and working regular hours.
She drew in a breath. “I guess I have to call Steve and let him know he can see Lillie.”
“Want me to be there for the first visit?”
She leaned toward him. “You wouldn’t mind? It would help so much.” She managed a smile. “I know you can step in if things get difficult.”
Justice would also be a nice distraction for her daughter. And hey, if the professional bodyguard made Steve a little nervous, all the better. Patience acknowledged that her plan of keeping Justice and her daughter apart had just gone down the toilet. But right now Steve was the bigger threat.
“I wouldn’t have offered if I hadn’t meant it,” he told her. “Lillie’s a great kid. I’m happy to make sure nothing bad happens.”
“Thank you. You have your secret bodyguard trip coming up. I’ll schedule the visit before that.” She laughed. “It’s some rock star, right? Like a band, and you’re embarrassed, so that’s why you’re pretending it’s dangerous.”
His blue eyes flashed with an emotion she couldn’t read. “You’ve caught me.”
“I knew it.”
“You’re pretty smart...for a girl.”
She straightened. “Seriously? You did not say that to me.”
“I like that you’re a girl.”
“Don’t try to be all nice now. I’m insulted.”
She started to stand, but he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her against him. She wasn’t really trying to stop him, but even if she had been, she was suddenly not in control of the situation. He shifted and twisted and there she was, sitting on his lap, his face inches from hers.
His thighs were rock hard beneath her butt. His arms came around her and both supported her and held her captive. She could inhale the scent of him—clean soap and something slightly more sensuous and masculine.
“Are you taking control of this situation?” she asked softly.
“I am.”
She knew there were concerns. That who he was and who he had been weren’t the same. She was assuming the boy she’d known had grown into the same kind of man. Her gut said to trust him, but it wasn’t her gut she was worried about. It wasn’t even her body. It was her heart.
Justice was a blue-eyed knight riding to her rescue. After years of taking care of herself, that was tough to resist. But she had her questions. At the risk of sounding like a father in an eighteenth-century novel, what were his intentions? This was not a good time to get her heart broken.
But when he leaned in and kissed her, she couldn’t find it in herself to resist. The man was hot, and she had been without any hotness for what felt like a lifetime.
She welcomed the heat and pressure of his mouth on hers and parted her lips instantly. He slipped his tongue inside and she got lost in the erotic dance as shivers rippled through her. Her arms settled around his neck and she leaned in to feel his body against hers.
Closer, she thought, tilting her head and kissing him deeply. She needed to get closer.
Fortunately mind reading seemed to be one of his skills. He shifted his hands, then shifted all of her so she was straddling him. They were close enough to do a lot of intriguing things.
She opened her eyes and stared at his face. Slowly, not wanting to rush the moment, she touched his cheek, then traced the line of his jaw.
“Tough guy,” she murmured.
One corner of his mouth turned up. “That’s me. Tough.”
She supposed lethal was a better word, but not for her purposes. She rested her fingertips on his broad shoulders and let herself get lost in his gaze.
“You sure about this?” she asked.
“About moving back to Fool’s Gold, opening the business or being here with you?”
“All of them, I guess.”
“You think I’m better than I am.”
Talk about not answering the question. “Shouldn’t that make you happy?”
He put his hands on her waist. “I don’t want to disappoint you.”
“Is that possible?”
“In life if not in bed.”
“Oh, please. That is so like a guy.”
“Guilty. And I still want you,” he said quietly. “Kiss me, Patience.”
She leaned in to comply with his request. As her mouth touched his, she felt his hands settle on her breasts. He cupped her curves in his palms. Long fingers brushed against her nipples and sent jolts of desire all through her. She sank into him, wanting that and more.
She pushed her tongue against his. They circled and stroked even as he rubbed her nipples a little harder and a little faster. She found it more and more difficult to breathe. When his hands dropped to her hips, she nearly whimpered, then realized he was pulling her closer. Settling her on his erection.
He was hard and thick and she pulsed against him, wishing there weren’t layers of clothing between them. She was starving for what he offered, desperate with need.
His hands slipped under her T-shirt with the dancing rhinos. With an easy flick of two fingers her bra was undone; then he was touching her breasts, skin on skin, and she straightened to give him more room.
She rubbed herself against him, even as he pulled up her shirt, removed her bra and settled his mouth on her breast.
The soft, wet contact made her gasp. He licked her nipple before closing his lips around her and sucking gently. She slipped her hands through his hair and strained toward him, wanting all he had to offer.
He moved to her other breast and repeated his action. When he drew back, his eyes were dark, his pupils dilated, and they were both breathing hard.
“We should—”
Go upstairs. Do it now. Get naked. Patience wasn’t sure what she was going to say next, although she had an idea of the context. But instead of finishing her sentence, she heard a familiar laugh from outside.
Lillie.
“Crap,” she shrieked, scrambling off Justice’s lap and reaching for her bra. “We’re in my living room in the middle of the afternoon. We can’t do this here.”
He glanced toward the door, then stood and walked over to the wing chair by the couch. It took her a second to realize he was positioning himself behind it so his condition wouldn’t be obvious.
“You’re right,” he said. “This isn’t the place.” His mouth twitched. “I can apologize if you’d like, although technically I’m not sorry.”
She
