Page 51 of Hot for Hostage

“And that fear didn’t come back after the adrenaline faded?”

“By then, you were already helping me.” She shrugged. “We were kind of stuck together.”

My lips twitched again. “Lucky me.”

Sadie shook her head with a sheepish grin. “I’m just sorry it had to come at the cost of Bear slobbering all over your shoes.”

It was hard to hold a grudge against the mutt when he was the reason Sadie had tumbled into my life, gun blazing.

“That’s a small price to pay for what I get in return, especially when every minute I spend with you just makes me crave more. More of your sweetness. More of your surprises. More of these delicious lips.” I ran the pad of my thumb over the plump lower one, and her breath stuttered. “Have I mentioned how addictive you are?”

Sadie’s eyes grew comically wide, and she went stiff as a board.

“Too much too soon?” I whispered, smiling wryly and dropping my thumb from her lip. “Maybe I shouldn’t have shared that for at least a few more abductions, but I’m not one to stall.”

Not when I found something I wanted, at least.

“No,” she whispered. She lowered her gaze, and her fists clenched around the towel. “No, I’m glad you told me. And to be completely honest… I think I like you, too, Dav.”

The way she said it like she was admitting a grave sin made it impossible not to tease her, and I squeezed her hip. “Careful. You sound like you wish you didn’t.”

Sadie shifted on my lap and seemed to brace herself, even as she refused to meet my eyes. “It’s complicated. My friends warned me about you and your father and all that stuff. Something about you being his right-hand man?”

I leaned back in my chair, watching her closely. “Does that bother you?”

“Well, it’s not exactlyideal.” Her brow puckered adorably. “On the other hand, you rescued Bear. You’ve kept us safe. You opened your home to us.” She sighed softly as her shoulders slumped. “And let’s face it. I borrowed a gun and abducted you, so I’m not exactly innocent here. I guess I’m part of the criminal life now, too.”

That pulled an unexpected laugh out of me. She didn’t think she was innocent? “Sadie, you’re no criminal.”

“I am, but maybe it’s a good thing? Because I can’t deny I do feel a, um, well—” She cleared her throat, and her fingers fiddled with one of the buttons on my dress shirt. “A physical attraction… to you.”

The delightful blush creeping up her cheeks had me grinning like an idiot. “Is that right?”

Sadie’s gaze rose to my mouth, making my grin widen.

“And like I said,” she whispered, “there might be some feelings involved, too.”

That warmth hit me in the chest again, snapping like a damn rubber band.

“Join the club, sweetheart,” I murmured, wrapping my hand around the back of her slim neck and drawing her closer. When our noses brushed, a raw, stabbing hunger overran the last of my patience. “Now open those pretty lips and let me taste you.”

Sadie shivered under my grip but readily parted her lips, and I took full advantage by slanting my mouth over hers.

She tasted like fucking sunshine.

just stop kissing

. . .

Sadie

Sadie’s Guide toHostage-TakingBeing Taken HostageForming a Partnership with Your HostageEmbracing the Hostage Lifestyle, Tip #14: Don’t feel ashamed for making out with your hostage. Own it.

Davian Reed did not mess around when it came to kissing. He went straight for the kill, raking his fingers through my wet hair and pulling me flush against his front—making goose bumps spread like wildfire across my skin. His lips melded to mine and took complete control.

Not that I was complaining.

When he deepened the kiss with a hunger that stole my breath, the sparks I’d felt since we met roared into an inferno. I dropped the towel from my shoulders and straddled him with little care about what I was—orwasn’t—wearing. All that mattered was getting closer. Feeling the hard muscles of his chest against the softness of mine. I sank into the kiss with everything I had.

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