Page 76 of Single Girl in the City
“And not a one of them can paint worth a damn.”
“And not one of them is you,” Abi said just for his ears. “Your talent takes my breath away.”
“Oh, I know,” he said flirtingly.
“Don’t do that,” she said. “Don’t downplay it. You are amazing.”
Something flickered in his gaze, something warm and real, something that touched her deep down inside. He was showing a side she’d never seen. A vulnerable and open side he usually camouflaged with banter.
Don’t fall or you’ll get hurt,she told herself. But it was already too late. No matter how this ended, friends or enemies, she was going to be heartbroken.
“You okay?” he said so quietly she barely heard him.
“What? Me? I’m fine.” To prove it she smiled. Smart guy that he was, he wasn’t buying it. But before he could probe any further, Margo interrupted.
“Shoo.” She waved a hand at Owen. “Your lady friend and I have a tournament to win.”
“When there’s a break, I need to speak with my lady friend. I’m having an issue with, uh, inputting something.”
Abi laughed and he grinned. As he took the phone back to hand to his mom, his fingers purposefully grazed hers. The simple contact was like a match to a powder keg.
The round seemed to take forever. Abi and Margo were cleaning house, but Abi kept thinking about Owen’s hands on her. By the time she could excuse herself, her body was so primed her skin felt too tight to contain itself.
She made her way down the hallway toward his office but before she reached it, someone grabbed her and dragged her into the storage closet. Then his mouth was on hers, his hands tangled in her hair, her back pressed against the wall.
Owen.
It took her a scant moment to catch up, but once she did it was like a wildfire. He kissed his way down her neck, tugging her shirt collar off her shoulder and down went the bra strap.
“Mmm,” he hummed against her skin. “So soft.” His hands roamed all the way down her back to slip into the back pockets of her jeans. “Feels even better.”
Careful not to wrinkle his shirt, she slipped her fingers beneath the waistband of his jeans and tugged him against her. He slid his thigh between hers and pressed, putting pressure on her favorite spot. She moaned, her head falling back to thunk on the wall.
“Owen,” she breathed.
“Is this where you like saying my name?”
“This is where I remind you your mom is on the other side of this wall.” He looked up at her, his eyes heated and dark. “What are you doing?”
“I’m taking advantage of the time that’s been freed up by my new staff and managerial guidelines.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Happy Things:
Brotherhood
Owen spent the first part of his morning making Abi scream his name, then making her breakfast, before he made her scream his name all over again on the upstairs deck. He’d considered skipping the gym, but his brothers would pummel him if he missed their weekly session of beating the crap out of each other again. Not that it mattered, his head was spun to the point of distraction. So much so that Rhett was able to get in a couple of cheap shots—costing Owen two hundred bucks. Not that he cared.
Thinking about Abi naked in his bed was worth the black eye.
“I’d kiss it and make it better, but it looks like someone beat me to it,” Clay said, putting his boxing gloves into his gym bag.
Owen looked in the mirror and, sure as shit, there was a hickey on his shoulder. There might have been a little bite mark too, which made him smile.
“You constipated or is that an actual smile?” Gage said, slamming his locker door.
“I think it’s a smile. Yup, a stupid-looking, deer in the headlights grin. I recognize it well,” Rhett said, then gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Then again, it’s been so long, maybe I don’t.”
