Page 21 of Save Me the Trouble
I had a feeling fragile wasn’t a common state for Grace Johnson, and I couldn’t shake the protectiveness I felt in that moment, a fierce need to shield her vulnerability from everyone but me.
I turned my head to the barista and instructed, “Please have everyone wait in the back. I’ll let you know as soon as she’s okay.”
His eyes widened, but he complied, ushering the rest of the staff through the door into their break room.
“I’m fine,” Grace mumbled and tried to sit up, but as she did, she swayed into my chest.
“Fine must be a relative term.” I clamped my arm around her, supporting her and carefully lifting her upright.
I turned her on the edge of the counter, coming to stand between her legs.
“You got a little overheated,” I said and handed her the cup of water again. “Keep drinking.”
She finished what was left in the cup. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize.” I framed her face in my hands, tipping her head up. “How do you feel? Hot? Lightheaded?” My eyes locked on hers, the proximity of her face…the part of her lips…the way I wanted her was suddenly impossible to ignore. “What can I do?” My voice rumbled deeper.
Her tongue darted out to lick her lips, a different kind of haze in her eyes now. Something hot and sultry. Something too strong to suppress underneath boundaries and banter.Something I felt, too.
“Killian,” she said in just above a whisper.
Hearing my name on her lips was a temptation I couldn’t resist. I let out a groan, my thumb working under her chin to angle her head a little higher as my mouth dropped lower.
The tension between us thickened, a magnetic pull too strong to fight. I leaned in, my breath colliding with hers and filling the space around our mouths with invisible explosives just waiting for a spark. For the first time in a long while, I felt something real, something I couldn’t control.Something I wanted more of.
A low sound escaped my chest when my lips touched hers, like the strike of a match against the box.
And then the fire ignited.
Her mouth pressed into mine, and it was all the invitation I needed. I slid my tongue along the seam of her lips, and as soon as they parted, I pushed in deep.Damn, she tasted good.Sweet and spicy and so damn real.
My hand cupped the back of her head, supporting her neck as I licked and stroked every inch, hungry and desperate for a taste of something I hadn’t had…hadn’t felt in so long.
But just as quickly as the moment absorbed me, it shattered. Grace pushed me away with a small cry.
“Stop,” she demanded, her voice trembling with a mixture of anger and something else I couldn’t quite place.
“Grace, I’m sorry?—”
She hopped off the counter and backed toward the door, the look on her face something like betrayal.
“I can’t believe you,” she said, her voice trembling with anger. “I’m here to do a job, Mr. Crown. A job I want to keep regardless of what you think. You don’t get to destroy the lives of everyone who works at Embers just because you’re against having a dating profile.”
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. No one questioned me like this—like her. And then for it to be doubting my morals…I knew I’d made my displeasure about this whole process clear, but did she really think I’d destroy her life because of it?
I straightened, a coldness settling over me. “You have a lot of thoughts about me, Miss Johnson, but I promise you, I would never take advantage of you or ruin your job. You have my word.”
Her bark of laughter was like a knife to my chest.
“Your word?” She folded her arms and shook her head. “Is that the same word you gave to Aleta before you got her fired?”
Aleta? What the hell was she talking about?
“I’m not going to let you do the same thing to me, Mr. Crown. I need this job.” Her cold, impersonal address made me stiffen. The pained resolve in her tone…in her expression deepened the wound of her accusation more than I was willing to admit.
I growled. “Grace, what?—”
“I’m leaving. I need to go.” Her movements were jerky as she reached for the doorknob.
