifying sensations to spiral down her spine.
Her adrenaline was already heightened. This was just driving her crazy. Fight or flight? The urge to attack him with her mouth and kiss him with all the pent-up lust that had built since she started at Club Tahoe was overpowering. Or she might jump off the stool and run. Either was possible.
She closed her eyes briefly. “When you touch me, I can’t breathe.”
