Page 61 of The Dating Dare

“Should I come do it for you?”

“Sure.” She seemed incapable of uttering more than single-word responses.

Seth came around to her side and lifted her up from her chair. He leaned down to kiss her neck and spread his hands under her shirt,caressing her back. When he tugged at her shirt, Tara lifted her arms to help him with the disrobing.

“I would love to have you in the kitchen, but I don’t think we should desecrate Landon and Aubrey’s sacred place.”

“The bed. Now.” Tara began pulling Seth by his hand, but he lifted her in his arms.

“Quicker this way.”

“Good idea.” She hummed happily and nibbled on his ear.

With a curse, he adjusted his hold on her and ran to his room. He plopped her down on the middle of the bed and immediately jumped on top of her. She giggled and squirmed under him. He easily caught her hands and held them over her head.

“Hello, Tara,” he said in a low, rumbling voice.

“Hi,” she replied in a breathless whisper, and gave a miniwave with one of her captive hands.

“I like having sex with you.” Growly. Sexy.Gah.

“I like it, too.” So much so that she was growing impatient with all the talking. “Kiss me already.”

“I really likeyou.” His eyes roamed her face with such tenderness, she nearly melted into goo. It frightened her how happy she felt about it.

“Thank you,” she said, but couldn’t admit to him that she really liked him, too.

It was too much… sharing. They weren’t supposed to get attached to each other. Making the best of the rest of their time together was one thing, but letting her emotions get sucked in too far was something else entirely. Yes, she was really into him, but that was for her to know and protect. Seth wasn’t Jason, but there was no reason to hand him a weapon he could wield against her some day.

“You’re welcome.” Seth smiled a bit wistfully and said, “Now I’m going to kiss you.”

Before she could tell him it was about time, he swooped down and captured her lips, and all she managed was a soft moan of approval.

Seth held his breath, wanting the moment to last forever. Waking up with Tara in his arms felt so right, he could hardly believe it.

He glanced at the clock. It was almost eleven. He must’ve worn her out. That made him grin like the smug bastard he was. He would hate to wake her from her catnap, but she might have plans before she went into work. Seth placed a gentle kiss on her shoulder and ran his hand down the silky skin of her arm.

“Do you have the early shift today?” he asked when her lashes fluttered as though she was considering waking up.

“No.” She stretched luxuriously with her arms above her head, then went limp with a happy sigh. Finally opening her eyes, she turned onto her side to face him. “How about you? Do you have to go into the restaurant?”

“Not for another couple hours, but I’ve been neglecting the website lately. I should get that finished.”

“Perfect. Since I’m here and all, I will lend you my expertise.”

“Thank you kindly,” Seth said, tucking her hair behind her ear.

“Before we do that, I have something to confess.” Her cheeks were flushed, but she had a look of fierce determination on her face. “It doesn’t feel right keeping this from you.”

“You sound so serious. Are you a spy or something?” Seth laughed nervously. What could she possibly have to confess to him?

“Aubrey never asked me to help you with the website,” she nearly yelled in a rush of breath.

“What? Why would you lie about Aubrey asking you to help me?” He was thoroughly confused. Why would she… Then it hit him. And Tara’s expression—the one that said she wanted to hide behind the dresser—confirmed his suspicions. She’d come up with the lie to spend more time with him. He smiled so widely that his cheeks cramped. “Why you sly little fox.”

“Look. I’m sorry I lied to you, but no harm done, right?” She pulled the covers over her head. “Can we just never talk about this again?”

“I went to Comfort Zone that day hoping to find you there,” he said softly, tugging away the sheet from her face. “In fact, I was going to stake out there for hours, waiting for you.”

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