Page 39 of My Irresistible Enemy

He followed me, poking my sternum again. “At the library. What the hell do you think you were doing?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Like hell you don’t. You were nice to me back there. When you didn’t have to be. When I didn’t evenaskyou to be. What gives?”

“Jesus, it wasn’t that big a deal,” I muttered, trying to step around him.

“Considering you can barely look me in the eye, let alone say more than three words whenever you’re on camera, I’d say it’s a pretty fucking big deal.” Aiden stepped to the side, bringing himself right back in front of me. “I want to know what your angle is.”

“Angle? There’s no angle. I just helped you find some books.”

“Yeah, and only hours before that, you thought the idea of us being nice to each other was laughable. So what the fuck? Did Tanner tell you to do it? Did he say he’d keep you here if you—”

“God, no. Tanner had nothing to do with anything. Why would he be involved?”

“Because he—it’s not important.” Aiden tossed his head and poked me again. I took another step back. We were practically doing the tango at this point. “Just answer me.”

“I don’t know, okay?” I threw up my hands. I felt antsy, and I desperately wanted out of this tent. “I don’t fucking know. What I do know is that I’m beginning to regret it, given your reaction.”

“Bullshit. That’s not a reason.”

“You seemed like you could use the help, alright? I won’t say I expected a thank you, but I don’t need the third degree.”

“And I don’t need your help!” Aiden shot back. “I was doing just fine.”

“Yeah, clearly. You had no trouble reading what was on that paper. You were just stalling for the fun of it.”

“Maybe I was.” His eyes narrowed. “Were you trying to make me feel like I was in your debt? Or hoping if you looked really nice all of a sudden that the network would change its mind and only sendmehome?”

“Seriously? Is everything a strategy with you? I was just trying to help. It’s not my fault you’re too vain to wear glasses on camera. But next time, I won’t bother.”

“I don’t need glasses,” Aiden snapped. “And I’m not vain.”

“You’re not?” I looked him up and down, and he flushed. “Could’ve fooled me.”

“Oh, don’t act like you don’t like what you see.”

He took a step forward, and I took another one back, only to find myself pressed against my workstation. His body was inches from mine. How the hell did we keep ending up like this? And why the hell couldn’t my body get the message that this was exactly theoppositeof where I wanted to be?

Forget antsy. I felt electric, my heart thumping so hard Aiden should have been able to hear it too. Why did he short-circuit my brain so much?

I took hold of his shoulders, intending to move him to the side and walk around him. But as soon as I felt his body underneath my hands, I forgot what I was trying to do. All I knew was how hot his skin felt, even through his T-shirt, and how badly I wanted to feel it with nothing between us at all.

Aiden smiled, slow and sly, and his eyes took on a mischievous glint. It wasn’t fair. He knew the effect he had on me. He’d known since the moment I’d first walked in on him on that ferry.

“Tell me you don’t like it,” he said.

His eyes dared me to. But when I opened my mouth to speak, my tongue was clumsy and slow. I couldn’t even figure out what I wanted to say, much less how to say it.

“Tell me you don’t want it.” He licked his lower lip, and I swear the ground dropped away beneath me.

“I—I—” I couldn’t make my mouth work. I slid my hands onto his chest. I meant to push him away but found myself grabbing his shirt instead.

“Tell me to stop, and I will.” He stood up on his tiptoes and brought his lips to my neck, brushing a soft kiss across my Adam’s apple.

He pulled back just far enough to look me in the face. Who had given him permission to have eyes so blue?

“Tell me to leave, and—”

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