Page 21 of Square Deal

So much for the sweet, southern belle.

Hannah Jane looked like she would fit right into the six merry murderesses of the Cook County Jail. I half expected her to break out into “Cell Block Tango”—telling the dust bunnies just how she popped me with her shotgun.

I got off the bed and stood in front of Hannah Jane, towering over her.

I lingered, watching the flex of the muscles in her throat. Thesubtle way her lips parted. The way her eyes tracked my mouth.Yeah, she was thinking about it. Thinking about what round two would be like.

I was a patient man.

Gently, I trailed one finger down the column of her neck and across her collarbone until it dipped into the unbuttoned neckline of her sheer blouse. I knew I was gambling, but like Luca always said: I was one irrationally confident son of a bitch.

“One question, Princess.”

Her lips pursed as she tried to hide how much that single touch affected her. The cards were in my favor. “What?” she huffed.

“What would you be doing tonight if I wasn’t here?”

A wicked smile grew on her face. Her eyes flitted up to meet mine. “I don’t know if you could handle it, Lawson.”

I slid my finger in a straight line, down the valley of her breasts, over her blouse, until it hooked in the waistband of her skirt. “What do you have in mind?”

“How were things at the hospital?”I asked.

Hannah sat next to me on top of her bed with a bowl of popcorn between us.

I had followed her downstairs, waiting patiently as she poured kernels into a pan on the stovetop, citing all the reasons microwave popcorn was terrible.

Once the kernels sprang to life, she dumped them into a large bowl, drizzled the popcorn with truffle oil, and sprinkled on some freshly grated parmesan.

She handed me the bowl while she grabbed two bottles of sparkling water and gave me marching orders back to her bedroom.

I set the snacks in her room before ducking into the guest room to change.

I hadn’t packed for an impromptu nonsexual sleepover at the house of a woman I barely knew. Luckily, I had a pair of mostly-clean sweatpants. When I walked back into her room, Hannah rolled her eyes at my shirtlessness, but she was just as scantily clad as I was.

She had on a cream-colored négligée. The satin stopped at mid-thigh, but it left absolutely nothing to the imagination.

Then again, we’d already had sex. Not like I hadn’t seen what was underneath.

The popcorn was an olive branch. She invited me to sit beside her and continue the marathon ofThe Officefor as long as the power held out. The rain had picked up outside, and the ominous whistle of the wind promised one hell of a storm.

“The hospital was good,” she said, popping a piece of popcorn into her mouth. “Erica’s doing well. I didn’t stay long. She looked pretty tired.”

“Is the baby okay?” I mumbled. Truthfully, I didn’t know much about the process of pulling a human out of another human, nor did I want to get acquainted with the topic. But I figured that was a safe question to ask.

Hannah nodded. “Really good. She’s so cute. I held her for a little bit. Steve looked like he was going to lose his cool if he didn’t get his daughter back pronto, so I handed her back.”

I chuckled. “You and Maddie—you’re like honorary aunts, I guess.”

She smiled and wiggled back against the stack of pillows. “That’s the best part. I get my baby fix without having to actually take care of a baby.”

“Just spoil her and hand her back when you’re done?”

She pointed a finger gun at me and winked. “You got it.”

I chuckled and grabbed a handful of popcorn. “Not a bad gig.”

Our attention turned back to the TV. It had been a long fucking time since I had just sat beside a woman and hung out. I was either working hard or partying harder. I wasn’t the “lounge around in my pajamas and make pancakes on a Saturday morning”type.

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