Inked in the Steel City Series(61)

The barest hint of heat crept into her cheeks as she glanced toward the screen, where one of the paranormal investigators was daring a spirit to approach some sort of EMF reader. “I was.”

“I had no idea you liked this stuff.” Jed’s mouth curled in the tiniest of smiles.

“Let me guess – you think it’s ridiculous?” Jed wasn’t exactly the kind of guy she’d peg as a fan of ghost hunting shows.

He shrugged, his broad shoulders straining his t-shirt in a way so sexy it made her head spin. “I’m just surprised is all. I’ve never watched more than a few minutes here and there.”

“It’s a little sensationalistic at times, but the locations they visit are really cool – seeing the historic old places they explore is my favorite thing about the show and—” For once, she stopped herself mid-babble. Forget ghost hunting TV! Who gave a crap about whether the abandoned prison was haunted when there was last night’s kiss to discuss, and maybe even relive?

She reached for the mouse and shut off the show. “I won’t inflict my reality TV upon you.”

“Reality?” Jed arched a dark brow.

Her cheeks warmed a little more. “They say it’s reality. And I figure it’s probably not all staged.”

“Mmm.” Jed was definitely smiling now. “There’s no telling, is there?”

“I guess not.” Karen turned to her printer and lifted a fresh print from the tray. She wasn’t going to argue about the existence of ghosts. Not now, and not with Jed.

The silence that filled the studio was absolute, unrelieved by even a questionable EVP clip now that she’d turned the show off.

“About last night,” Jed eventually said, his deep voice banishing the quiet, “I’m sorry. I came here to apologize.”

Karen set the print down on her desk, next to the mouse pad, as her pulse fluttered in her fingertips. “Sorry for what?”



* * * * *





She stood there, green eyes wide and hands loose at her sides, her slender fingers brushing the corner of her desk. How could she look so oblivious, like she had no idea what he was talking about?

“For taking advantage of you.” He resisted the urge to wince as the words came out. “I shouldn’t have kissed you like that – not after you’d been drinking.” It had felt right at the time, but that was just evidence of what a fucking creep he was, wasn’t it? Offering to give her a ride home after she’d been drinking, and then shoving his tongue down her throat before he let her go…

Karen laughed, and the sound sent slivers of disbelief slicing through him. How could she laugh about it? Had he betrayed her trust so badly that she thought she had to make a show of not caring?

“Jed, you didn’t take advantage of me. How could you think that?”

“You’d been drinking,” he repeated. “I should’ve just taken you home, and let that be that.”

She crossed her arms, and he couldn’t help but notice how the motion pushed up her breasts. Visions of her in her low-cut dress from the night before swarmed his memory and amped-up his guilt. She’d looked amazing… She still did, in the new sweater Mina had given her for her birthday.

“Well, I’m glad you didn’t,” she said. “I mean yeah, I drank, but not too much. I was barely buzzed, and well – I don’t know if I would’ve been able to work up the courage without a little help.”

“The courage?”

“To – you know. When I leaned forward and…” Her face was suddenly, totally pink. “I thought we were going to kiss so I sort of leaned toward you. When you pulled away, I was horrified. But then…” She shot him a shy grin. “I realized I’d been right.”

“You’d been thinking about us kissing?” The notion sent a pang of sharp-edged desire through him, but he knew he shouldn’t savor it … alcohol had a way of making people think things they shouldn’t.

“For ages.” She crossed her arms a little more tightly, almost as if she were hugging herself. “Ever since I first met you. I just didn’t know how… I mean, I was nervous. It was hard for me to tell if you felt the same way.”

Looking at her standing that way, with her arms tight around her own body while her eyes searched his, he wanted to pick her up and wrap his own arms around her and hold her so tightly that he’d be able to feel her heart beat, her breasts compressed against his chest… “Are you serious? Karen, I didn’t realize…”

Ever since she’d met him? Holy shit… That’d been months ago. And yeah, he’d felt an instant attraction too, but the idea that she’d been waiting all that time, wanting something to happen... It was unbelievable. And it made him feel like a dick.