Page 25 of Tiny's Law

He lets go of my hand to hold the door open for me, but as soon as we both pass through, he places his hand against the small of my back to guide me down a hallway past a few rooms where different music pours out from behind the doors.

“Pebbles just had twins a week ago, so her assistant has been running the place. I texted her before coming over, and she told me where to find the keys in her office.”

I wait just inside the beautifully decorated office while Tiny rounds the large white desk and pulls the key set from a drawer. He holds them up and jingles them at me.

“The apartment entrance is off the back. There’s a separate parking lot, so we can either move our cars or we can just walk around the side.”

“Walking’s fine.”

I guess I didn’t take into consideration the fact that I’m wearing the skinniest stiletto heel to date and that we’d be walking through grass to get around the building, but Tiny takes the opportunity to put his arm around my waist to hold me upright. It’s not like I’m going to complain about his muscular arm keeping me from breaking an ankle or falling flat on my face. When his hand squeezes roughly into my flesh, a delicious tingle runs straight to my core, and I have to fight to hold in a whimper.

Still holding onto my waist, he leads me up a well-lit cement staircase to the second floor.

I look around and am highly impressed with the outside area. The ‘parking lot,’ as he called it, is just a row of parking spaces lining the entire back of the building. It’s actually a large L, and the dance studio is at the closest end to the main road, making the apartment an end unit. Emma will only have to deal with one neighbor, which is pretty damn sweet for apartment living. Even better yet, it’s only a two-story building, so no one is above her to make noise.

Tiny unlocks the deadbolt and pushes the door open. He immediately moves over to the security alarm and punches in a number to stop it from blaring. I wince at the sound, and he apologizes. “We can control the volume on them.”

“Good, because I don’t think I want that going off like that every time I enter my house.”

Tiny smiles back at me and waves his arm out, gesturing to the open space.

I follow behind him to each room and smile wide, knowing that it’s perfect for Emma. But instead of telling her, I pull out my phone and FaceTime her. Her smile lights up the entire screen as I show her everything that Tiny has shown me.

When I flip the camera back around to show her something else, I don’t even realize that Tiny is in the frame until I hear a little gasp, and Emma’s voice lowers into a whisper. “Who the heck is that beefcake?”

Tiny, who I’m now starting to realize is a little bit of a goofball, jumps right into the frame and smiles, waving at the camera. “Hi Emma, I’m Tiny. Even though you whispered, you’re still on speaker, and I heard you.”

Emma groans, and I watch as she slaps her hand across her face and she starts fiddling with her daisy necklace. I chuckle at her and wink. “Tell Daddy Nelson to send the deposit, babe. Cause I need you here like yesterday.”

Emma’s smile returns and she lets out an excited squeak. “Going now. See you soon! Bye!”

Emma clicks off, and I drop my phone into my purse.

“Beefcake, huh? That’s a new one.” I roll my eyes at him and point him to the door.

“Let’s go.”

Once back outside, it doesn't surprise me that Tiny takes my waist again and guides me across the grass. This time, though, he doesn’t let go of me until we get to my car.

Just as I’m about to thank him for showing me the apartment and helping with security, he surprises me by backing me into my car door. Using his finger to tuck a wayward curl behind my ear, he lowers his voice, causing a shiver to tingle up my spine. “What are you doing tonight?”

I’m shocked, speechless at the position he holds me in. But I’m not disturbed, not even in the slightest. His large body pressed against mine is sending all of my nerve endings and thoughts haywire. One hand rests at my hip while his other forearm rests on the car above my head, creating a cage around my body.

“Uhm,” I force a swallow and pretend like I’m thinking of plans I could have had. Let's face it– it’s a Wednesday night in a town I'm not all too familiar with yet. My only plans were curling up on the couch with Meatball and a glass of wine. “I don’t have any plans.”

“I know it’s unconventional, but the club always goes to The Castle every Wednesday night. Would you wanna come with me?”

I don’t know what The Castle is, and I’m not entirely sure why it could be unconventional, but the flutters rolling through my stomach from his hard body pressed against mine cloud any judgment I could've had.

“Sure,” I say, my eyes flipping between his espresso-tinted gaze and his full lips, which seem to be getting closer and closer by the second.

Just when I think he’s about to press his lips to mine, a car horn blares in the parking lot a few rows over. I jump and Tiny lets out a groan of frustration at the interruption. Instead of kissing me, Tiny leans forward and takes my bottom lip between his teeth, nipping at the plump tissue before backing away.

“I’ll pick you up at 8.”

“You don’t even know where I live,” I call to his retreating form.

“Honey, there isn’t a damn thing about Desert Rose that I don't know.”

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