Page 195 of Play Dirty (Brooklyn Dawn 1)

He grunted and nipped the skin right behind my ear. “You’re playing with fire, duchess.”

“As much as I’d like you to muss me up before the show, I didn’t think you could get into these particular pants. I’m pretty sure they’re spray painted on. Actually, sewn onto me to be exact.”

He slapped my ass. “Don’t give me a challenge.”

I laughed. There was a lightness to his intense gaze. The shadows were still there. They probably always would be. He carried a lot of baggage and loss on his broad shoulders. And guilt. It was practically woven into his DNA at this point.

I turned to face him, enjoying the fact that I could touch him without doubt. I tucked my thumb into the triple buttons open on his Henley shirt.

His arm immediately came around me, his fingers splaying along my lower back.

He didn’t hesitate much anymore. Not that he ever truly did. The man loved to manhandle me. And I loved it. Probably more than I should.

He brushed his nose along mine. “I can make do with messing up that scarlet mouth you’ve got going on.”

“Don’t you dare.”

His eyebrow winged up and he leaned in. Since I was wearing my heels, we were eye-to-eye.

I pushed him back. “Incorrigible.”

“You know it’s like a red flag when you say shit like that.”

My lips twitched. “Maybe.” I smoothed my hand up and down his chest, my gaze dropping to the slice of tanned flesh.

“What?”

I met his gaze. “I didn’t say anything.”

“You’re telegraphing like a radio station, duchess. I thought we were good.”

“We are.” I cupped his face. “So good.”

Relief eased at the lines around his eyes. “Okay, then spit it out. Games are for children.”

His gruff tone was not helping, but I knew he was still leery of damn near everything since the security issue and his own problems with Kyle. We were both on edge. It showed in the ruthless way we went at each other nearly every night. As if demons were trying to make it a fucking threesome.

“Sing with me tonight.”

His eyes shuttered. “Lindsey, I…” He brought his hands up to lock around my wrists when I tried to back up.

“Delete this bull shit with Angel. Sing the song with me to show everyone that it’s ours.”

“I don’t need to prove that to anyone.”

This time, I did shake him off. Was it that important for me to show the world? Was that what it was? A stamp of mine over his damn heart? I already had that. With every word and every touch, I knew he loved me.

“Lindsey, wait. I didn’t mean—”

My security detail knocked. “Three minutes, Miss York,” he said from the other side of the door.

“Piss off,” Nash shouted back.

I walked to the door and cracked it open. “Thank you. I’ll be right out.”

“They can wait.”

“No, they can’t. Because I’m the singer, Alex.”

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