Page 23 of Tempt

Her cheeks are flushed, her hair a mess from the couch. She smells like vanilla, and suddenly I’m hungry again.

Later tonight, I’ll blame this on the long day. But I need to ask.

“Why did you say yes when I asked you to move in?”

Kat straightens. “I needed a place to stay, and the money is amazing.”

She’s a few feet away.

So close.

But just out of reach.

“It was nothing personal?”

“I might have been a little…dazzled.”

Did she just look at my mouth?

The night of the club, she was seeking someone to have a good time with.

Not only me, but anyone.

“By the offer,” she adds.

“Right.”

Fuck, get a grip.

You’re paying her to do a job.

Only a terrible person would hit on a woman living under his roof. One who’s on his payroll and a decade too young. Even if she is gorgeous and interesting and fun to talk to.

Even if more than once I’ve imagined how the night would’ve ended if I’d said yes.

“Good night, Kat.”

“Good night, Daniel.”

She crosses to the coffee table to grab her computer, glancing over her shoulder before she disappears down the hall and up the stairs to her room.

I toss the two empty LaCroix cans away, then rub both hands over my face.

I should have put her in the room down the hall instead of the one next to my bedroom.

7

KAT

“No shrimp.”

“Never again. But the rest of the menu looks set,” Liv decides, flipping her notebook closed.

“Fall Ball practically planned itself this year,” Jules says. “Which is good, because classes are destroying me. I have four essays due before November.”

“You want to swap for ten hours a week of labs?” Liv counters.

We’re at our favorite pub for Hoes over Brews, rescheduled from the other night. The bar buzzes around us, mostly upper classmen with a few wide-eyed freshmen venturing off campus.

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