Page 29 of Dangerously Tempting

“I don’t doubt that. No roadkill, I promise.”

“When?” I ask, hoping that I’ll have a little while to emotionally and mentally prepare myself. A smile overtakes his whole face as he raises his brows.

“It’s a nice day today…” It’s the child-like excitement on his face that does me in. Maybe it’s better to just dive in feet first, anyways.

“Okay,” I breathe out, and he gives me an excited little shake before he climbs off of me and then tugs me to my feet.

“I’ll go grab my keys,” he says happily, and heads to the kitchen to get them.

I pull my shoes on as I wait for him, and he steps into his when he comes back. We pause at the door on our way out and he drapes a riding jacket around my shoulders. His scent surrounds me and I subtly dip my chin down to draw it in as I tuck my arms into the sleeves.

“It’s a little big, but it’ll keep you safe just in case,” he says, zipping it closed. He says a little big like he’s not several sizes bigger than me, leaving me drowning in it, but I don’t mind. The fact he’d even think to put it on me makes me feel safer.

Feeling safe with him has never been an issue, though. From day one I felt protected, like he was analyzing my every movement and response to get a better read on me, to know what I needed at any given time to feel comfortable. It’s one of the things I enjoy about him most. Every other man I’ve been with has been so focused on themselves that I don’t think they ever took notice of things that bothered me.

He’s like a breath of fresh air, so I’m embracing every moment while it lasts. If life has taught me anything, it’s that what’s too good to be true probably is, and Jameson… well, he’s damn near perfect. Painfully so, at times. I catch myself feeling inadequate often, like I’m not deserving of him, and I struggle to remind myself that he chased me down and made us a thing. He wouldn’t have bothered if he felt that way about me.

“Thank you,” I mumble, and he ushers us out the door and towards the elevator. There’s a pep in his step that makes me smile, and I wonder if he’s displayed his happiness so openly this way since he was a child. It seems that he’s never had someone tear down his joys, and I’m relieved at that. His open excitement at sharing something with me that he loves is giving golden retriever energy, and I’m absolutely loving it, even though I’m nervous as hell.

By the time we get downstairs and the elevator doors slide open, I’m trying to mentally talk myself up so that I don’t completely chicken out on this. Last time, I was furious, and that was enough to dampen my fears and get me on the bike behind him. But today? Today I am just nervous. I don’t want to dampen his excitement if I can’t follow through.

We approach the bike, and Jameson curses, squatting down. I look to where he’s looking and am somewhat ashamed when relief floods through me. He has a flat tire, which means that I’ll get that emotional and mental time to prepare myself for this after all. The guilt doubles down as I watch his face fall in disappointment.

“Looks like we’ll just have to do it another time. Gives me a bit longer before I become roadkill.”

He laughs, pushing to his feet, and steps closer before he tugs me to him by the front of his jacket. I bump into his front, teetering on my feet for a moment before he steadies me by my arms.

“Guess you get to live another day. Thought for sure I had you right where I wanted you, but that tire went and foiled my plans.”

I chuckle, looking up at him, and he smiles looking down at me. We stand there for a moment, and it’s like the rest of the world disappears, and there are no issues to worry about. It would be so easy to fall for this man, and that thought terrifies me just as much as it excites me.

I push up onto my toes, closing the distance between us to press a quick kiss to his lips. “I guess we’re free to do something else, then. Any ideas?”

He grins widely. “I have one I think you’ll enjoy.”

Playlist: "Stuck On You," Meiko

When he pulls his truck into a spot behind the building, I can’t help but glance between the glowing sign and his face in surprise. “Are you for real?”

“Hell yes, I’m for real. There’s nothing like a few rounds of karaoke to end the day on a high note.”

I throw my head back and laugh. “You’re pulling my leg, aren’t you? How do you even know this place exists?”

“Not at all. Theo loves to explore places in the city, and we discovered this place a few years ago. A group of us come at least once a month.”

I eye him warily as he pushes his door open, still not convinced that he’s not just messing with me. He rounds the truck and opens my door, holding his hand out to help me from the truck. I take it, climbing out, and we approach the building as he explains how it’s set up like a Korean karaoke place would be; you rent a room for your group and sing just to each other instead of a crowd of strangers.

I am now fully convinced that he’s been here before, and I’m intrigued by the idea. I’ve always hated normal karaoke because it feels like you’re being judged the whole time, but this way doesn’t sound so bad. Once he rents a room for us, we head down the hall to our number and go inside. There’s a big screen on one side of the room and seating on the other with a table for any drinks or food you might find, and resting on its surface is the tablet we use to make our song choice and some microphones.

He snags up the tablet, calling dibs, and I laugh as we take a seat on the couch. I didn’t expect his exuberance to extend to more than just his bike, but I’m finding that he has way more facets than I realized. I try to peek over his shoulder as he scrolls through song choices, but he tilts it away from me.

“Nu uh, no peeking,” he says, poking the screen a few times before snatching up a mic and putting the tablet face down on the table. It takes a couple seconds for the song to start up, and as soon as the familiar throwback melody floats through the speakers I start laughing.

“This one goes out to my poor bike, with her sad, flat tire,” he says into the mic with all seriousness, cracking a slight smile at the end that has me tearing up from laughing so hard. Then he starts belting out You’re Still the One by Shania Twain like he’s putting on a Broadway performance and my jaw drops.

Is there anything this man isn’t good at?

His antics have me crying with laughter through the entire song as he does over the top reaching motions, hip bops, and even drops to his knees at one point, like he’s pleading. I’m dabbing at my face when he returns to the couch, trying to get myself under control, and he laughs at what a mess I am.

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