Chapter 5
Knox could feel her trembling, though he doubted she knew it. Hell, he felt like shaking, too. The events of the day had been too much.
Too much worry, too much violence, and too much confusion.
“I meant it, you know.” Unable to stop himself, he kissed her forehead. “You handled yourself extremely well today, especially at the pharmacy.”
She gave him a lopsided grin. “I was so damned scared, I wanted to pass out. I was furious that those men were scaring the elderly couple and keeping me from buying my test.”
“When one of them reached for you …” Knox shook his head. “I wanted to kill that guy.”
Resting a hand on his chest, she looked at his mouth. “I’m too bold. My family says so all the time. I’m sure Skye would have handled the whole thing differently.”
“Probably, because even though you two are twins, you each have your own personality.” He lowered his voice.
“The thing is, I happen to like your boldness—only you haven’t been.
Not with me.” He stroked two fingers across her brow, brushing back a tendril of hair and smiling.
“So I have to wonder, is that because you’re not at all interested? ”
Her gaze shot up to his. “I’m interested.”
“Hmm. Your sister assured me that if you were, you’d let me know.” His heart thumped harder as he waited for her response.
The boldness he so admired came over her now.
Her hand slid up his chest to the side of his neck and she shifted toward him.
“So how about I let you know now?” And with that, she kissed him, carefully at first, maybe because of his bruised mouth, but when he groaned low and cupped the back of her head, she gave in and took his mouth the way he’d always imagined.
Not that Knox was passive. No way. Without even meaning to, he took over, pulling her onto his lap and devouring her mouth—and completely forgetting that they weren’t alone.
“Wow, okay, I might be too innocent to see this.”
He and Laylee both jumped at the intrusion. She landed back on the couch cushion beside him and Knox sat forward, frowning at Karen. His frustration was just enough for him to say, “Go away, honey. This is private.”
Karen laughed. “Just wanted to let you know we’re taking the dogs for a last walk so they’ll settle down and sleep well for you tonight.”
Marcus stepped in behind her with Lucy, leading Maybelline and Tank, who were already leashed. “No more than twenty minutes, so don’t get too involved. Bray will be back by then, and we’ll all get out of your hair.”
Damn it, he’d forgotten about the dogs, too. “Great. Thanks. See ya.”
Marcus couldn’t hide his grin. “I know that look. We really will be gone soon enough, just put it in neutral for a little while longer.”
Laylee nodded. “Neutral. Right.” Like a sleepwalker, she got up and headed to the bathroom. “Thanks.”
The second the door closed behind her, Knox said, “You know I’m going to murder all of you.” He stood, drew a breath, and got control of himself. “Seriously, thanks. For everything.”
“We like her,” Karen whispered. She opened the front door and waited for the others.
“No matter what,” Lucy advised, “don’t let her go.”
“I won’t.” But he couldn’t make any promises for Laylee.
Clasping his shoulder, Marcus leaned in and spoke low. “Try to remember that she’s been through hell today, okay?”
“I’m not likely to forget.”
Once they all stepped out, the happy dogs with them, Knox went down the hall and tapped at the bathroom door.
It immediately opened and Laylee launched herself into his arms, again kissing him as if she’d waited a lifetime. He fell back against the wall, taking her with him, then turned so he had her pinned.
She freed her mouth long enough to say, “It’s sexy how you take over.”
“You’re sexy,” he growled, and kissed her again. Honest to God, he couldn’t get enough of her, especially when she pressed up against him, her fingers tunneling through his hair as she made hungry sounds.
Knowing Marcus was right, he eased up enough to nuzzle her neck, tease her ear, and then just held her close. “The others will be back soon.”
“Your friends are awesome.” She looked up at him. “Knox?”
He could have stood there all night holding her. “Hmm?”
“Will you stay?”
“Absolutely.”
She drew a breath. “With me, I mean.” With a small wince, she asked, “All night?”
Warmed by the prospect, he said, “Yeah. I’d like that.”
“Regardless of the test results, I don’t want to be alone tonight.”
Would any man do, then? If her sister were home, would she even be asking him? Honestly, it didn’t matter. “I’ll stay.” If that meant sleeping with her, great. If she meant just for company, he was here for that, too.
“You have work tomorrow, right?”
“Giving a few appraisals, that’s all.” He’d arranged some time off to help her with the dogs while her sister and Ford were away. “Do you?”
“Just a few hours in the afternoon. It’ll be a quick shoot for a local department store. I won’t be gone long.”
He gave her a lopsided grin. “I remember when the dogs would destroy the house whenever they were alone.”
“And I was terrified of Maybelline back then.” Her soft laugh made him want to kiss her again. “So ridiculous.”
Moving closer, Knox tipped up her chin. “I met you on one of those days.”
“At my worst,” she complained. “I was so embarrassed.”
“You had no reason to be.”
“I was a mess.”
“You looked beautifully frazzled,” he countered. Just to test the water, he whispered, “It made me hot.”
