Page 61 of Rugged and Filthy

“What? Just fucking say it,” I demanded.

“You have a mouth on you like a damn sailor.”

“You should talk, buddy.”

The tension between us was mounting again, although most of it was sexual. If I wasn’t careful, it would explode and that’s the last thing I needed.

Tick. Tock.

The awkward seconds ticked by as slow as molasses.

“I didn’t come here to make fun of you, your father, or your crew, Rylee. No matter what you think. I can’t stop thinking my father sent me here for unscrupulous purposes. I can feel it in my bones. From what I’ve seen, I don’t like it at all. I’ve been lied to a fuck load in my life and it pisses me off.”

“By whom? One of ten girlfriends in your life?” I snorted, immediately regretting it. I could swear his face had turned a shade of gray. That’s why he acted so fucking arrogant. He’d been hurt in his life. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for. Open mouth, insert entire foot.”

“Yeah, it was, but I’m more than a little rough around the edges. You’re right. I was dumped when I was a young man and I haven’t managed to give a flying fuck about anyone. Why bother? All you get is fucking heartbreak. But you’re wrong about your son. He can make even the hardest man smile.”

“What about me?” Oh, dear God. Why did I ask him that?

He wanted to act all big and tough, but it was in those few seconds of watching him watching me that I realized we were two people hiding behind masks just to survive.

“You could break a man’s heart easily, Rylee. But in an entirely different way.”

He’d just ceremoniously removed all the hostility I’d felt toward him. “I’m sorry I’ve been so… mean. I’m just still heartbroken.”

“I really am sorry about your husband. I can’t imagine how tough it’s been on you. But you can’t go off halfcocked because you’re feeling reckless and haunted. I won’t allow you to do that. You might hate me for it, but if it protects you and your family, then so be it.”

A strange reaction of feeling the need to tell him what Finn had said in his note weighed heavily on my mind. Foxx was little more than a stranger, a man who’d be returning to the States in no time. He really was worried about Madden and Declan’s connection. I wondered if Declan was responsible for the various acts of sabotage. “I’m in survivor mode because I need to be. Which is why all this needs to be business and nothing more.”

I’d used the words that needed to be said but I couldn’t stop looking at him.

Hungering for him.

Needing to be held closely. I missed cuddling and kissing, laughing and drinking wine. I missed being an adult who had someone to love her. However, I wasn’t going to find it in three men, let alone one. Still, the delicious man was incredible eye candy for the soul.

When he drummed his hands on the table, giving me a salacious look, another wash of heat powered across my cheeks and jaw. “You’re beautiful when you blush and when you climax.”

“Don’t do that, Foxx. We can’t be lovers.”

“Really? Some unwritten rule tells you that?”

“Yes. My rules. Remember?”

“Then what are you looking at? And more important, why are you so hungry for the man sitting in your house, the one you’ve done your best to hate?”

Dang it. He’d caught me. I might as well tell him the truth. However, I was not sleeping with him. Nope. It wasn’t going to happen.

“I’m not.”

“Then you’re lying.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Bet me.”

Another sinful stalemate. I took another step closer and was certain he would jump from his chair, acting like the predator I sensed he’d turned into.

“Your ink. What’s the meaning?”

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