Page 75 of My Vigilante Valentine

“Incident?”

“He got hurt.” At her alarmed look, I quickly added, “Not badly! Just a small... cut. So I helped patch him up at his place, and then...”

“And then you kissed!” She bounced on her toes, already forgetting about the small cut that she didn’t need to know was actually a deep gash that he’dsewn up himself.

“Was it everything you dreamed it would be?” she asked. “Better? Worse? I need details!”

Her excitement was everything, and I laughed. “It was… Well, let’s just say the way he looked in a suit? The way he looked at me in my dress? The kiss itself? I’m still not convinced I didn’t imagine the whole night.”

Though, I definitely wished a lot of it hadn’t been real. Focusing on our kiss was the only way I could banish certain other images from my mind, which meant that Jax’s kiss was actually as sanity-saving as it was the opposite.

Wednesday fanned herself. “Girl. I knew all that angst had to be hiding something good.”

“Oh, he’s hiding plenty,” I muttered.

And then the click of the back door broke through, and we both jumped as Jax strode inside.

Speak of the devil...

He looked good—in general, but also for someone who’d needed stitches the night before. His usual black hoodie was unzipped, revealing a dark gray t-shirt that did nothing to hide his status as a Greek statue come to life.

Did it delight me that I now knew that from both sightandtouch?

Yes. Yes, it did.

Our eyes met, and the intensity of his gaze made my knees weak. All rational thought left the building, and my heart? Fully betrayed me. It did thatstupidfluttery thing, and I had no idea if that was a permanent condition now.

“Morning,” he said, his rough voice instantly sending me back to last night.

“Hi.”

Wednesday looked between us, her smile growing wider by the second. “Well, would you look at the time? I should probably... go count things. Coffee beans, maybe? In the back. For a long time, and far away from all of this.Bye.”

She let her final word trail after her as she disappeared into the storage room, turning back only to shoot me an exaggerated wink.

Subtle, she is not.

Jax approached the counter, leaning on it with one arm braced on the edge.

“How are you feeling?” I asked, looking pointedly at his side.

“Fine. Your nursing skills aren’t half bad.”

“Probably a good skill for me to have around you.” I’d tried for casual, but we both sort of froze, and something told me that wasn’t the best thing to say. “Uh, coffee?”

He shook his head. “Actually, I was hoping we could talk.”

My stomach dropped.

Those were never good words, right?

Cool, cool, cool.I knew his assurances after that kiss were too good to be true.

And then he tacked on a quick, “Privately?”

I nodded. “Sure. We could?—”

Before I could finish suggesting we kick Wednesday out of the storage room, he was around the counter. And then, in one smooth motion, he swept me into his arms.

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