Page 27 of Captain's Claim

Her eyes grow wide, so wide I can see every tiny fleck in the hazel depths.Beautiful."Fun? You think this is fun?"

"Hell yeah! I saved your ass though."

She shoves at my chest. Big mistake.

Because now she's touching me.

“Oh yeah?” she huffs, trying and failing to look unimpressed. “From what, exactly?Children?”

Her voice is sharp, but her hands are still on my chest. And my body is reacting before my brain can catch up.

Jesusfuck.

Her breath is warm against my lips, our noses almost brushing.

My hands flex against the barrier behind her, my knuckles grazing the exposed skin of her wrist. A full-body awareness slams into me, so fast, so fucking strong, that for half a second, I think about leaning in.

I forget about the program. I forget that's she's here to destroy it. I forget that she could ruin every logical thought I've had about keeping my distance from exactlythis.

Then,THWACK.

A snowball slams into the side of my head, knocking the moment straight to hell.

“OH SHIT, I THINK I JUST HIT THE CAPTAIN!”

Fucking Ryder.

Sophia snorts. A real, unfiltered laugh that hits me harder than the snowball just did.

I curse, shaking the ice from my hair, then grab her hand and yank her forward.

“Move it, sweetheart,” I growl, dragging her with me as chaos erupts all over again. “Let's get out of here before we both end up buried in ice.”

Her fingers tighten in mine, and fuck if I don’t like the way that feels.

Too much.

Way too much.

Sophia’s panting beside me, her hand still wrapped in mine as we duck between two wooden booths away from the rink, tucking into a narrow alleyway out of sight from the endless line of stalls that are brimming with the festivities.

Snow clings to her coat, melting against the warm flush of her skin, her blonde hair wild from the chase, disheveled and so fucking pretty it hurts.

And she'slaughing.

Not the restrained, polished chuckle I’ve heard before…

A real, breathless, belly-deep laugh.

The kind that shakes her shoulders and sends her entire body tilting, unbalanced until she leans against the wooden wall like she needs it to keep standing.

Her eyes shine, her cheeks are pink from the cold, and there’s snowflakes caught in the golden strands of her hair, melting before they even have a chance.

I fucking forget how to breathe she's so goddamn beautiful.

"That's insane back there. That can't be legal."

I grin. "You were having fun. Don't lie."

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