Page 14 of The Fear
"I vaguely remember that." Hala leveled a look at him. The man…why was he so hard to figure out now? "But that's not me. And I'm not too young. Not for a man your age, not now."
“No. Guess you’re not.” His eyes darkened. With a look…
She hadn't meant to saythat. Hala held up a hand. "Not that I'm saying anything. I don't want you to get any ideas, or think I want more from you than you are ever going to be capable of giving. I'm just saying, Luis is your age, isn't he?"
Grady's expression darkened. He just stood there, scowling at her, in worn flannel and grumpiness. "Luis Sandoval is six months or so older than me and Gunn. He's too old for you. He’ll keep his damned hands off you if he knows what’s good for him.”
What was Grady going to do, go pound on poor Luis?
"That's for me to decide. Not you. No matter what I do in my love life, Grady Hiller, it will never be any of your business. You’d probably better remember that.”
“Maybe I plan to change that?” Hot hands went around her waist in an instant. Then he scooped her right up against him. Hala just gawked up at him. Eight inches off the floor and everything.
Greer’s brother had gone completely insane here.
Had he totally lost it? Hala squirmed against him. Grady’s hands tightened. His eyes darkened when he looked at her.
“You’d probably better put me down now. Greer…will be downstairs at any minute.”
Pleaselet Greer get there quick. This…this man didn’tfeellike one of Greer’s brothers now. He just didn’t. Her breath caught, and he pulled her closer somehow. He was scorching her. Everywhere she was pressed against him.
This wasinsane.
“What’s so wrong with me? You said before, you would date Gunn. We’re identical. So why wouldn’t you dateme? Is it because he’s also a preacher? Is he that much better than me, you think?”
Oh, his hands tightened on her. In a good way. A very good way.
“Huh?” He felt so…hard against her. Her fingers tightened on his shoulders, and she arched back a little. But that just put her lower half far too close to his lower half for her own sanity. She felt him pressed against her, all big and strong and hot and—yikes, here. “Grady…What…what exactly are you doing?”
“I don’t really know, actually. I should probably put you down.” But his handstightenedon her. Heat like she’d never felt before rushed through her entire body when shefelthim against her like that. Hala shivered. “I’m not sure I want to. Why? You afraid of me now?”
She definitely wasn’t afraid of him. At least…not physically. She seriously doubted a Hiller wouldeverhurt a woman physically. It was the other stuff that scared her—the way this didn’tfeellike it had always felt between them before.
Totally out of her element here. She did not know how to deal with a man like him right now.
“Of course I am not. You aren’t exactly scary or anything like that. Putting me down would probably be a really, really good idea. You are just trying to mess with me, anyway. I’m notstupid. And I won’t be just another woman on Grady Hiller’s list of conquests.”
“What list? I don’t have alist,” the grumpy ass…grumbled.
But he definitely did not put her down. Hala thought about kicking him, but wouldn’t that be too predictable? Better to just see what the man was thinking. Or…just what was going on here at all. And…she wasnotgoing to press closer. Hala just wasn’t.
“Luie probably is the guy with alist.You’re really small, aren’t you? Weird, considering your brother is such a damned giant.”
“Hudson got all the height, I think. It’s not exactly fair.” She gave an experimental wiggle. The man actually groaned. Hala froze. “What did I do?”
Well, she could kind of figure that out, now that she thought about it. Greer’s big brother or not, this was amanholding her. A young, very fit, very healthyman.
Her fingers spread over his shoulders. Wow. He had some serious muscles there. Cowboy Rancher Grady was…definitely hot.
Hot, hot, hot.
This was beyond crazy. And she might just be in serious trouble here, now that she thought about it.
“What the hell do you think you did? I’m aman,honey. Not a eunuch. You’re pure trouble now, aren’t you?”
Well, not really. But she wasn’t about to tellhimthat. “Grady Hiller, just what exactly are youdoinghere? Please explain.”
Hala wiggled again.
