Page 40 of Billionaire's Bookworm

“Don’t worry about it.” I caught her hand as she reached for the destroyed book. “I never liked Hemingway anyway.”

She didn’t pull away. “Liar.”

“Okay, maybe I likedthatcopy. But I like this better.” I squeezed her fingers, giving a slight tug to pull her closer.

She didn’t resist as she murmured, “What, having your possessions systematically destroyed by my dog?”

“Having you here.”

The lantern light caught the flush spreading across her cheeks. “Wade...”

Another crash, this time from upstairs, followed by the distinct sound of Porky’s nails on hardwood. Emma winced.

“How the hell did he get up there?” I wondered aloud.

“He’s very motivated when it comes to destruction,” she sighed. “We should go check on him before he finds the rest of your shoe collection.”

“Probably too late for that,” I said, but kept hold of her hand. “Let him explore. I’ve got insurance.”

“That’s a dangerous thing to say. He once ate an entire couch. True story.”

“An entire... you know what? I don’t want to know.” I tugged her hand, lacing my fingers through hers. “What Idoreally want, is to finish what we started at that chili cook-off.”

Emma chuckled, her tone flirty, but with a note of hesitation. “Which was?”

“This.” I leaned in slowly, giving her all the time in the world to pull away.

She didn’t. Thank God, she didn’t.

I brushed my lips over hers teasingly, the touch more of a gentle question than a kiss. Then Emma’s free hand fisted in my shirt, and gentle went out the window. The lantern I held clattered to the floor as I backed her against one of the bookshelves, deepening the kiss. Her teeth grazed my lower lip and I groaned, sliding one hand into her hair, gripping and tipping her head for better access. “God, Emma, you have no idea how bad––”

“Wait,” she gasped, pulling back slightly. “We should?—“

A third thunderous crash from above made us both freeze.

“Damn, that sounded expensive,” I murmured against her lips, laughter coloring the words.

She blinked up at me, her gaze heated, her lids heavy. “We really should check on him.”

“Probably.”

Neither of us moved.

“Wade...” Her voice was breathy in a way that made me want to forget about everything but stripping her naked and devouring her whole. “This is...”

“Complicated?” I supplied, giving in to my need to press a tiny kiss to the corner of her mouth. “Risky?” Another kiss, this time along her jaw. “Worth it?”

She shivered, pressing against me and tipping her head to let me nibble her ear. “All of the above.”

Something that sounded suspiciously like glass breaking echoed from upstairs.

Emma dropped her head to my chest with a laugh. “Oh my gosh. He’s not going to stop until we check on him, you know.”

“Ugh. Fine.” With a chuckle, I took a reluctant step back, bending to retrieve the fallen lantern. I shot her a wolfish grin. “But we’re not done here.”

“No?” Her smile was both challenging and uncertain.

Giving her a confident wink, I took her hand again. “Not even close, Cinderella. Come on, let’s go save what’s left of my house.”

---