Page 52 of Inarticulate

Savannah: Thank you for the inappropriate and outrageously beautiful gift. I assure you I didn’t plan on leaving a souvenir, however, I was rudely left to awaken alone and in enemy territory moments before the troops were scheduled to attack. I think my nights of sleeping naked are well and truly over.

She clicked send and threw her cell onto the bed. She was buzzing—her limbs, her heart, her thoughts. Whenever she thought his seductive appeal was unable to reach new heights, he surprised her all over again, weaving his web of infatuation tighter and tighter.

“You’re killing me,” she murmured to the empty room.

She backtracked into the small desk, clutched the wood, and scrutinized the package from a safe distance. The contents were masterful in their appeal. He’d purchased items to make her think of sex,their sex—last night and in the future—and she’d already been overdosing on the topic.

Her cell vibrated and she practically lunged for the device, sweeping it off the mattress in a lithe swoop as she casually dropped against the end of the bed.

Keenan: A woman of your outrageous beauty should never sleep with clothes on. Especially in my bed. I will endeavor to make sure that disservice to the world never happens on my watch.

She stared at the message. Couldn’t stop. Her focus was stuck on two words—outrageous beauty. Yes, they were her words repeated back to her with alluring perfection, but it was much more than letters and syllables.

She actually felt beautiful in his presence. It was probably why her brain was a mass of fog and giddy contemplation. He made her feel gorgeous. Adored. Revered wasn’t a stretch.

What so many men before him couldn’t articulate, he did without voice. He transformed her into a goddess whenever they were together. His presence, his dominance, even the possession in his eyes, it all wordlessly danced together to wrap her in a confidence unlike what she experienced in the professional world.

Her cell vibrated in her grip.

Keenan: I expect a fashion parade tomorrow night.

Tomorrow. Not tonight.

The giddiness faded and in its place came a vision of Penny. The reminder of her cousin’s taunts made all happiness dissipate and an unhealthy amount of determination ignite.

Savannah: How about tonight? I can wait up for you.

She started packing the orgasm-inducing lingerie into the box, taking her time to admire each item. She could pretend his reply wasn’t as important as her next breath. Yep. She could pretend the shit out of that.

Keenan: My commitments aren’t in the city and I’m not sure when I’ll be finished. I promise to make it up to you on Friday.

And there it was, the ball sailing gracefully into Penny’s side of the court.

Savannah fell back onto the mattress and stared at the ceiling. Her options were narrowing. She could either trust a man she barely knew or give credit to someone she was beginning to loathe. Neither made her heart flutter with joy. In fact, both options kind of felt like a knife to her kidneys.

Penny’s claws were gripping tighter around her throat. The woman was winning. At the very least, her manipulation was starting to dent Savannah’s thin layer of professionalism because all she wanted to do was forehead slap her cousin and tell her to wake up to herself.

Should she tell him about the confrontation with her cousin? She’d held off all day, not wanting to make a big deal out of it. But now that she had his attention, she didn’t want to let the opportunity slide.

Savannah: Penny was waiting for me when I arrived at my hotel this morning.

She picked up the purple bra and twirled it on her finger, waiting for her cell to buzz.

It didn’t.

She pulled all the lingerie out, inspected them, replaced them back into their box, and still there was no reply. Her body reacted as if starved of oxygen. Her heart rate increased, her lungs threatened to explode. There was so much angst waiting for one message. A few words.

Was it really worth it?

She closed her eyes and was immediately greeted with Keenan’s grin. She could feel his touch on her neck—his fingertips, his lips. She could sense the warmth from his strong arm wrapped around her waist, and her heart began to do that tippy tappy thing.

The phenomenal sex may not be worth the jealousy and anger Penny inspired. But Keenan’s attention, his affection, made the negative side-effects less harsh. Yes, the risk was great. Huge. Only there were so many other reasons to negate those bad thoughts. Seattle was lonely. She needed stress relief, and she needed to prove, not only to herself, but to Spencer, that she could move on.

The familiar vibration of her cell startled the silence, and the pressure in her chest lessened.

Keenan: What did she want?

She began typing instantly.Penny threatened me to stay away from you…No, that was too dramatic. She deleted the words and then started again.

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