Page 14 of Return of the Bad Girl (Rock Canyon, Idaho 4)

“Whatever you say, princess.”

“See? We can’t live together. It would be a war zone,” she said.

“I’m hardly going to be there, so it’s not like we’d have to interact,” he said, holding out his fingers as he ticked them off. “Since I’ll be busy, it will basically be a crash pad for me, and it would only be temporary. Once another place opens up, one of us could move out. Plus, it would be cheaper to split the rent.”

She eyed him up and down as a voice in her head screamed that it was a crazy, stupid idea. That tattoo just above his collar continued to taunt her, and she thought she caught a flash of silver in his tongue that matched the bar going through his eyebrow. Not that she cared—she had her fair share of tats—but she knew danger when it flashed her a charming smile.

Besides, trading two noisy sisters for one potential serial killer didn’t seem like the brightest idea.

“I can’t live with a strange man who I know nothing about. You could be some kind of Dexter, and I’ll come home to you dissolving bodies in the bathtub.”

“That’s up to you,” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets. “But you don’t have to worry about me. I’m as harmless as a kitten.”

With that, he walked inside, brushing against her—on purpose, no doubt—and she ignored the tingles the close contact caused, protesting, “Hey, I didn’t invite you inside.”

“And I don’t usually conduct business on people’s porches.”

Caroline slammed the door and followed him into the kitchen. He was standing in front of an open cupboard, perusing the contents. Caroline noticed that Gus, the monster dog, was sitting at his feet, panting at him, with his massive jaws spread into a wide grin.

Evil is attracted to evil, apparently.

“You know, illegal trespassing and breaking and entering are serious crimes. So is looting and burglary.”

With a long, amused look, he grabbed a package of Hostess cupcakes, and he had the nerve to laugh. The bastard. “I didn’t break anything, and like I said, we’re talking business.” He ripped the package open with his teeth and took out one of the cakes, opening his mouth wide.

“If my sister catches you eating her cupcakes, you’re a dead man,” Caroline said, eyeing the sugary treats longingly. She’d sworn off sugar last month after she’d stress-eaten herself ten pounds heavier. Just imagining the sweet, orange frosting caused her mouth to water.

“Want one?” he asked, holding out the package to her, tempting her. “We could be criminals together.”

When she didn’t reach for it right away, he set it on the counter and concentrated on demolishing the rest of the one in his hand, licking his fingers with quick flicks of his tongue.

Yep, that tongue was definitely pierced.

As he sucked the frosting off his hands, her nipples tightened, imagining the sweetness of the frosting mixed with the warm, salty taste of his skin. In her mind, she was the one licking and sucking on each long digit as her hands slid up under his T-shirt, over those abs, until she found out if his nipples were also pierced.

Stop it! Do not think about him like that. He is an ass!

“So, what do you think?”

His question caught her off guard. “What?”

“Wanna be my roommate?”

“No,” she said, going to the fridge for a protein shake.

“Suit yourself,” he said.

“Goddamn it!” Caroline heard Val scream from her room. “Eleanor!” A door slammed, another opened, and the screaming continued. “Did you take the new Jimmy Choos I just ordered?” A muffled reply that Caroline couldn’t make out followed, and then, “I said you were not to look at them, let alone borrow them. I haven’t even worn them yet!”

Caroline could feel the headache coming on as her sisters continued to squabble, her forehead becoming the center of the pounding pain.

“Those your sisters?”

She glanced his way and said sarcastically, “Yeah, how’d you guess?”

“Gemma said you lived with your sisters when I called for your address last night,” he said.

So that’s how he’d found out where she lived.

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