Chapter 4
M ia
With her bath done, Precious curled up in her bed and Mia headed out to the porch. After years of living in uptown Dallas, she loved sitting on the porch at Sammy’s house. There was no traffic to be seen or heard, just the sound of the ever-present chainsaws in the distance. When they weren’t running, the quietness allowed her to listen to the birds chirping, and if she was lucky, she’d catch sight of a deer or moose across the street in the wooded lot. But her favorite sighting was of the chipmunks that scurried from beneath the porch to the bird feeder and then back again.
No sooner had Mia settled down on the porch than she heard a vehicle coming down the road. It came into view, and she watched it pull into Sammy’s circular drive, which caused her smile of welcome to quickly vanish. It was one of the trucks she’d seen earlier where they’d been cutting down trees. She inwardly groaned when it came close enough for her to see who the driver was.
King.
His name fit him perfectly—he carried himself as if he were royalty. He was arrogant, bossy, and his size made him appear intimidating. Mia couldn’t help but imagine him wearing nothing but a crown and velvet cape. She laughed to herself before meeting his eyes and cursing under her breath.
He pulled his vehicle right up next to her and leaned out the open window. “Not sure if I like that smirk,” King said, his gaze boring into her as he sat behind the wheel.
Should she tell him what she’d been thinking? No, he’d just take it too seriously and blow it out of proportion. “What do you want? Is that why you’re here? To pick up where you left off earlier?”
His dark eyebrows drew together as he studied her intently. “You got an obstinate mouth on you, woman.” He paused for just a second. “It’s gonna be fun taming you.”
Taming her?
Good lord, why did his comment bring forth a visual that gave her a definite reaction down below? Mia’s heart rate quickened with something close to anticipation as heat slowly spread throughout her body. Who did he think he was? They knew each other, but barely, and they had never exchanged more than pleasantries in passing. Yet the way King was talking to her now, you would have thought they had a more intimate history.
Or were going to have one.
Mia wanted to show him that he didn’t affect her by getting up and going inside, but she couldn’t seem to move. Besides, she’d never be that rude to someone. She was safe as long as King stayed in his truck. Right? His ruggedly handsome face and the gleam in his eyes mesmerized her and gave nothing away. Aware of the heat settling between her legs and her hardening, tingling nipples, she restrained herself from snatching the blanket that was hanging over the back of the chair next to her. Covering herself up would only give her away.
She pretended not to notice the tension between them. But it was palpable. “Um...Sammy’s at work, if you came by to see her for something.”
“I didn’t,” King replied, pushing open his door and stepping out of the vehicle.
Mia felt a spike of trepidation and braced herself to run if necessary.
“Just stopped by to check on some work we did for her,” he added when she remained silent.
Oh. Mia felt silly. Maybe the attraction was one-sided. But then, King had made that comment about taming her, which had ignited the idea of something wild and passionate happening between them in her head. She chastised herself for being so foolish. His comment had probably been meant as a joke.
Mia felt her heart jump in her throat as King moved closer and closer. His dark eyes narrowed on her, making her nervous. She tried to pretend that she was unaffected, but his presence seemed to electrify the air around her. He stopped at the bottom of the porch steps, their eyes still locked. She couldn’t take it anymore, so she jumped up, and King flashed a dangerous smile in her direction.
As if he knew, damn him!
He knew he was making her nervous! Which meant that he knew that she was attracted to him. And he was playing with her! Mia forced herself to breathe in slowly and deeply to calm her racing heart. He wasn’t a mind reader, she reminded herself. He could only guess what she was thinking and feeling. That knowledge calmed her considerably.
Instead of walking away, King kept on coming towards her until he was climbing the steps. Mia backed up, suddenly finding herself trapped between his big, muscular body and the house behind her. She shivered as she inhaled his earthy scent of dirt and sweat, an aroma that should have been off-putting, yet strangely aroused her instead. Jerry had worn a suit to work. He’d been clean and clean-cut. But this version of an alpha male in his prime—dirty, unkempt, rugged—was overwhelming to say the least.
Suddenly, Mia wanted to get dirty with him.
She leaned back as far as she could when King leaned in close and whispered against her ear, “I think you and I are gonna have something serious fucking going on between us.”