Page 21 of The Maxwell Brothers
"It's not the wine. It's just you, Lexi."
She sighed, and I barely resisted the urge to kiss her again.
"I should go home," she said.
"No," I said determinedly. "You’re not going to climb twenty flights of stairs in the dark. I’m not gonna let that happen.”
“Oh, sweet heavens. You’re already going alpha on me.”
“Lexi! It’s not safe.”
"And you think I'd be safehere, Mr. Maxwell, after you kissed me like that?"
I made a sound at the back of my throat instead of answering. Jesus, I was turning into a Neanderthal.
"I think that proved my point. Let me check with a neighbor if the power is back on.” A few seconds later, she shook her head. “It’s not.”
"I'll show you to the guest bedroom, and we'll call it a night, okay? And we can talk about this tomorrow."
She swallowed hard. "Okay. Okay, that sounds smart. Let's do that. Where is the guest bedroom?"
"On the third floor."
"And where is your bedroom?"
"On the second one."
"Oh, good. We have a floor between us. That should be enough."
"Don't be so sure, Lexi. Come on, let's go upstairs before I do something crazy."
Her breath caught. "I was about to ask what, but maybe it's better if I don't," she whispered.
"Yeah, it is. Trust me."
I ushered her to go first on the steps, staying behind her. When we reached the second floor, I said, "Wait here." I headed to my bedroom, grabbed a clean white T-shirt that I usually have under my shirt, and walked back to her.
"What did you bring?" she asked as we moved up to the third floor.
"A shirt for you so you have something to sleep in," I said.
“So gallant,” she murmured. “Tate, should we talk about this right now?”
I shook my head. “I need to clear my head first, Lexi. I’m too wrapped up in you.”
She groaned. “Oh God. You sure know how to say all the right things.”
The bedroom was at the top of the stairs, and she stepped inside.
“Good night, Lexi.”
I headed back downstairs, needing a glass of wine to cool off.
A few minutes later, I realized there was no cooling off as long as she was under my roof.
And she was going to be here the whole summer.
CHAPTER 7
