Page 39 of Pucker Factor

“Already on it.”

11

SARAH

I may have been stretching the truth when I said I was holding my dress down. But it wasn’t like I was going to tell him that I really was feeling him up instead of worrying about someone chasing us. That would be insane. It was his fault, though. I wasn’t wearing underwear, and my bare skin was rubbing against his jeans. A girl only had so much self-control.

While he was on the phone, I took the opportunity to look him over again. He was just so pretty in a very manly sort of way. He wasn’t like all the other men I dated—not that I was dating him. He made that pretty damn clear. When I compared him to others I went out with, I realized they were all boys. They still had that slight baby face. And what was with all the men wearing skinny jeans and bright colors? I felt like the age of truly masculine men had passed, and now we were left with guys that dressed like women. Sure, a guy could wear pink, but look beefy while doing it.

But it wasn’t just the way he dressed. He still had that military swagger to him. I grew up in a military town, so I could spot one immediately. There was nothing sexier than a man in uniform, other than oneoutof uniform. I was a sucker for those bulging biceps and arms covered in tattoos. I loved when a man walked around with adon’t fuck with melook. Some women liked a man in a suit. I liked a man to show me exactly how defined his body was, and then prove to me it wasn’t all for show.

“Sarah?”

I jerked my gaze from his body and looked him in the eyes. He caught me staring at him, but I played it off like I was lost in thought. “Yeah?”

“Something you want to tell me?” he asked with a cocky grin on his face.

“Yes. This dress is chafing with no underwear. Perhaps we could get some.”

He groaned as I lifted the dress and got back on the bike. I may have lifted it a little higher than necessary, giving him a look at what was underneath the layers of fabric. Not that he didn’t already know.

Sighing, he climbed back on and waited for me to scoot forward. I made sure to rub my crotch against him, just so he would have to suffer the whole ride home. This was all his fault, after all. I had no idea where we were, but Eli drove through the town as if he’d been here for years.

When we pulled up outside our little hut, I reluctantly let him go and got off the scooter. I couldn’t wait to get inside and get out of this dress. I’d wrap a towel around my body and walk around like that all day if it meant I didn’t have to wear this hideous thing.

I turned to walk inside when Eli grabbed my arm. “Hold on a minute. We need to talk.”

“About what?” I asked, curious where this was going. Maybe he was going to tell me that our kisses were magical and he needed to have me again. Or that he realized he couldn’t live without me. Not that I needed him to say any of that. I only intended for our one night to be just that. But the man was growing on me.

He held up the keys, quirking an eyebrow at me. “Want to tell me about this?”

“Um…they’re keys. What exactly do you need me to tell you?”

“How about how you got them?”

“Well, the guy had them in his pocket. I just took them.”

“Without him noticing?”

I could see where this was going. It was better to cut him off before he went too far down this road. “They were hanging out.”

“Uh-huh. Like my wallet?”

And now the fun would begin. There would be an interrogation into my…skills, and it wouldn’t stop until he knew everything. So, now was the time to throw him off the scent using whatever means necessary. “Look, I just saved your ass. We were being chased down. I thought you would appreciate the help.”

“I would appreciate knowing how you ended up with not only my wallet, but Kavanaugh’s also. And while you’re at it, you can explain the keys.”

“I don’t explain myself to anyone,” I shot back, turning and walking away before he could say anything else. I hurried inside and tore the dress over my head. As I hoped, it was enough of a distraction to keep him from asking further questions.

He stormed inside, ready to tear into me when he stopped and stared at my naked form. His fists clenched as he stared at me, trying his best to remember what the hell he was about to say. I turned away from him and smirked as I heard the low growl emanating from his chest. “You can’t just do that.”

“Do what?” I asked, looking over my shoulder at him.

“This!” he pointed at my body. “You don’t like our conversation, so you strip? Who does that?”

“Did it work?”

His mouth dropped open as I turned to face him. I slid my bra off and let it drop to the floor, standing completely naked in front of him.

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