Page 191 of The Reluctant Hero

“Who are we visiting again?” He leans over to whisper in my ear. His fingers skip along the baton until his hand settlesover mine. My pulse throbs at the contact, even though I’m pretty sure he’s just trying to keep me from hitting him with it.

He’s already in the car with me. If I don’t say anything, he’ll know anyway. There’s no point in keeping quiet about it.

“Karter Jakolski,” I whisper back darkly. Just the thought of the scumbag makes my lip curl in a sneer.

Jake gently nuzzles behind my ear, and I tense up in surprise. I must have zoned out again. I didn’t notice how close he’s gotten.

It feels good. My body is happy about this. My brain is confused, and my heart is sayingexcuse me?There’s a war inside me and I can’t decide if I should move away, sit back and enjoy it, or hit him.

“The more we cuddle up, the less he’ll pay attention.” His breath is hot against my neck, and knee weakening.

“Bullshit,” I grit out through gnashing teeth. My eyes dart to the rearview mirror just as the driver looks back at the road. “This is a free peepshow. Lay off before we have a wreck.”

The chuckle he breathes over my ear almost melts me into the seat.

“I’m escorting a war to a man’s doorstep,meine Seele. One teensy, weensy kiss won’t destroy your resolve.”

“I was thinking the escort should be to the window,” I mutter as his body slides closer still, pressing mine into the door so I can’t escape him. I could if I really wanted to. We both know it. My arousal at his pushy seduction is embarrassing.

“Wherever you like.” His hand cradles my cheek to turn my face toward his.

His eyes are a dark blue with lighter striations that distract. I think that’s how he can pull off looking so friendly all the time. No one is paying attention to the darker undertones.

He lightly nudges my nose with his, still playful despite everything else. It’s real and hopeful. As if a lot more weighs on my reaction than I can see.

“What do you get out of it,” I ask him, but my tone is flat. I don’t get it. What’s the obsession? I’m a dick on my best day lately, and it hasn’t been a good day in a while. I’m a sinking ship, and he’s hopping on board with a grin.

“You,” his lips soften as his eyes get darker. His head tilts the barest amount, and he presses his lips against mine. We haven’t closed our eyes, which makes it feel really weird.

He’s warm. I didn’t realize how cold I’d gotten. Like my frozen insides are working on chilling the rest of me.

I want to be warm again. Just for a second.

I close my eyes and dance my tongue across the seam of his lips. I feel it when he smiles, and then his tongue twines with mine in a rush that manages to surprise me. I’m crushed against the door in seconds, his hand cradling my head to protect it from the window.

His other hand has gone to my hip and squeezed tight. I can feel it over my skin as if I weren’t wearing anything. The angle is odd, but he’s taking as much advantage as he can.

His lips withdraw and press in again as if he’s imitating the slowest sex. He leaves long enough for me to take a breath and rushes back to thrust his tongue inside and play with mine.

I’m ready to melt into the door like putty. He might be playing, but he’s doing it to win without mercy.

That annoying doom feeling descends so quickly that I feel like I got slapped. My body tenses as the need tostopoverwhelms the arousal.

“Stop the car,” I gasp out and put an arm between us. Jake gives me a dazed look and takes in my sudden panic.

“Amanda?” He sounds confused, his body tensing as well.

“Stop,” I snap my head to the driver. His eyes go wide in the rearview, and he pulls to the curb.

Jake eases away from me, and I scan around the outside of the windows. I can see the sign for the street Jakolski’s house is on and a few homes that have immaculate lawns. Why am I freaking out now? There’s nothing to see.

“Something is wrong,” I answer myself, even though I can’t see anything.

“Do I need to kick him out?” The driver sounds confused. Jake raises a brow at him with a wry expression.

I ignore the banter as Jake assures him the kiss is consensual and keep looking. The feeling has gone down a little, but it isn’t leaving, and it’s heavy. I absently wonder if I asked the guy to back up if it would go away.

A cloud passes over the moonlight, making me frown. There was no sign of clouds before. Then I realize it’s smoke.

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