Page 27 of A Taste of Trouble

Their eyes locked and the desire dancing inside the black pools was too intense for him to resist. With a quick nod, he consented.

Caught up in the moment, she attacked. The shelf rattled and—

Liv squealed.

The heated desire battling his logic disappeared. It sizzled out like the flames of a campfire

when doused with— “What the…”

Jake studied her. Her hair was plastered to her face, her skin wet and glistening. She panted heavily and her mouth turned down in disgust.

The both looked up to the empty shelf, then down to the ground where the bucket gently rolled from side to side.

Jake let his head fall back against the shelf, his breath escaping in heavy pants. The water did nothing to stop the throb in his pants, but the bucket falling had been a sign from above.

When he made no move to continue, Liv said, “That was probably for the best.” She shrunk into herself, arms wrapping around her body, eyes darting to the floor.

She had to know he wanted her. The bulge in his pants should have been enough evidence. But he realized this would be the third time she'd put herself out there, and the third time he'd shot her down. Bad for the ego.

“I want you,” he said.

Liv looked up from the floor and met his stare. The desire that had been there twenty seconds ago returned.

“But I think we should take this slow.”

She nodded, but it was a resigned nod. She didn't believe it.

“Do you really want to have sex here? In this dirty fridge?” He sighed. “You deserve better than that. I…” Jake reached up and cupped her cheek. “I want to give you better than that.”

Confusion washed over her face then settled into appreciation. “Thank you.”

Had no man ever told her how wonderful she was? Had no man ever made her feel special, worthy of everything she'd ever dreamed of?

“Do you have any towels?”

She shook her head. “Paper towels?”

“I'll guess that'll have to do.” Jake got to his feet and held out his hand to help her off the cold ground. This time he knew her shiver wasn't from his touch.

“Come on, let's get you cleaned up. You'll catch pneumonia.” He pulled her closer, throwing his arm around her shoulders and rubbing his free hand up and down for warmth.

He hoped by not giving in to his carnal needs he'd opened the lines of communication, let her know he wasn't in this just for sex. Although he needed her to believe that to get her to the book launch, it was also the truth.

Jake hoped he could pull this off with the least amount of damage.

Liv shivered again in his arms and he led them out of the fridge. She smiled up at him and suddenly he was no longer in need of warmth. She had done that all by herself with the small curve of her lip.

Chapter Six

The dining area was packed, the bar was two deep, and Liv was in the weeds.

Her ears rang from the horrific screech that sounded from the speakers in the corner of the bar. Karaoke Friday. What a cruel joke, the McLeans choosing a Friday for her last shift. And it seemed to be busier than usual. Liv just hoped she'd get through the night unscathed, but two hours into her shift, she realized that was not going to be the case.

It had only taken one little hitch to throw her off her game. One minute she was in the zone, and the next she had waitresses and customers yelling her name, demanding drinks.

“Three bottles of Bud, a vodka seven, and a pitcher of Coors Light,” Meg yelled from the opposite end of the bar.

“You got it, Meg.” Liv thrust two bottles of beer between a couple sitting at the bar and handed them to her newest customer, then made Meg's drinks.

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