When we stopped, I turned to him. “What the hell—”
He put his palms on my cheeks and pressed his lips to mine. I tried to lean away, but he kept me still, tilting my head to get every ounce of contact between our mouths. His insistent kiss coupled with the gentleness in his hands melted me and before I knew I’d done it, I parted my lips.
His tongue swept inside, caressing mine as he slid one hand into my hair. I moaned when he trailed his fingertips down my neck, his touch raising goose bumps along my skin.
He broke the kiss, but pinned me with his gaze. “Did that feel like a kiss I’d give to just another notch?”
I shook my head, the butterflies in my chest stealing any speech from me.
“There’s something about you. About how you make me feel when I’m with you.” He put his hand at my nape, pulling me closer as he ghosted his lips across mine. “I’ve never met a woman like you.”
I tried to catch my breath. “So you didn’t hate me the first day we met?”
“Well, yeah, I did.”
I tried to pull away but he didn’t let up. Would he ever let up?
“I did. I thought you were a stuck-up jerk from Stone and Porter who thought she could push me around. I didn’t like it.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Sounds about right.”
“No, it isn’t.” His eyes were earnest, seeking. “You’re so much more than that. And you were right to doubt me, to challenge me, especially after how I treated you that first day. Now, though, I just need . . . I need you to give me a chance, okay? Can you do that?”
Could I? Kennedy wasn’t the sort of man I was expected to date. I knew nothing of his family other than who his brothers were, and his reputation was just as bad as or worse than I’d implied. Mother would have an even bigger fit. That last thought warmed me more than it should have.
“I think I saw a little smile there.” He kissed me lightly and let me go. “I’ll take that as a yes for now. Don’t say anything else. No takesies backsies.”
Looking past him, I saw Shorty give me an embarrassed wave. Color crept into my cheeks. I’d completely forgotten he was following us.
“Don’t worry. I’m sure he just took some mental pictures for the spank bank. Nothing serious.”
I snorted and covered my face with my hands. “You really are the worst.”
“Oh, you love it.” He pulled into the lane.
We made our way back to his house in a comfortable silence. The afternoon sun was warm, and the weather was supposed to hold for Mardi Gras. Not that I’d go to the parades. Natives—and especially the Carmichaels—wouldn’t be caught dead reaching out for beads or MoonPies.
Shorty followed us home, but parked around the corner and out of sight before coming through the back door.
I kicked my shoes off and arranged them neatly next to the front door. “I think I’m going to take a bath, if you don’t mind.”
“Sounds great. I’ll scrub your back.” Kennedy flipped his shoes off and left them where they fell.
“I want to relax.”
“I’m good at that. Getting you relaxed.” He hugged me from behind and nipped at my ear. “Please?”
I wanted to say yes, but I needed some time alone to think. Maybe there was some clue I was missing, something to tell me what was going on with the case. And if I were being honest, I wanted to think about him, about what our relationship was. “Next time.”
“Cock block.” He nipped my ear harder and then patted my ass, shooing me down the hall toward the bedroom. “Can I at least peep at you a little bit? Wait, scratch that. Pretend I didn’t say it. It’ll make it more exciting for me if you don’t know I’m there.”
Shorty chuckled from the kitchen. A thunk came from the guest bedroom to the right, and I froze.
“Kennedy,” I whispered, and began backpedaling toward the living room.
“What?” He sidestepped me when I bumped into him, putting his arm out in a protective motion.
“I heard something. In the bedroom.”
“Oh.” He relaxed. “Faye? That you?”
“Yeah, just trying to make sense of the drawers in here.” She chuckled. “I can tell you did some organizing since I was last here.”
He charged down the hall. “Don’t you touch the Autobots. If you take them out of the packaging, they lose their value.”
Kennedy collected toys? I lost it, laughing and following him into the guest room. “Hi, Faye.”
“Scarlett.” She walked over and hugged me, her gray hair scented with lavender and vanilla. “I hope Kennedy’s been behaving over at your firm. Though, I’ll be honest, it’s been like heaven not having to deal with him the past few days.”