Page 22 of Fury

And did she mention kissable?

With that she stood, grabbed her slim wallet from the inside of her jacket draped across her seat and pulled out her cash.

“Your money’s not any good here,” he said.

“I have to. Allowing you to pay wouldn’t be appropriate.”

He shrugged. “Neither of us need to pay. Call it an island perk. Besides, I’m the one who ate everything.”

She looked up then to see him grinning down at her, his eyes holding that mischievous look all over again. It was impossible not to laugh. “You’re almost right about that. Although I did enough damage that I’ll have to spend an extra thirty on my run tonight.”

His smile faltered. “You like to run?”

She scoffed, the sound rougher than she’d intended. “I don’t think like has anything to do with it. I have weight and fitness standards to adhere to. Therefore, if I want to eat anything more than a salad at every meal, I run.”

He shook his head, his smile disappearing. “Your body is perfect just the way it is.”

“Now I know you’re full of it.”

“I’m serious. I’m not blind to the way hu—women torture themselves with what seem like ridiculous weight standards that seem to want women to all be the same size. If you ask me, that’s crazy. You are perfect the way you are.”

As if to emphasis his point he wrapped his big hand around her waist and halted her forward movement. They’d been walking from the pub to her car and were currently in an enclosed walkway hidden from everything around them.

Her heart rate increased and her breathing grew ragged. Whether her reaction came from his touch or the fact they were alone, leaving her possibly vulnerable she couldn’t tell. Although if she had to pick one…

He’d moved behind her and then stepped closer almost putting his front directly against her back. That move alone made her stomach jump, but when he swept a piece of her hair from her neck and grazed her bare flesh with his fingers her muscles alternately froze and went jelly on her.

“I really like that you don’t look fragile,” he whispered into her ear, his breath caressing her entire neck region. “Strength and beauty make an incredible combination in you, Penny. So much so that I’ve been dying to touch you since we met.” His fingers fanned out before tightening down in a firm grip. “You’re all soft and sweet on the outside with a layer of steel underneath.”

“I’m not that sweet,” she said, a little horrified by the breathy tone of her voice.

“I could kiss you and find out for sure.”

Her breath caught in her throat. The idea of this big, beautiful, scarred man pressed against her was too much to resist. By all rights she should be scared. Despite her training, he had her in a weak position if she needed to defend herself.

Except there was no fear inside her. Well, other than the fear of him not following through on his threat to kiss her.

He touched the side of her face, his fingers trailing from her brow to her chin, where he tightened his grip until she turned toward him and looked him in the eye.

“You should look at me now, Penelope.”

His use of her given first name instead of a nickname or her last name threw her off kilter once again. The intensity of his stare mesmerized her. He really did want this in a way she couldn’t explain.

“I am—” He didn’t let her finish. Instead, he simply leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. A thrill shot through her at the first touch, traveling from her head all the way to her toes, which curled in her sensible shoes.

A sudden hunger for more clawed at her insides. To the point she had to do something. She grasped his shirt and lifted it from the waistband of his jeans until her hands met skin and the rock-hard abs that she’d expected.

He groaned into her mouth and another thrill shot through to her core. This time from the satisfaction that she’d gotten to him in an unexpected way. She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her fingers into the muscles of his back. She needed him closer. All the way close.

He must have gotten the message because the next thing she knew he too clawed at her clothes until his bare, big work- roughened hands were stroking up and down her back.

The kiss turned frantic as his tongue slid into her mouth. She moaned, heady with all the new sensations rioting through her, clamoring for her attention.

She scraped her nails along the warm skin of his back and he rocked his hips forward in response. The jolt of sensation when his hardness collided with her body in the perfect position made her gasp for breath. A sound he quickly took from her without breaking their contact.

Oh God. She wanted him. Right here. Right now. Consequences be damned.

Again, he practically read her mind when his fingers sought the clasp of her bra and easily worked it free. He shoved the material aside and swiped both of his thumbs across her aching nipples.

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