Since I Fell For You(52)

Buck Elroy would hook up with Suzanne over Roman’s dead body.

Christie looked a little harried as she moved across the crowded dance floor straight for Suzanne and her father. Roman had learned yesterday what a large role William Sullivan had played in putting on this wedding. He’d not only built several temporary structures for the beach and the lawn, he’d also put together the lighting and run electrical throughout the site. After putting her hand on William’s arm to get his attention, Christine pointed at the string of lights up on the porch of the Inn. One of the cables was hanging halfway from the porch ceiling.

Roman could easily guess that while Suzanne was telling her father she’d help him fix it, he was encouraging her to keep dancing. At precisely the same time, Buck made a move toward them, obviously deciding this was the perfect chance to swoop in.

Like hell.

Before Roman could rethink what he was doing, he was standing in front of Suzanne and her father. “Do you need someone to step in?”

“Yes, we do, Roman.” William put a warning hand on his shoulder. “Take good care of my daughter.” He gave Roman a borderline threatening smile. “I wouldn’t want you to accidentally step on her toes.”

That should have been enough to warn Roman away from Suzanne. He should take them off the dance floor and into a safer situation where there could be no touching, no close contact, nothing that would make the flames already burning inside him leap even higher.

Instead, he gave in to the need he couldn’t keep at bay another second and pulled her into his arms.

Though he could feel her surprise at his impulsive action in the momentary tightness in her shoulders and upper back, she soon relaxed against him, putting her arms around his neck and resting her head against his shoulder.

How could he do anything but pull her closer? Her curves, her scent, were both intoxicating. And as they moved together, he knew no other woman would ever be such a perfect fit.

Roman would have given anything to stop time and make their dance last forever. But these few precious minutes with Suzanne in his arms were already more than he’d thought he could ever have.

When the song ended, letting her go was the very last thing in the world he wanted to do. He nearly couldn’t get his hands and arms to obey his silent orders to drop away from Suzanne’s body, or his feet to take a step back.

“Stay.” Her voice was low beneath the din of the other guests’ conversations, but he was watching her so intently that he was easily able to read her lips. Her skin was flushed, her lips wet from where she must have licked them while they were dancing. “Dance with me again, Roman. Please.”

Everything in his life used to be clear-cut. Work was work, play was play—and his heart never got involved, never grew attached. But those clear-cut lines had begun to blur the second he’d met Suzanne. And now, though they stood in the middle of a crowded dance floor with her entire family surrounding them—with everyone counting on him to protect her—he could barely think straight enough to remember that not only could they not have one more dance…

…they couldn’t have anything at all.

He needed to get them away from all these romantic couples, the sexy music, the breathtaking setting. He couldn’t risk another dance with Suzanne. Not when the first had nearly broken his control to smithereens.

“You barely ate your meal, and you must be thirsty after all this dancing.” He could hear how ridiculous he sounded, answering her request for another dance by telling her she looked parched. “Why don’t we go grab something from one of the waiters?”

“Why do you keep doing this?” Her cheeks were even more flushed now, but not from exertion. Her voice rose slightly as she said, “Why do you keep pulling away every time we start to get close?”

One more dance, one more close moment together like the ones they’d shared beneath the gazebo, was all it would take for Roman to do more than just drag her into his arms.

He’d outright devour her.

He’d never been so close to losing hold of himself and the emotion he’d been careful to keep carefully leashed for his entire adult life. But Suzanne had pushed him right to the edge of reason.

The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her, but he needed to shut this attraction down and douse the sparks, once and for all. Through tightly clenched teeth, he made himself say in a low voice meant for her ears only, “Because I’m your bodyguard, not your boyfriend.”

* * *

Ouch.

The last time Suzanne had been in anywhere near this much pain was when she’d accidentally run into a lamppost in the park. She had been thinking about a problem with her code instead of looking where she was going and hadn’t even realized she had fallen until she found herself flat on her back on the concrete. She hadn’t broken anything that day, but she’d been pretty bruised.