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She turned her head, and caught alarm and worry before he smoothed his expression into his customary insouciance.
Has he met Gage? Why does he suddenly smell stressed?
“Uh, what? No! Of course not.” Gage backed up a step at her vehemence. “I’m sorry to catch you in the, uh, middle of, uh—” His gaze flicked back to Lucas, and narrowed in sudden anger, “—something, Malia. I’ll just email you my report.”
Then he all but fled to his vehicle. The big black pickup roared away in a spray of gravel.
She glared at his retreating taillights.
“Malia?” asked Lucas. “Everything okay?” He looked and sounded calm, but the tang of stress still laced his scent.
After that monumentally awkward encounter, she couldn’t really blame him.
She let out a frustrated huff. “Sheesh! What do I have to do to get some privacy around here?”
His brows went up. “Just how old are you, anyway?”
“Twenty-one.” She put her hands on her hips and turned to him.
“Oh. Wow.” He looked taken aback.
Which she didnotlike. Atall. She was an adult, damn it!
“You asked me what it’s like to live in a shifter town?” she demanded, letting her frustration boil over into words. “Well, I forgot to mention the part where you don’t get much privacy. The whole reason I moved out here was to escape all the busybodies in town!”
* * *
As Tringstad beat a hasty retreat, Lucas couldn’t believe how close the other game warden had come to blowing his cover just now.
What the hell was he thinking, dropping in on me like that? That’s what fucking email is for!
But Lucas knew it wouldn’t have been as much of an issue if he hadn’t decided to ignore his own advice about staying away from his too-tempting neighbor.
I need to keep my mind on the job, and my fucking hands off Malia.
But he couldn’t stop thinking about how sweet her mouth tasted. Or how fantastic her curves felt plastered against him. Or how her intoxicating scent informed him that she wanted him as badly as he wanted her.
His aching cock registered a protest, too. The dry spell had been a long one, and that hot kiss had promised an even hotter sequel.
Lucas sighed.Sorry, buddy, but it’s not going to happen. Not now. Not with her.
“Malia, I apologize for overstepping just now.”
“What?” She didn’t sound happy.
“Yeah. I took advantage of the situation, and you. I’m sorry.” Try as he might, he didn’tfeelparticularly sorry, even though it had been a damned stupid, reckless thing to do.
She’s too young, he reminded himself. And a cop. What if this screws up my cover?
He continued, “I promise it won’t happen—”
She interrupted him. “Hold on a sec. You really think I didn’t want to kiss you?”
“Uh—” He was taken aback.
Shit. A willing, eager Malia made it much harder to resist her. He wanted her so badly that it was hard to think with a flood of pure lust rushing through his veins.
Her hands went back on her hips. She glared up at him, looking angry but oh-so-fuckable. “Believe me, I would’ve let you know if I hadn’t wanted it!”
