Page 64 of Fast & Reckless
“Um …”
“Because I’m not,” he said. Then his expression grew cautious. “Unless you want me to? Is this not …”
The surge of relief would have brought her to her knees, had she been standing. “No. I mean, yes. I mean—” She let out an exasperated breath. “I don’t want to forget this happened. Unless you do.”
A slow, devastating grin spread across his face, and she knew she was in so much trouble with him. “I don’t.”
“So we’re …”
He ducked his head to start kissing his way down her neck as he slid his knee between her legs. “We’re whatever we want to call it.” His hand came back to her breast, kneading and pinching. She was about to lose her mind entirely, to pull him over on top of her and forget the rest of the world existed. Except the rest of the worlddidexist and it was complicated.
She’d spent the whole of last night relating the disastrous fallout of her last major relationship, and now here she was inbed with the one guy who could drag the whole sordid story back into the light.
“I don’t want you to take this the wrong way—”
He lifted his head to look at her. “This almost never ends well.”
“No, it’s just—you saw what happened at the restaurant last night. With my parents. And Brody.”
“Yeah?”
“This? Me and you?”
Understanding dawned in his eyes and his expression cooled slightly. “You want to keep it a secret.”
“That sounds so terrible.”
Something flickered across his face and the muscle near his jaw clenched. “It’s true, though, isn’t it?”
“Will, it’s not you.”
He exhaled and started to roll off her. She grabbed at his arms to stop him. “Listen. You heard all about the last driver I was involved with. And you’re not just any driver. You drive for my dad’s team—”
“Got it. I’m just another bastard that can’t be trusted.”
“I didn’tsaythat. I trust you. I do. But you weren’t here, so you don’t know what it was like for me. What people said about me. I just can’t—”
He hesitated. “Yeah, sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I get why you’d be worried about what people would say.”
“Worried doesn’t begin to cover it.” Just the thought of it set off a low-grade panic in her chest.
He nodded tightly. “Understood. I’ll keep it quiet.”
Those were the right words, but she didn’t like the way he said them, like she’d offended him in some way.
“I promise, it’s better for you, too. The last thing you need at this point in the season is that kind of heat.”
“I can handle heat, Mira. I’ve done it before.”
“I know you can. But the only thing people should be talking about right now is your driving. Anything else is a distraction.”
He looked at her from under his furrowed brows for another beat before nodding tightly. “You’re right. Sorry I was a dick about it.”
“You weren’t. And I’m sorry I come with all this bullshit.”
He was still propped on one elbow, leaning over her, looking down the length of her body as he considered. Then he reached out and slowly dragged a fingertip up her thigh. By the time he got to her hip, every inch of her was on fire.
“Right now, I’m thinking the bullshit is worth it.”
