Page 6 of Sawyer
In that neighborhood, she might as well be issuing an engraved invitation for uninvited “guests.” It was a miracle she hadn’t been robbed. Or worse. It was yet another thing that made his palm itch.
She went to bed after midnight most nights and was up again by five the next morning. So far, the closest thing to a vegetable he’d seen her eat was ketchup on the shark-shaped fish stick she ate every night with a side of microwaved mac and cheese.
So, yeah, Lele was a Little. He’d bet his life on it. He just wasn't sure if that made his mission easier or harder.
He hadn’t spoken to her yet, other than ordering beer and paying his tab. That would have to change soon.
“Is there anyone in town she’s close to? Other than the stepbrother? Best friends. Boyfriends? Lovers?” Reid asked.
Sawyer gritted his teeth when she bent over to grab a beer from the cooler under the bar, leaning over and showing much too much of her full, rounded breasts. “You mean other than every man with a dick? She sure seems to know how to get their attention. But no, there’s no one.”
“Careful,” Reid said. “Lower your voice, or you’re going to be the one catching someone’s attention. And why the fuck do you care if she’s had every man in town?”
Damn it! Sawyer took and released a deep breath before answering. He never lost control of his emotions. Hell, he’d wondered if he even had them anymore. “I didn’t say she had. Just that men like to hit on her. I’ve never seen her take them up on it. They approach her with no respect, like she’s an easy lay. It doesn’t get them far. And to answer your question, Idon’tcare.” But that wasn’t entirely true, and he knew it.
It took all he could do to stay at the table, instead of tossing her over his shoulder and carrying her into the back room to have a conversation about proper dress when plying horny rednecks with beer.
She had to know every man in the bar ogled her every time. It seemed the only beer they were interested in was the one she had to bend over the farthest to reach. What was she thinking? Not that it was any of his business. What she did didn’t affect him. Not at all.
He adjusted his weight in his chair to get more comfortable.
She wasn’t his type. He wasn’t attracted to soft, curvy, wounded doves who needed someone to stand up for them when their lives were hard. What did it matter that her infrequent laugh wrapped around him like a soft, warm blanket on a chilly day? Whose kindness was only outdone by her stubbornness.
Nope. She wasn’t his type at all.
Fuck. He was so screwed.
“She’s faking all that innocence shit, you know?” he said aloud.
Fuck! Now he couldn’t even control his mouth. Reid looked at him, concerned curiosity growing in his eyes. “Do I need to call in someone else to take over this op? You sure you can handle this?”
“I’m handling it fine.” Sawyer snapped. “And who else are you going to get? Everyone else on the team now has a Little of their own who they don’t want to leave, remember.”
Reid took a deep swallow of his beer. “Okay, so you are the only one who can do this. But we need to figure something out because you seem to be personally affected by the mark.”
Sawyer gritted his teeth. The things this woman had done and the lives she’d ruined infuriated him. How could she pretend such innocence? She might be many things, but innocent hadn’t been one of them for at least seven years.
He couldn’t let Reid take this op from him. He owed it to Jaxon. “I’m not personally affected. I can do the damn job.”
Reid studied him and then nodded. “All right, what’s the plan?”
That was a good question. He needed a new plan. He’d be a fool not to take his lizard-brain attraction to her into consideration.But just because she could trigger a response from his dick, that didn’t mean he’d fall for her act.
He wouldn’t allow himself to forget her lies and false testimony. Nor would he forget she’d sent Jaxon to prison seven years earlier. At least she’d done her part.
That was a fact. It was no wonder she had nightmares, but if he ever proved her statements were lies, the boogie man in her dreams at night was going to be the least of her problems.
Sawyer looked for something to dislike about her but found only luscious curves in all the right places. Curves the perfect size for his hands to grab and explore.
At least, they would be if she were the type of woman he was attracted to. And if she were any other woman on the planet.
But she wasn’t. Despite her innocent façade, Lele was the consummate liar. A woman willing to sacrifice anyone necessary to save her own skin. He could never be attracted to someone like her.
Nope. Not even a little bit.
The cute bounce in her step and the healthy glow of her skin were a complete turn-off. And that wasn't just when she was at work, which he could blame on wanting tips, because when she bounced, all of her bounced. Especially those luscious breasts.
Reid snapped his fingers in Sawyer’s face. “Man, you are not inspiring me with confidence here. Do you even have a plan?”
