Page 53 of The Law of Attraction

I push my hands into the pockets of my jeans for something to do with them that isn’t grabbing her by the nape and pulling her to me.

‘Guess so.’

I watch her leave until she’s beyond the glass doors. I’m still ogling her pert behind as she waits for the elevator to reach the lobby. She never looks back, and I’m left standing on the sidewalk, pining after her like an obsessed idiot.

The sound of my cell phone ringing in the back pocket saves me from beating myself up. I take out the phone as I climb back into the cab. As I do, the battery dies.

‘For fuck’s sake.’

Dropping my head back on the seat, I will the thought of Becky, naked and straddling me, to leave my mind.

‘Trouble in paradise?’ the cab driver asks, eyeing me through his rearview mirror.

‘Never even made as far as paradise.’

And damn, do I want to bite that apple.

After paying the driver, I take the elevator to my penthouse apartment. It seems bare, with no kids running around, without the smell of cakes baking, without Becky.

I dump my bag and find a charger for my cell, then flop back onto the sofa, my hands tucked behind my head. I even surprise myself when I begin to wonder, would a relationship be all that bad? I managed to have a weekend away. That’s unheard of. What’s more, the world didn’t fall apart.

But it’s not just me. Becky doesn’t want a relationship.

Does she?

She wants me, I know that much. She wants me as much as I want her. I see it in her eyes. I felt it in that kiss. Jesus, that kiss. If a kiss was that hot, I can only imagine how incredible the sex would be.

I remember her response to my innocent touch when I lifted her chin. She was afraid to be controlled. Is that what she’s been running from? Did she have her wings clipped by the man she used to be with?

I can’t imagine her being that woman. She’s no wilting flower. She’s feisty. Sassy. She’s got confidence. Her attitude is sexier than everything else about her, believe it or not. And she’s funny. No one makes me laugh like her.

I moan in frustration. That woman has no idea just what she can do to a man. This man. She has me contemplating things I’ve never wanted. She actually has me wondering whether I could fight for named partnerandhave her in my life. She ties my stomach in knots at just the thought that I could lose her. I’ve known her a matter of weeks, and the mere idea of it already kills me.

There’s not a thing about Becky that I don’t want to call mine. I run my fingers over my lips, remembering how they had ignited against hers. Remembering how urgent my need to have her was. How she took me out of my head, made me forget everything except how much I wanted to make her mine.

She doesn’t want a relationship. And I thought I would hurt her with one night. But we’re currently sitting in separate apartments after a great weekend together. We’ve already screwed this up.

My body is aching at just the thought of what I’m contemplating: going over to her place right now and stripping her down. Forgetting about all the what-ifs and taking her to bed.

‘Screw it.’

I kick up from the sofa, pull my jacket over my T-shirt, grab my keys and leave. I hail a cab with only one thing on my mind: her.

* * *

After working a little charm on another resident who was entering the building, I’m standing outside Becky’s apartment door, with no idea what I’m going to say. I knock hard and try to find the words that will help her understand what I’m thinking. The thing is, I don’t understand what I’m thinking.

She opens the door and I imagine I look just as startled as she does. ‘Drew.’ My name leaves her on an intake of breath. Her pupils dilate. And I think, I hope, she’s in the same headspace as me.

I brace my hands on either side of the door. ‘Tell me again that that kiss shouldn’t have happened, and I’ll walk away.’ My heart is pounding so hard, I can feel my pulse in my head. This may be the dumbest thing I’ve ever done.

She just stares at me, blankly, and I wish I was a mind reader.

‘Becky, I don’t understand this, but I do know that I want you. I want you so much, it’s driving me crazy.’

She continues to stare, her lips parted slightly. I have to do something.

‘The sensible thing would be to walk away, for both of us. I know that. But… what do you say to thinking about sensible in the morning?’

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