Page 21 of Beautiful Beast

Dramatic, but fitting.

My mood is already in the gutter, and the very last thing I need is to have the annoyingly persistent Belle and her trusty boxer waiting for me.

She’s standing right in front of the door and giving me no possible way to get into the apartment without her seeing me.

It’s only now that I realize I forgot my hoodie.

Chapter 6

Belle

Adammustbetakingup bank robbery in his spare time.

The hard lines and edges of his ridiculously sexy and jacked body strain against his tight black T-shirt – he wasn’t lying about not losing his abs – and while the view temporarily distracts me, his face is covered by a bandana.

I can’t take my gaze away from whatever it is he’s hiding under there, wishing like hell I had x-ray vision.

“How come you’ll never let me see you?” I demand crossly.

“You’re seeing me right now,” he says.

He doesn’t even stop to pet Buster, just barrels past us and does some fancy button pushing to open his even fancier front door.

I can’t imagine what the inside of his place must look like considering the foyer alone is the nicest room I’ve ever been inside. It’s monochromatic with marble and stainless steel everywhere, and exciting colors like black, white, and grey.

It should have a completely sterile and boring ambiance, but the touches of rich mahogany and – I’m guessing – ridiculously expensive artwork make the space surprisingly warm and inviting.

“You know what I mean. Why can’t I see you properly?”

He turns to glare at me, and he’s somehow still hot even with a black bandana shielding half his face. Adam towers over me and has to be twice as wide, and my eyes ping pong all over his perfectly chiseled body.

Thick, roped forearms with big, strong hands that are clenched in fists.

The broadest shoulders on earth that would let someone – someone like me – climb him like a tree.

A muscular, barrel chest leading down to a narrow waist with light wash jeans slung low on his hips.

When he walked away from me the first day we met, I learned that he has a sexy, tight ass I wouldn’t mind seeing again.

My mouth starts to fall open at the sight of the sizeable bulge contained in those jeans, but I snap my head back up to focus on his face – well, the parts in view – instead.

I can’t see his lips, but the smirk is evident in his eyes, meaning he knows exactly where mine just landed. My body is blushing, but I don’t look away.

I’m not going to let him win or intimidate me. If he wants to flaunt his dick, then I’ll be damned if I don’t give it a look.

Ariel was right about the big dick energy.

And if he’s a grower? Watch out, world.

“Have I done anything to encourage you to keep coming back here?” he demands.

Oh, only being stupidly sexy and terribly intriguing.

“Why are you answering my question with a question?” I ask with a sigh because it seems Adam hasn’t the first clue how to conduct a conversation.

They have books to address that problem, too.

“Why do you think I want to be questioned by you?” he returns.

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