Page 17 of I Need You Tonight
Cindy laughed. “Didn’t look like a joke from where I was standing.”
“Seriously? If you call that kissing,” I said, barely bothering to stifle a snort, “then you’re doing it all wrong.”
“We could do it again to prove it was a joke,” Mason added. I threw him a you’re-not-helping-me-here look. “Just a thought,” he said, grinning.
“No, that’s okay,” I choked out, heat rising to my cheeks.
If that was what happened when our lips barely touched, what would’ve happened if we hadreallykissed?
Kaboom,my girlie parts not-so-helpfully pointed out.
Unfortunately for them, they would never find out if that was true or not.
His smile widened, perfect white teeth contrasting against beautiful brown skin and dark stubble. “You sure?”
I was so busy staring at those full lips, I only vaguely heard what he said. It took a second for it to sink in. I blinked and turned away from his mesmerizing smile before it pulled me in deeper.
“Yes, I’m sure.” I decided to walk toward my office. Surprisingly, my legs complied.
I could hear Heidi following me as I approached my desk, cluttered with floral design catalogs, sketches of wildlife I’d drawn, and educational journals for small business owners. I gathered the papers together in a small pile, waiting for her to say whatever it was she felt she needed to say to me. The soft sound of the door clicking shut seemed louder than normal.
“So what’s really going on between you and Mason?” she finally asked. It wasn’t concern that I heard in her words, just curiosity.
“I already told you.” I located the documents I needed and turned to face her. “Zack sent him down to check on me. He’s going to spend a day or two here to relax before he and his band return to touring.” And I would go back to dating boring men while searching for Mr. Right.
“But you’re interested in him.”
It wasn’t a question, but no way was I letting her in on the truth. “Right. Because he’s everything not on my list,” I said with what I hoped was enough sarcasm to distract her from the real answer. Plus it wasn’t like that between Mason and me. It was just my body that was reacting to him. It didn’t go both ways. “And have you not seen his tattoos?” The tattoos that elevated his hotness factor.
“Just how many tattoos does he have?”
My first mistake? Ignoring the alarms in my head at her deceptively casual tone. The second was blurting out, “Four.”
Her eyebrow jerked up, followed by the corner of her mouth. “Four? Because with his T-shirt on you can only see three. So you want to explain why you’ve seen one more than I just counted?”
“Because before you arrived, he flashed his abs for Cindy. He has one on his rib cage. Honestly, Heidi, you’re reading way too much into this.”
She opened her mouth to say more but never had a chance. The office door opened and Mason popped his head in.
“Are you ladies finished talking yet, or should I wait a little longer before Nicole and I go shopping?”
“No, we’re good,” I said, brushing past him as I walked out of the office—saving me from accidentally blurting out something to Heidi that I shouldn’t.
That something involving thoughts about Mason that would make a virgin nun blush.
