The Hunk Next Door(36)

Riley had been kind and supportive, but she would do well to remember she didn’t really know him.

“You’re thinking too deeply again.”

She blinked. He was in front of her—he had, in fact, left the driver’s seat and come around to open her door while her mind had been skipping around. She glanced at the empty driver’s seat and back to where he stood now.

“Come on.” He held out a hand to help her. “I’ll walk you in.”

Did he think she’d get lost between the drive and the door? Was he worried she’d turn into his kitchen rather than her own? Now, that was a tempting thought. She put her hand in his, knowing before they touched that his skin would be warm, his palm rough from work. “I was going to tell you.” She just hadn’t decided if she’d tell him her professional troubles or her intimate, personal desires.

“So tell me.” He gave her fingers a gentle squeeze, encouraging her to move, but she stayed in the seat.

The view was striking, the moment weighted with significance as her heart pounded in her chest. Surely he could hear it, too. She reached out, wiping away the smudge of soot near his hairline. Filled with need and raw awareness, she wanted to simultaneously rush forward and stop time as she leaned close and pressed her lips to his.

He didn’t respond. His hand, fingers warm around hers, didn’t even twitch.

Stupid. Idiot. The internal reprimand continued as she pulled back, searching for the right words. There had to be some lighthearted phrase that could explain away her unwelcome blunder into his personal space. She might have to move. Out of the neighborhood. She’d go find a hotel if he’d just let her go.

Hysterical laughter bubbled in her chest, but she smothered it. This kiss might just succeed where all of the criminal threats and fallout from the drug bust had failed. The impetuous kiss might drive her right out of Belclare. “Excuse me.” She didn’t know where to go. He remained rooted in place, blocking the logical way out of the truck.

She tried to decide if she could slide across the bench seat and out the driver’s door and still maintain her dignity. Of course her dignity had taken flight during that brief one-sided kiss. She’d misinterpreted his kindness as a reflection of her attraction. How...totally stupid. She was too weary to come up with a better word. Good grief, she was a fool. How had her intuition failed her so badly?

Why didn’t he say anything? She frowned at their joined hands. Why wouldn’t he let go of her?

“Excuse me,” she repeated, shocked that it was even possible for her to feel increasingly humiliated with every passing second. She shifted, trying to scoot away from that strange, bewildered expression on his face. Trying to escape the mortifying moment.

“Wait.” The single word he uttered sounded strained.

She froze, too embarrassed to look at him.

“Abby.”

“Mmm-hmm?”

“You surprised me.”

“Okay. Sorry.” She winced as the apology tumbled from her lips. This wasn’t like her. None of this was like her. “Thanks for your help. Have a nice—”

She gasped as he tugged her back to the edge of the seat. He pulled her knees to either side of his trim hips and linked his hands at the small of her back. His breath fanned softly against her skin, mingling with her own as he leaned close enough that his lips were on hers. Light at first, then a claiming that sent her pulse into overdrive.

Her hands fisted in the front of his vest and she hung on for dear life. The kiss spun out, sweeping her away as his tongue stroked into her mouth. She tasted the smoky air, the lingering pepper of the fries and the unique flavor of him. She wrapped her legs around him, her heart racing. Relief and desire were a heady mix as the embarrassment of moments ago was blasted away by this passionate flare.

“You surprised me,” he repeated, this time against her cheek.

“Remind me to do it more often,” she said, nipping gentzly at his jaw. “You have an interesting response.”

He chuckled, pulling her close enough to feel his arousal. His brown eyes glinted in the weak light cast by the lamp in the cab.

“Oh.” She dropped her head to his shoulder. “Anyone might see us out here.” Obviously she’d lost all of her powers of common sense when it came to Riley O’Brien.

“So come inside with me.” His wide palms cruised up and down her back, his fingers sliding under the clasp of her bra. “I have cookies.”

“I can’t do that,” she replied, though she’d be hard-pressed to come up with a logical excuse right this second.

“Then your place. We’ll skip the cookies.”