Page 56 of Turn Up The Heat

“That’s just fucking ridiculous,” Shane said to the moose-phone, giving it a petulant glare. “I’ve known the woman for all of five days. Yes, she’s pretty…”

She’s downright stunning,the moose-phone interrupted knowingly.

“And yes, she’s nice…”

Screw nice. Youlikeher, and you know it.

“But let’s be realistic. Bellamy lives in the city. She has an Ivy League degree and leads an Ivy League life. And I’m not that guy.” Shane’s voice went cold over his closing words.

But you slept with her, and she’s expecting you to call. You’re not that guy, either.

Well, shit. The moose-phone knew what the hell it was talking about. Shane wasn’t really a one-night stand kind of guy, but even still—he knew enough about women and casual sex to know that what had happened between him and Bellamy hadn’t felt like a one-and-done.

Plus, the stupid moose-phone was right. As much as he didn’t want to say it out loud, Shane really couldn’t deny the fact that he did like Bellamy. In exactly the way his inner voice implied.

“Fine,” he grumbled, swiping the cell phone from its resting spot on the counter. “But I have the feeling I’m going to regret this.”

Or maybe you’re terrified that you won’t, you big fucking baby. Now shut up and dial.

19

“Hello?”

All it took were two tiny syllables for Shane to realize that his inner voice had his number, big-time. Man, the sound of Bellamy’s voice was like honey, velvety sweet and so damned good.

“Hey. It’s me. I mean, it’s Shane.” He swung the phone away from his mouth to clear his throat in his sleeve.

Her laugh could’ve melted butter. “Hey, me. What have you been up to on this fine evening?”

“Truth?” He sank into the Barcalounger, cradling the phone between his ear and shoulder while he kicked up his feet into the long shadows cast off by the fresh sunset.

“Of course.”

“I’m sitting at home in the dark in a nasty old chair, talking on the phone with you. What’re you doing?”

“Taking a bath.” Bellamy’s voice was so smooth that Shane questioned his hearing.

“Sorry, what?” Nah. He had to have misunderstood. Surely, there was no way she was naked on the other end of the phone.

“I’m taking a bath. You know, the big, oblong thing in the bathroom, usually full of hot water and bubbles. Well, probably not bubbles in your case, but still. You get the idea, right?”

Oh, he got the idea loud and clear and in Technicolor. Shit, he needed tonotbe lying here in the dark, listening to the purr of her voice and thinking about her hot, naked body in a bathtub. “Do you like burgers?” he blurted, trying like hell to think of his battle-axe of a third grade teacher, the sludge that came out of an engine when it was way overdue for an oil change, anything other than Bellamy’s perfect tits playing hide and seek with a bunch of bubbles.

“Ohhhkay. A little random, but still a good question. Sure.” She paused to laugh again, and Shane could swear that he heard the soft trickling of water in the background.

He tried to focus, but his mind—and a couple of other parts of his anatomy—were still stuck on the idea of the bubbles. It wasn’t his fault that she had such fantastic tits, really. Who could blame a guy?

Bellamy cleared her throat at the exact moment a voice from deep in Shane’s mind screamedburgers, dumbass!but he faked flawless composure as he replied.

“Well, your trip to Pine Mountain wouldn’t really be complete if you didn’t have one of Lou’s burgers. They’re a culinary masterpiece.”

That got her attention. “Reeeeeally?”

Shane could all but hear her grin over the word. “Scout’s honor.”

“Shane Griffin, are you asking me out on a date?” Although Bellamy’s voice teased its way over the phone line, it tightened his gut with its implication.

Oh, fuck it. The moose-phone was never wrong.

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