Page 31 of Tempest

CHAPTER NINE

Monday Evening

Ivy opened the door to the guest room slowly and called out Ryan’s name. “Are you asleep yet?”

“No. What’s wrong?”

He sat up, the sheet fell away, and Ivy saw his massive, glorious chest. The light from the hallway illuminated him perfectly. Lord, he was sexy. “I can’t sleep. My head is filled with a million thoughts.”

“You want to watch a movie or something?”

“Or something.” She turned off the light in the hallway, walked over to the bed, and climbed in. “Maybe you can tell me a story about your glory days, or tell me what you did last week at work.” She lay down next to him and fixed the covers and her pillow. The exhaustion of standing strong was starting to wear her down, and she wanted to curl into Ryan’s solid chest and fall asleep. The kiss he’d given her after dinner made her think that he wouldn’t kick her out, so here she was.

He raised his arm and lifted her so that she was lying against his chest. His skin was as hot as the midday sun, and it felt delicious to be lying against him. “Are you naked?” she asked.

“Run your hand on down and find out for yourself.” He laughed.

“No way. If I do that and find you without any boxers on, then I may lose control. I’m not ready to do that yet.”

“Anything I can do to help get you ready?”

“Don’t you tempt me, Ryan Cordell.” He held her hand and moved it slowly down his stomach. Holding her breath, she felt the top of his boxers and let out a nervous laugh. “Oh, you.”

“Gotcha.”

“That was a good one. I don’t mean to play with fire by crawling into bed with you, but I don’t want to sleep alone. I’m sorry if I’m giving you mixed messages.”

“Whatever made you crawl into bed is fine with me. I’m a grown man and I’m not going to jump you.”

“You are that. A rare species and one not often sighted. Many women consider you a mythical being. Much like a unicorn.” His rich laughter filled the room and the sound of it allowed her to relax.

“We’ll just think of this as a date, a way we get to know one another.”

“A date in our underwear.” Ivy laughed.

“We’re jumping right into the good stuff. We could be on to something here. If we’re not compatible in bed, then a hundred dinner dates are not going to make a difference.”

“You’re right. Since we’re on a bed date, tell me what did you last week at work.” Curling into him, she rested her head against his chest and breathed in his scent. The combination of his soap and skin were making her rethink the control she was holding onto. Filling her lungs on a deep breath, she settled in. “I heard you were on an extraction op last week. What happened with the girl who was kidnapped?”

“We located her in the Juniper Prairie Wilderness area and pulled her out. The team got lucky and we found her in time.”

“So, how do you like working at SAI?” His large hand ran slowly up and down her back, and she felt her mind quiet with each stroke. Maybe sleep would be possible. “Do you think it’s a good fit for you?”

“I respect the hell out of the company that Max started, and Joel is a top-notch commander, as is Grady. The rest of the guys are solid as well, so, yeah…it’s a good fit. My only concern is that I may not want to end up in Florida.”

“Where do you think you want to settle down?”

He lifted her chin and dropped a small kiss onto her lips. Ryan’s mouth against hers was the sweetest, sexiest thing that had happened to her in ages. No way around it. He was the real deal, and it might be about time she recognized that fact.

“I’m not sure yet. I guess it depends on a certain curvy brunette. I have a feeling that what happens next is going to help me decide.”

Boom. Her head and heart exploded. No man had ever uttered anything close. The fact that he was the type to do what he said only made it sweeter. “I’m going to make you pancakes in the morning.”

“What did I do to earn pancakes?”

“Nothing in particular. I just appreciate all of your support. It’s made a horrible day okay.” She kissed his chest and closed her eyes as her body finally gave in to exhaustion. As she fell asleep, his arm tightened, and she knew that he was someone worth considering.

---