Page 16 of Return of the Bad Girl (Rock Canyon, Idaho 4)

Gabe joined her at the top of the stairs as she slipped the key in the lock.

“God, do you have to breathe down my neck like that?”

He resisted the urge to bend over and blow in her ear, just to piss her off.

“Are you ever pleasant, or does the ‘I’m better than you and I know it’ act work for some guys?” he asked, following her into the apartment as she pushed the door open.

“So far, I haven’t had any complaints,” she said, sarcasm oozing from every word.

“Probably ’cause they’re pussies that are scared to death you’ll cook and eat them,” he said, ignoring her gasp behind him as he headed for the room on the left.

“You’re taking the bigger room?” she called out after him, outrage evident in her tone.

Turning at the door, he said, “You can wrestle me for it if you want, princess.”

“Ugh, why did I think this would be better than my sister’s?” she groaned, turning her back on him. He admired her backside again before she came back toward him with a determined, angry glint in her eye. “Let’s get a few things straight: this is not going to be anything but a living arrangement. Two strangers, sharing one dwelling, and nothing more. So, stay out of my room and away from me. And stop calling me princess.”

God, she thinks she’s tough shit. Her challenge sparked something inside him, and he crossed the hallway without thinking. She backed up against the other closed bedroom door at his approach. Warm satisfaction curled through his body as he boxed her in, hovering over her with one arm against the wall. She was so tiny compared to him, but her glare was defiant as she raised that pointed little chin and met his gaze.

Dipping his head a bit lower, he whispered darkly, “What should I call you then? Angel? Baby?”

He swore he saw her shiver, even as she snapped back, “My name is Caroline.”

It would have been so easy to lean over and see if those berry-pink lips tasted as good as they looked, but instead, he pushed off the wall and away from her. “I’m not one of those choir boys you can push around or manipulate. Unless you want to test my patience, I suggest you stop trying to control me, Caroline.”

Shoving him out of her way, she headed back toward the front door. “I’m going to unpack my car, and then I’m going to the store.”

Just to annoy her, he called, “Great plan. I think I’ll join you. We should probably take your car, though, since I’ve just got my bike.”

“Screw you. You can starve.”

And on that friendly note, Caroline slammed the door behind her, leaving Gabe amused and turned on, despite the warning voice in his head.

Focus on what you’re doing here, and forget about her.

As if that were possible, when her scent still lingered throughout the room.

Chapter Five

“Everyone has baggage. Whether or not you can leave your baggage at the door of a new relationship is up to you.”

—Miss Know It All

CAROLINE HAD GOTTEN in and out of the grocery store without bumping into any “old friends.” Not that she was scared of her past. She’d made plenty of mistakes, but she was an adult now. She could take the fallout with maturity and just hope that the people she wronged would follow suit.

And if that didn’t work, she’d just turn the other cheek. How bad could it be?

Shelby’s reaction to their run-in yesterday was a mild version of what she’d been expecting. Still, Shelby had barely begun dating Marcus Boatman when Caroline had drunkenly seduced him at a party. Considering the guys who had come before and after, there were probably a few more former girlfriends who would rather sock her than look at her.

She didn’t dare stop for gas at the Shell station, afraid of what Mr. Nelson would do if he saw her again. After she’d made off with a six-pack of beer stuffed into her jeans, jacket, and shirt, he’d hung her picture in the window as a reminder that she wasn’t allowed near his store. She had managed to get away only because he had been chasing one of her companions who’d boosted a bottle of whiskey out the other door. Her father had swooped in to smooth things over when Mr. Nelson had called the cops.

Good old Dad, always there when the family name was on the line.

Back at the apartment, Caroline was glad to find Gabe gone. Gabe. She snorted. Most likely short for Gabriel, which made her think of the show Supernatural. The archangel on the show had been short and funny.

Her new roommate was the polar opposite.

As she put her groceries away, she thought of the way he had stepped up to her, his body so close she’d felt the heat radiating off him like the sun. If it hadn’t been for his expression, she might have been nervous, but he hadn’t been trying to scare her. He had wanted to prove something.

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