Page 5 of Silver Foxed

Why? I don’t exactly know. But I don’t want to keep Elijah waiting. I have a feeling if I left him down there long enough, he’d leave without a word. I want to at least talk to him about what happened so he doesn’t tell my dad about this. It would be awkward as hell.

Once I’ve slid on a pair of underwear with more coverage, I’m running down the stairs. When I don’t see Elijah in the dining room, I panic. I hear the jingling of keys and rush to the front door, completely out of breath now.

When his tall form comes into view, a nice duffle bag over his shoulder and a leather messenger bag in his hand, I frown. “I told you not to leave.”

He tenses at my voice and turns, his sapphire gaze looking me up and down. It’s hard to tell if he likes what he sees because his bowed pink lips are pursed and his forehead is still pinched. Not that it should matter. I shouldn’t want this man to like what he sees, right?

“This is your family home, and I’m intruding,” he says. “I’ll go find a hotel for the night and head back to LA in the morning.” When he grasps the doorknob, I jump into action, placing my hand over his. My fingers touch the skin of his knuckles, and static electricity zips up my hand. We both gasp. I pull away and shake it out.

“Are you okay?” he asks quietly, those damn blue eyes boring into mine as if he’s genuinely concerned that I’m hurt.

I shoot him a small smile. “Dry mountain air.”

He nods, standing to his full height in front of me. My head hits the upper part of his chest, and my skin prickles from how close we’re standing. I tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear and take a breath in an attempt to calm my fast-beating heart. It doesn’t help that Elijah is a very attractive man.

From far away, I could see he was good-looking, but up close? Holy wow. With a jaw that could cut glass, high cheekbones, a well-manicured beard, and not a single hair out of place, this man could be a model. And now that I can see his face more clearly, I’m going to guess he’s not as old as I initially thought. Probably quite a few years younger than my dad. Which excites me more than it probably should.

Elijah swallows, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his stubbled throat as his gaze darts to the V of my dress. I have large boobs, so anything I wear that has a lower neckline will show cleavage. But the longer he looks, I realize that, in my rush, I forgot to put on a bra. My nipples go hard under his attention, and I cross my arms over my chest.

Elijah clears his throat and glances down at his watch. He’s flustered to the point that I can see a tinge of pink on the apples of his cheeks.

“I should leave before it gets dark,” he says.

I reach out and take his bicep in my hand. The skin is warm under my touch, and I swear he shivers. “Sorry,” I say, pulling my hand back and giving him space. “Just stop trying to leave.”

I laugh lightly.

“I don’t understand how my parents double-booked us here, but you’re here already. And you’re my dad’s friend. You can’t stay at a hotel.”

“It’s fine. It will be one night.”

“The hotels are probably booked,” I counter. “It’s their busiest time of year. I doubt you’d be able to find one. Just stay here for the night. It’s totally fine.”

“I should at least try to call and see.”

I press my lips together, wondering if I should be offended that he’s so determined to leave. Though my rational brain understands why he wants to.

“If you feel like you need to, go ahead. Though it’s really not a problem for you to stay here. I bet if you text my dad, he’d insist you stay, too. He wouldn’t want you to waste your money when we have plenty of perfectly good rooms here.”

Elijah looks at his bags and then back at me. “Are you sure? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“I promise you’re not. But if it makes you more comfortable, you can sleep in the theater room downstairs. That’s as far as you could possibly get from me and the master bedroom.”

His eyes soften. “Please don’t take my wanting to leave the wrong way. This is”—he makes a small gesture between us—“complicated and awkward.”

I twirl a piece of my wavy hair around my finger. It doesn’t escape me that Elijah watches the movement with interest. As if my body has a mind of its own, I pop my chest out a bit so his attention wavers back to my cleavage before he quickly looks into my eyes. Could this man really be attracted to me?

I paint a warm smile on my face and cock my hip, placing a hand on it. “This doesn’t have to be complicated. Or awkward. Stay the night, and if, in the morning, you still want to leave, feel free.”

Elijah swallows again, and I’ll admit I love the way his stubbled throat flexes and the veins in his neck pop as he does it. Wow, Alex, I internally scold myself. Maybe I should drive thirty minutes across the Nevada border and go to a club. Apparently, I’m horny and need some attention. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be actively eye-fucking my dad’s friend-slash-employee. But I mean, who can blame me? This man is gorgeous.

Finally, after what seems like forever, he stops the war he’s having with himself and nods. “If you’re really okay with it, I’ll stay for the night.”

“Oh, great!” I clap my hands and do a silly little excited jump. Elijah’s eyes go straight to my boobs at the motion, and I bite my lip to keep from smiling. I know I shouldn’t, but I like that he’s looking. I like that it seems our attraction to each other is mutual. Even if it’s a little naughty given who we are.

“Thank you for offering,” he says, “but please let me know if at any time you want me to leave.”

I let out a breathy laugh. “That won’t be happening. As you said, it’s only for the night. And really, Elijah, no thanks needed. Though I wouldn’t suggest sleeping in the theater room, especially when we have perfectly good beds.”

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