I breathed in the clean scent of soap from her bare shoulders as she leaned towards me. “And?”
“I want a kiss,” I told her quietly.
“A kiss?”
Grace said the word so loud she may as well have shouted it. The chatter surrounding us in the limousine died off abruptly and Henry was now looking at me with an accusatory glare.
Travis leaned around Quinn to look at the both of us. “Sounds like your conversation is way more interesting than ours, Casey.”
Shifting in my seat, I cleared my throat. “We were just discussing the band, Kiss. Grace was telling me they sing one of her favourite songs.”
“Oh yeah?” Frog perked up in his seat next to Henry, who still wasn’t looking any happier. “Which one?”
Fuck. Think, idiot!
“I was made for lovin’ you,” I replied quickly. It was the only song that came to mind quick enough.
“Kiss songs are so awesome to play,” Cooper added. “We should try playing that one during a session next week.”
The chatter picked up again as Grace chuckled beside me. The husky sound had my pulse thumping. “Smooth, Casey,” she whispered.
I winked. “Thanks.” Checking to make sure we were no longer the focus of everyone’s attention, I said, “So how ’bout it?”
“How ’bout it? Wow. What an irresistible offer.” She tapped a finger against her lips, pretending to think about it. “But I’m going to have to decline.”
“So that’s a no then?”
“Yes.”
“Yes it’s a no to the kiss, or yes you’ve changed your mind?” Grace shook her head, clearly exasperated. I grinned. Pressing in close, I whispered in her ear, “Are you sure, Grace? Because I didn’t say where I wanted to kiss you.” I glanced meaningfully between her thighs before meeting her eyes. “And I’m good with my tongue.”
A whimper escaped her lips and the soft sound had my cock throbbing in my pants. My teasing had backfired on me in the worst way. I sat back in my seat, creating some much needed distance.
“It’s still a no.” Her voice was a rasp as she rubbed her palms along her pants in a nervous gesture.
I reached for her hand and once again had to restrain myself. Why wasn’t I able to keep my hands to myself whenever she was near? My lack of control was embarrassing.
“Grace?”
She looked at me and I saw the desire I felt reflected back at me in her eyes. The knowledge that her attraction was as strong as mine didn’t help with my restraint. In lieu of asking the driver to pull over so I could get some much needed air, I forced myself to focus on the issue at hand. Someone had made the accusation about Grace carrying drugs. Maybe it was nothing, but it could’ve been something and was worth checking into.
“I’ll look into it, okay? You won’t owe me one. After my actions today, I think we can consider ourselves even.” I held out my hand. “Now give me your phone.”
“My phone?”
“I’m in charge of your protection tonight,” I explained patiently as she dug through her bag. “That means you need my number. I figure tonight’s event should be pretty safe, but stick close anyway. If we get separated you call me, got it?”
Locating her phone, she put it in my hand. I started tapping in my contact information.
“Do I even need security tonight?” she asked.
I glanced at Mac, recalling the image of her beaten body after being kidnapped by Jimmy; then Evie when I arrived on the scene after she’d been shot—blood spatter covering every surface; and Quinn, taken by Luca Zampetti and almost dying in a horrific car accident. Each incident was enough to induce a heart attack. Even now I had the urge to rub my chest from the rawness the images evoked. Trouble had always been hot on their heels and instead of them doing what they were told, they always took matters into their own hands.
I brought my eyes back to Grace. Henry’s sister didn’t seem like the type of female to be an exception to that particular rule. “Yes. You do.”
A surge of satisfaction ran through me as she shrugged, appearing to give in on the issue. I already had Grace’s number stored, it was provided in the security brief, but I sent myself a message from her phone anyway to confirm I had the number correct. Done, I handed the phone back. It started ringing before she could take it, the name “Dalton” coming up on the screen. Her brows drew tight, indicating annoyance as she grabbed for it.
“Who’s Dalton?” I asked, wanting to know who the other man in her life was that pissed her off as much as I did. Frankly, I would’ve been shocked if she answered me. It was none of my business who Dalton was, but when she cursed under her breath, I didn’t let go of her phone.