Page 6 of S.O.S. Perk

Perk grinned broadly. “It’s a text chain for our sessions. We call it ‘Prepare to Die’,” he revealed with a chuckle. “We, uh, all have pretty competitive spirits.”

The first real smile he’d ever seen from Sloane appeared on her lips. “Cute. You guys don’t mess around.”

Damn.The buttoned-up agent had just gone from stunning to…fucking gorgeous.

And just like that, the first crack appeared in his confidence.

Doubt seeped in.

Was Sloane way out of his league?

Not for a romp, of course, if that’s what he wanted. Sexually, Perk could more than hold his own. No date of his ever went home unsatisfied. But with Sloane he already knew he dreamed of…more, and he was suddenly afraid of not meeting her expectations. Perk was certain—and had been since the minute he’d set eyes on the stony agent—that she was special; the whole package. But him? He was often looked at as a boy-toy due to his perpetually youthful countenance. And in his experience, most people were not willing to dig beyond that. Would Sloane? Because exploring the new and unexplained feelings toward her that were bubbling up in his chest was something he desperately wanted to do, and she justhadto give him a chance.

The more he was around her, the more he craved her company.

He had a feeling convincing Sloane to dig deeper, however, was going to be an uphill battle. So for now he’d continue to keep it light, as much as it killed him.

He refocused on their sparring discussion.

“Yeah. We’re pretty competitive,” he told her. “But we have a lot of fun, too.”

“Who’s your biggest adversary on the team?” she asked, beginning to walk again, wending her way toward a food truck that offered a Mexican fare. That was more than fine with Perk. It was actuallyhisfirst choice of food, as well.

“Prez,” he answered without hesitation. “For sure. I’m pretty much on top of the rest of the guys, but Prez is a beast, and I’m the only one who can best him. Not always, but a lot of the time.” Perk wasn’t bragging. Even though Prez had five inches and forty pounds on him, Perk was damned fast on his feet, and he probably took Prez down at least forty-percent of the time.

“Then I’d love to get in on that action,” Sloane told him. “I bet I can give Prez a run for his money.”

“Which means you’re fairly confident you’ll kickmyass?” Perk teased.

“We’ll find out, won’t we?” she countered with a smirk.

Well shit.Perk was now, certifiably a goner.

The more human Sloane became, the more his interest ramped up.

Before he did something stupid and declared his everlasting devotion to her, he needed to get onto a safe topic.

“So…Mexican?” he questioned, looking ahead to the short line that had formed at the truck.

“Yup. Nothing like a good burrito,” she told him. “Unless it’s accompanied by a margherita.” She affected a cute as hell pout.

Who the hell would have figured Sloane could pout?

She continued. “I’m thinkingthatwish is off the table though, since it’s all about the food trucks today.”

“Don’t count on it,” Perk was happy to let her know. “We actually hired a bartender who’s set up inside Anna’s house.” He rubbed his hands together so he wouldn’t be tempted to touch her again. “Which means you can have both. Which first, though? Food or drink?”

“I’m not generally a lightweight,” Sloane told him, “but I haven’t eaten all day, so I think food is a good place to start.”

“Agreed.” Perk dared take her elbow again, but this time she shook him off. He shifted a step away, hiding his hurt while she snapped at him.

“You have to stop touching me,” she snarled, but instead of anger, Perk saw uncertainty bleeding from her eyes.

“I do?” He wanted her to explain, but he also wanted to comply with her wishes. At least for now. Certainly not in the long run unless she convinced him she was serious. Which it didn’t seem like she was. Perk could tell. She simply didn’t look…committed to her words.

And he freakinglovedtouching Sloane. His whole body felt jazzed from the smallest of contact.Screw it.He couldn’t hold back. “Why?” he finally prodded again.

“Because…” She looked at his hand where it still remained semi-raised. For the first time since Perk had met her, she seemed less than confident. She squared her shoulders, stopped in her tracks, and turned to look at him. “Because I feel something when you touch me, and I don’t like it,” she delivered, deadpan.

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