Page 17 of Forbidden Bastard
Most men wished they had that physique, not that she should notice--since she wasn't going to marry him.
Sandi held the handle like it might be the only physical thing that kept her steady, as he asked, “Are you ready for breakfast?”
“Almost, give me a minute.” She opened the door wider.
The room was maybe three hundred square feet. He took up a lot of the space just from entering and he crouched so his head didn’t hit the ceiling. “I can meet you in the lobby.”
Her bag and shoes were all she needed. She backed up as she shook her head. “No. It’s fine. Just wait here.”
“Very well.” He stood like he'd guard the door and yet today he seemed somehow less intense.
As she headed to the armoire, she glanced at her phone and realized that she hadn’t hung up. Sandi put the phone to her ear and her mother must have heard her breathing as she said, “He sounds nice.”
“Mom, we’ll talk later.”
“Hurry, sweetheart," her mother said. "We’re running out of time.”
Once again she called the shots so her parents could continue to be… frivolous and free from responsibility. Her shoulders grew heavy, but she tried to pretend she was fine. Sandi clicked the phone off and tossed it in her pocketbook, then put her black flats on.
Charles placed a hand in his pocket. “Was that your mother?”
She’d known he was a bad boy, but he just seemed more delicious without the suit and tie. Her face heated and she squeezed her eyes shut as she clearly imagined her mother telling Charles to marry her right here, right now. “Yes. She was convincing me to marry you straight away.”
He widened his stance as he stared down at her. “Did you tell her about our deal?”
She shook her head but met his gaze again as she checked her hair in the mirror to make sure the frizz was tamed. “I had no time.”
He took a step closer. “I can-”
“No,” she interrupted and took his hand, ignoring the spark that rushed through her as she pressed closer to him. “I’m looking forward to meeting your Clara. I thought about this all night.”
He reached behind him to open the door and asked, “All night? You didn’t sleep?”
She placed her hand forward to close the door and keep them in her room, so no one in the hallway heard her. “A little, but I kept remembering your kiss. The boys in Denver never made my toes curl.”
This close to him, smelling that woodsy cologne, and her tiny bed behind her made her imagine the illicit idea she never, ever would act on. His mouth curved upward and she saw his dimple as he said, “Sounds to me like you kiss the wrong men.”
The ones she’d made time for hadn’t exactly been stellar choices, yeah. Her lips began to tingle in hope for another kiss, then she shrugged and went past him to open the door. “I suppose that’s true. What about me?”
But he didn’t move and pressed his palm to the door to stay inside with her and asked, “Did you forget something in your room?”
But they hadn’t left for her to forget anything. Did he mean alone time? She returned to the door and his arms wrapped around her. Her heart beat faster as she asked, “No. What aboutme? How do my kisses compare to other women’s kisses?”
“Every woman has different chemistry.”
Her body was warm waiting for his touch. “So I was just okay? Your answer is totally fine.”
“No, that wouldn’t be okay for an answer. I must have used the wrong words to evade the question,mademoiselle.” He traced her cheekbone. “Why do you want to know?”
Well true, English wasn’t his first language. She stared at his lips and wondered why he hadn’t kissed her yet. Granted she hadn’t exactly had a lot of experience to draw from but she’d always been a good student. “'Cause I kept thinking about you, and your kiss. I want to know how I rate.”
He leaned closer. “Maybe it was the alcohol we both consumed.”
Seriously? She clasped her fingers around the back of his neck and said, “We can-”
He claimed her lips.
Once again the world dissipated into nothing except the two of them and this moment.
