Page 34 of Hunted Hearts
“I’m surprised to see you awake. You must have gotten in really late.”
“We did.”
“I see you made it through the insanity.” She reached for another mug from a shelf filled with coffee cups of every size, shape and color. “Coffee?”
“I’d love some, and yes, we made it through the insanity.” She let out a soft laugh. “Somehow. Thank you for the welcome last night. The sign was such a big surprise. It was so much more than I expected.”
“I’m glad it arrived before you did. It wouldn’t have had the same effect otherwise.”
She passed her the mug with a friendly grin, and Juliette cradled it, letting the warmth radiate into her fingers. Then she remembered her reason for getting up in the first place. Theo and his infernal early-morning workout.
“I was hoping you could tell me the address here. I was trying to get something delivered and realized I have no clue where I even am.”
Aspen rattled off the address with ease while Juliette typed it into her phone to complete the order later. Right now, she just wanted to savor the rich flavor of coffee. It grounded her, just a little.
“Thank you. I’m just going to take my coffee back to bed.”
Aspen offered her a smile. “We’ll catch up more later.”
Juliette returned to her room, clutching the mug like a lifeline.
And stopped dead when she reached her door.
Theo was there. Standing in the doorway, his T-shirt damp and clinging to the hard lines of his torso. His gray sweatpants hung low on his hips, his rope still coiled in one hand.
He spun the second he noticed her, his reflexes sharp, those steel-gray eyes flashing toward her. “I was looking for you,” he said, voice a little rough. His gaze flicked to the coffee in her hand. “Looks like you found the kitchen.”
Heat rolled through her unbidden. Her robe gaped just slightly as she shifted, and she saw his eyes dip—brief, but unmistakable—before he stepped closer.
“You’re going to catch cold like that.” He reached to draw the fabric closed at her collar. His fingers brushed her skin, warm despite the chill lingering in the hallway.
Something inside her snapped, quiet but unalterable. She set her coffee on the dresser just inside the door, her pulse loud in her ears. Without taking time to think of what he might do, she reached out and clasped the tiny ties holding up his sweats.
She tugged each end a little to adjust his clothing the way he just adjusted hers.
Except her fingers didn’t want to move away. They caught the waistband of his sweatpants, her fingers curling lightly in the soft fabric as she tugged him closer.
His eyes darkened, flicking from her eyes to her mouth.
In one step, he was with her, his arm banding around her back, yanking her up against the hard wall of his body as he ducked his head and claimed her mouth.
The kiss hit like a spark to dry tinder—hot, fast, consuming. His hand slid to her jaw, anchoring her as his mouth took hers, firm and unhurried, like he wanted to feel every second of it.
A moan gathered in her throat. Sparks of heat zipped along her nerves.
She pressed closer, the warmth of his body seeping through the thin barrier of her robe. Her fingers tightened on the drawstring of his pants as the dam that had been between them finally broke.
* * * * *
Theo swept his tongue through Juliette’s mouth. She tasted like coffee and something sweeter, something that was uniquely Juliette.
And it went straight to his head.
He had no contingency plan for this. It never registered that taking on a ward would lead to wanting her so damn bad he was shaking with it.
He shouldn’t cross this line, but after everything—the scorpion, the fire, watching that rod of steel in her back grow harder with each passing hour—it was impossible not to want her.
Then there was that cute little way she’d adjusted the ties of his sweatpants. Christ, he couldn’t get much harder than he was now. His cock surged, and there was no way in hell to hide that in a pair of sweats.
