Mav didn't fit anything she wanted. He stood six four, and had the shoulders and chest of a linebacker. His stomach was pure iron and his hips-ah, those hips were made for pumping while a woman's legs were wrapped around them. Realizing where her thoughts had just gone, Lindsey jerked her face upward, her cheeks pink as she met his eyes again.
Desire, hot and heavy, sparked in his gaze before he seemed to tamp it down, and then he winked at her and gave her a lopsided grin.
"You can look all you want, sugar," he purred.
"I wasn't looking," she said way too loudly.
He laughed-actually laughed at her, which royally ticked her off. Oh no, he didn't get to mock her without getting the sharp end of her wrath rained down upon him.
"I wasn't," she reiterated, stomping her bare foot in the sand, as if that would do any good. The action only made his grin bigger.
"It's okay, sug," he began. She was about to ream him some more when he continued. "Look all you want," he said with a shake of his head as if scolding her, making her want to pummel his arrogant ass.
Her head was spinning. Was he actually flirting? If he was, he wasn't too good at it. She looked at him for several tense moments as she waited for him to go on, but he seemed comfortable enough just standing there letting the breeze ruffle his dark hair.
Finally, she couldn't take the silence. "What is wrong with you?"
"Let's take a walk. I want to talk to you about some things."
Before she could accept or deny his invitation, he moved up next to her and slowly twined his fingers with hers, giving her time to pull away. On the one hand she wanted to move a couple of feet to the left, but on the other, there was an odd sense of security having him so close. She was torn about what to do.
"It's okay. I'm not going to do anything more than hold your hand. We're just two buddies taking a stroll down the beach," he told her as he gave her arm a gentle tug.
Lindsey looked longingly at the gate that would lead her to her friend's property and, more importantly, to the safety of the cottage-the cottage with a couple of locks on the door to keep the world out.
"Come on. You're going to hurt my feelings," he said as he tugged again.
"I . . . uh, I can't be out long," she told him, but much to her surprise she found her feet moving along as she followed him closer to the water lapping against the shore.
"I wouldn't want to keep you out too late," he said with a chuckle. It wasn't even noon yet, but she decided to let that one go.
They reached the water, and that's when she noticed his pants were already rolled up and his shoes and socks gone. He pulled her into the freezing surf, and she again tried to yank her hand away from him, but he wasn't having it. When the water was to her mid-calves, he stopped and she shivered as she stood there beside him.
"What do you want to talk to me about?" she said. He didn't appear to be in a hurry, but she figured the sooner he said whatever it was he wanted, the sooner he would let her escape. At least she hoped that was the plan.
"I want your help, and I've decided I can't take no for an answer."
"If it's the fund-raising, I can't do it," she told him, deciding to be firm. She wished her voice came out a little less breathy.
"You're going to help me, and in turn, I'm going to help you."
"I don't need your help with anything, Maverick," she told him, tugging on her hand again. He didn't release her. The thing was, she did need his help, but she had too much pride to ask for it. Plus, admitting she needed help would show just one more of her weaknesses, and she couldn't do that.
He didn't respond for several moments, and she began to chew on her bottom lip as she waited to see what he would say next. Lindsey felt him turn, even though she was looking out into the bay, gazing at the masts of several sailboats as they glided along the rolling water.
With his other hand, the one that had the cast all the way to the palm, he touched her chin. Her head went back, and she looked up at him, unable to pull away.
"You know I don't like to be touched," she warned. But the words didn't actually come out as much of a warning. They were more of a panting request.
"I know, sugar. But you need to be," he said, his eyes darkening again, though he made no more moves to invade her space.
"I'm not your sugar," she informed him. "And if you know, then why aren't you letting me go?"
"Because I also know that fear and pain are eating away at you, and I've decided I care too much to allow that to happen. It's my duty to not give up on you."
She was dumbfounded at his words. To her this seemed like so much more than him trying to get her back into his bed. It seemed like he meant what he was saying. And what was even more astounding than that was her response to him.
"Your duty?" she gasped. "Who in the world do you think you are? You don't know me from more than a few conversations, a one-night stand, and a few failed flirting attempts. You have no idea who I even am or what I'm thinking or feeling."
"I've been to hell, sug, and it's not a great place to be. You're hurting and there's a connection between us. You know it, I know it." Thankfully he didn't comment on the sex part of their relationship. She was weak right now, and he seemed to know it, though she didn't necessarily feel that he was taking advantage of that fact.
"That sounds like a line if ever I've heard one," she said.
"No lines. I've decided we're better off together right now. I need help, you have time, and this will be good for you and me both. I've been told I'm a bit arrogant. You can help me out with that since you seem to have no trouble holding back what you really think about me," he said with a smirk. "And this fund-raiser is truly for a good cause. I know you will love being a part of it."
She looked into those green eyes and found herself almost getting lost in them. If she didn't know any better, she just might think there was a touch of vulnerability there. But that couldn't possibly be the case. Not with a man like Maverick, who held the world in the palm of his hand.
"Even if I were foolish enough to accept this . . . kind . . . offer, what in the world do you think I need? And how do you plan on giving it to me?"
When his lips turned up in a wicked smile, Lindsey thought it might have been a good idea to rephrase those last sentences. But if he made some crude remark, she would at least be able to put him back in the sty where he belonged.
"I'm far too much of a gentleman to give in to that question," he said with a laugh and a wink. "No plans. We will just plan the fund-raiser, make it better than ever, and see where it leads us. You got out the other night and the world didn't end. Let's take it a day at a time."
What she should do was tell him thanks but no thanks, and then let him watch her backside as she disappeared. But dang it all to heck, she was intrigued by the idea. No pressure. He promised no pressure. But could he actually keep that promise? It seemed that there was always pressure building within her whenever he was around.
Oh, this was already messy and complicated. She was a fool to think spending more time with the man wouldn't make that worse. But for some reason she wasn't telling him no.
"I don't know. You have to give me time to think about it."
"I can give you time to think, but not too much. I don't want you talking yourself out of this," he said.
"I haven't talked myself into it, so how could I talk myself out of it?" she pointed out.
At her words he laughed and tugged her against him. Her stomach stirred and she wanted to pull away-but at the same time she found she was exactly where she wanted to be.
Complicated. This just proved how complicated the situation was.
"And when we're all done with planning," he said as his lips widened in the biggest grin she'd ever seen, "we can celebrate."
Lindsey had no doubt what kind of celebrating he had in mind. She wanted to tell him he really did need an adjustment in his arrogance if he thought he was getting her back in bed again, but the lashing she wanted to give him seemed to get lodged in her throat.
"Want to clarify that?" she asked with narrow eyes.
His fingers rubbed along her lower back as he held her tightly to him. "I won't lie to you, Lindsey. I want you night and day." The intensity in his gaze had her heart thundering. "But don't worry. I won't act on it until you're the one dragging me into the bedroom."
It took her several seconds to process his last words, and once she had, the thumping of her heart increased, but this time it was because of irritation. She decided emphatically that Maverick Armstrong really did need to be taken down off his high horse. If anyone could reach him all the way up there, that might just be possible to do.