Page 48 of Hidden Shadows
“I know you were. And you know you were, too.”
He bit back a chuckle at the adamance in her voice. Yeah, hehadbeen a jerk. But to be fair, he was that way to everyone. “No, Fin. I’m not gonna turn around and be a jerk.”
The air whooshed out of her. “Thank God.” Then, she pushed up so that her mouth hovered over his. “That means I can kiss you.”
“You can still kiss me when I’m being a jerk.”
“I know.” Her breath brushed over his face. “But you don’t deserve it then.”
She lowered her mouth and touched his lips. And there it was again. The feeling that she was his. That he couldn’t be without her. It plagued him. Tormented him.
He deepened the kiss, tasting the woman. She hummed, and the sound turned his chest into a tattered mess.
Immediately, he flipped them, pressing her into the mattress and smoothing his hand up her side. He was about to cup her breast when his phone rang from the bedside table. He wanted to ignore it—hell, he wasgoingto ignore it—but Finley took her mouth from his and touched their foreheads.
“You should answer that,” she breathed.
No, he fucking shouldn’t.
“I should get dressed anyway,” she continued, her fingers dusting across his shoulders. “So we can go to the Christmas fair before it gets busy.”
The muscles in Nixon’s forearms flexed. “You think we’re gonna go to the fair after you almost died yesterday?”
There was a bite to his words, but he couldn’t help it. She’d been pushed into the goddamn water. If he’d pulled her out a couple minutes later, if he hadn’t heard her go in, she probably wouldn’t be here right now.
His phone stopped ringing as her brows tugged together. “Yes, I am. I need to get footage of the tobogganing. It’s in my contract.”
“No.” The word was out before he could stop it. “You’ve been there every damn day since this thing started. You’ve done your job.”
Determination narrowed her eyes, and she shoved at his chest. He didn’t move an inch.
“Finley—”
“Get off, Nixon. I’m going to my room to change.”
The anger that pressed at his chest nearly choked him.
Another shove, and he finally leaned to the side to let her up. She climbed to her feet and grabbed his discarded shirt from the floor before tugging it over her head.
“It’s too dangerous,” he growled.
She spun back to face him. “You still don’t get it. My job is all I have! I’ve put everything into making it what it is. I don’t have rich parents to fall back on if I fail. I’m it. And I will finish what I’ve signed on to do.”
“At what cost? Your life? Because that’s what this asshole wants.”
For a fleeting second, fear flickered through her eyes. Then she blinked. “What happened was my fault. I got too close to the edge. I was distracted and bumped into someone’s shoulder.”
He scoffed. “That’s bullshit and you know it.”
She planted her fists on her hips. “This ismylife, Nixon. I put it out there for the world to see. And if you can’t handle that…”
When she trailed off, his jaw clicked. “If I can’t handle that, maybe we shouldn’t be doing this? Is that what you’re saying?”
Her throat bobbed, and she avoided his eyes. When she spoke again, her tone was resigned. “I’m going to get ready. You should return that call. Today’s my last day at the fair, and it’s Christmas in two days. We can hide out until the flight, but today, I have to go.”
She didn’t wait for him to respond, just slipped out of his room and back into hers. The sound of the door thudding shut was like a kick in the gut.
The cell rang again.
