Page 24 of Wild Tides
“This okay?” A comedy special was paused on screen at the opening credits.
Nodding, I took a hasty sip of my water, choking and wheezing on the bubbles. It sent me into a coughing fit. Lee frowned, reaching one large palm out to rub my back.
“You okay, honey? Just breathe.” His hand between my shoulder blades only made it harder to draw in air, my lungs constricting.
I gasped, trying to draw oxygen. Stalled and a little bit panicky.
He pulled me closer. “With me.” He held my gaze as he inhaled, pausing at the top before exhaling in a long gust.
His blue eyes mesmerized me into complying, the vise wrapped around my lungs easing as we synchronized our breathing, his chest rising and falling with mine.
When he was satisfied with my return to regular rhythm, he snuggled me under his arm, tugging me against his torso. “That’s better,” he murmured.
For who? Whom?Who the fuck cared?
Lee’s chest was hot beneath my cheek, his skin a sleek furnace. As first moves went, it was both too subtle and way over the line.
“What are we doing?” I blurted out, keeping my eyes glued to the comic on screen.
“Snuggling on the couch,” Lee said without an ounce of remorse.
My heart tripped.Snuggling. As if it were the most ordinary thing in the world, when my pulse was acting like I’d just run a 10K.
“Are you hitting on me, Murphy?”
He glanced down. A broad grin overtook his usually solemn features.
“You’re just now noticing? Keep up, Cupcake. I’ve been trying really hard not to corrupt you. But my resistance is about gone.” He dropped a quick kiss on my forehead. “Close that mouth Vi, before you catch flies. If you’d like to opt out of future corruption, please let me know. Otherwise, once my ankle is better: watch out.”
I snorted. If this is what corruption looked like, A. I liked it. And B., I took issue with who was seducing who. Whom? Dammit.
“Why is your ankle ruling our love life?” I tried to follow his logic. Or lack thereof.
Heat pooled low in my stomach. God help me, I wanted him reckless, ankle or no ankle.
“I can’t exactly whisk you off your feet until I’m better.” He wrinkled his nose. “Plus, I don’t want to pressure you unfairly.”
The sentiment was sweet, if totally off-base.
“You think because you’re injured, I can’t say ‘no’?” I rolled my eyes. “Have you met me, Murphy? Thanks to my brothers, saying ‘no’ to men is my favorite hobby. They ask me for shit I won’t do all the time.”
“Not to state the obvious, but I’m not one of your brothers.” He held my gaze, his blue eyes glittering. “And the things I want to ask you for require all of my parts to be in full working order.”
“That’s bold of you.”
Bold and devastating. My insides did a ridiculous swoop, like his words alone had short-circuited something vital.
“Relax, honey. I’m talking about dating. Not deflowering.”
“You know I’m not a virgin, right? My brothers to the contrary, I crossed that bridge at least a decade ago.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Even if you haven’t flaunted your relationships at home, I know you’re too beautiful not to have enjoyed life on your own terms. And thankfully, I think you finally passed the age of consent in your brothers’ eyes.”
“Thirty? They thinkthirtyis past the point of unfair seduction?”
Talking about my brothers cooled me faster that an ice bath.
He shrugged. “I don’t pretend to understand how your sibling dynamic works.”
