Page 53 of The Wrong Promise

My ass is numb.

I’ve been sitting at the counter for God knows how long, eating everything Jobe puts in front of me. He leans on the counter and watches me as he eats. I already told him he is a genius in the kitchen. I should clarify he is a genius at seduction, and I want more.

We have finished a bottle of red, and I’m tingling all over.

“When am I getting the fourth dish?” I tease. I’m full and don’t need any more food, but a girl is curious when told there is hype around the save-the-best-to-last dish.

He unties his apron and folds it before placing it in a drawer. Then he leans over the counter and clinks his glass with mine. “Are you ready for it?”

It?

I drop my gaze to his pecs bulging before my eyes. I’m overheating again, and not from the thermostat setting. Speaking of… “If you turned the heating down, you could put some clothes on,” I note as I peel the jacket from my shoulders.

“Or you could take more off.” He quirks an eyebrow.

He is definitely flirting.

“The rule, you can look but not touch. Is that for you or me?” I take another sip and wait for his expression to give me something. He straightens and pours another glass ofwine. I wait a few more seconds before I add, “I guess it’s for both of us. You didn’t want to touch me with clothes on.” I straighten in my seat. “And while I’m here admiring all of this…” I circle my hand around him, “… we both know it’s a bad idea.”

Jobe turns and prepares something on the other counter. “Remind me again why it’s bad, Zara?”

“Um… because of your brother and my best friend. What do we tell them?”

“Why is it any of their business?”

“Penny is my best friend, and we tell each other everything.”

“I think I rank higher with Frank being my brother, and he doesn’t need to know anything unless I wish to tell him.” He places a bowl of ice cream and something else in front of me.

“What is this?”

He fires up the coffee machine.

“Ice cream and Nutella.”

He spreads Nutella around the top edge, makes a hole in the center of the ice cream and pours half of the shot of coffee into it. Then he picks up the spoon and mixes it gently, scooping it to the edge and collecting some of the smooth, nutty goodness. He then comes to sit at the counter beside me.

Jobe raises the spoon, and it touches my lips. When I open my mouth, he pulls the spoon back. Licking my lips, I let out a sigh when I taste the coffee shot mixed with ice cream and hazelnut. “You’ll regret it if you deny me this.”

He smiles and places the spoon in my mouth.

I close my eyes, savoring the flavor. “It’s divine.”

Jobe scoops some more and places the spoon upside down in his mouth, drawing it out slowly, watching mewatch him as we give in to the craving of wanting the sweet pleasure in our mouths.

The divine food, the expensive red wine, the stolen glances, the seductive stares, and now finishing with a decadent dessert, the coffee is giving me a boost. “I’m not going to sleep tonight,” I whisper. “I have caffeine sensitivity after midday.”

He withdraws the spoon from his mouth, licks the edge, and then places it over my lips as if to silence me. “Who said anything about sleeping?”

15

ZARA

“What are we doing?”I whisper.

His dark eyes hold mine as he leans closer. “Kissing,” he whispers as his lips brush over mine.

I close my eyes and gently press my lips to his. He pulls back slightly, his mouth sweeping over mine, his tongue tracing the outline of my mouth slowly, softly. Our breaths mingle, and I don’t think dessert has ever tasted so good. “I can taste the coffee,” I murmur.

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