This laugh was a little more robust. “No way. You’re making that up.”
“How come everyone saw it except you?”
“Seriously? You must be incredibly easy.”
More like incredibly hard, but knowing they’d be interrupted any moment, he kept that to himself. “I need to know the plan for tonight.”
“What do you mean? You already said you’d stay.”
“And I will. But spell it out for me, okay? Am I staying as company, sleeping on the couch, or—” They both heard the front door open.
Laylee grabbed a fistful of his shirt and kissed him hard and fast. “I want you. If you don’t feel the same, tell me now.”
Bray called out, “Anyone here?”
“Just a sec,” Knox replied.
He opened the closest door and stepped inside with Laylee, hoping for a little privacy.
“So we’re clear, I’ve wanted you from the first day I saw you, and every day since.
That said, I know today was a trial and it’s not over yet.
If you’d rather wait, I can wait.” It might kill him, but he’d do it.
“No waiting.” She opened the door and practically shoved him back out.
“What’s the matter?”
“That’s my bedroom and it’s a catastrophe.”
Unable to stop his grin, he leaned around her, peeked inside … Holy smokes, it was a mess.
“Knox!” She pulled the door shut, blocking his view. Under her breath, she muttered, “I planned to clean it soon.”
Perfect Laylee Fairchild wasn’t so perfect after all. To Knox, that made her even more appealing.
Laylee looked at each of the faces of Knox’s friends. There couldn’t be a nicer group of people. She accepted the test Bray offered. “I know you’re all wondering, so how about I just do this now? I mean, if you don’t mind waiting a minute or two to find out—”
“I’ll die if I don’t know tonight,” Lucy said.
Karen leaned into Bray. “I’ll admit I’m awfully curious.”
Bray and Marcus nodded.
Knox turned to her. “You don’t have to do this, you know.”
“Only if you want,” Marcus said.
“We’ll all survive the suspense,” Bray promised.
Funny how they could take a worry and turn it humorous.
She gave Knox a hug and said, “Be right back.” Less burdened with the possible outcome, she darted into the bathroom.
A minute later, she stuck her head out the door and found everyone clustered together looking back at her.
Definitely some funny stuff had gone down tonight, and she couldn’t wait to tell Skye about it when she returned.
In the meantime, she turned to Knox, and he immediately unglued his feet and came forward. She pulled him into the bathroom with her, shutting out everyone else.
“I can’t look,” she whispered.
“Want me to do it?”
She nodded and leaned back on the wall, trying to appear casual even though her heart was galloping and her palms were starting to sweat. She stared at Knox while he glanced at the stick. Then at the instruction paper. Then the stick again.
He turned back to her, cupped a hand to her cheek, and said, “You’re not pregnant.”
As her legs turned to noodles, the oddest mix of emotions went through her: extreme relief—but also a touch of disappointment.
Knox bent his knees to look her in the eyes. “Are you happy about this?”
She nodded. “I’m happy.”
“Then I’m happy, too.”
A weird sort of giddy laugh bubbled out of her. “And if I was sad?”
He put his arms around her and held her. “Then I’d offer to help remedy things.”
Searching his gaze, she said, “You … we …”
“It’s not a horrible idea, honey.”
“Knox,” she complained, laughing, almost weeping. Oh, he’d be far, far too easy to love. “Thank you.”
For an answer, he kissed her—her mouth, the bridge of her nose, then her forehead.
Laylee sighed. “I suppose we shouldn’t keep your friends in suspense.”
“Our friends,” he corrected, and opened the door. “Come on.”
They were all waiting.
Knox stepped out with her, and Laylee announced, “False alarm. I am not pregnant.” It warmed her heart to see that they all had the same mixed reaction she’d had.
Marcus, especially, looked disappointed. “Damn it, I was already thinking of myself as an uncle.”
“Same,” Bray said.
That prompted Karen to peer up at him. “Maybe we should do something about this.”
For a big, badass fighter, Bray had the softest look in his eyes. “Yeah, maybe we should.”
Whoa. Were they talking about becoming parents?
Lucy squealed and embraced Karen. “Are you serious? I was thinking the same thing!”
“Our babies could be close, right?”
Marcus grinned. “Guess we all caught baby fever real fast there, didn’t we?”
Laylee didn’t know what to think. “You both want to have babies?”
“Bray and I have been house hunting, and any house that didn’t have room for a family was automatically disqualified, so I guess we were sort of thinking about it already.”
“Lucy and I did the same when we bought our place. Three bedrooms and a yard big enough for kids was a must.”
Glancing around, Laylee said, “I guess this house is big enough.”
Everyone looked at Knox.
She rushed to add, “For when I’m ready, I mean. I’m not there yet.”
Knox put his arm around her. “Now that we have that settled, can I kick you all to the curb?”
“Knox!”
Marcus pulled Laylee away from Knox and gave her a hug. “He’s right. It’s late and we’ve taken up enough of your time.”
Despite the long day, Marcus smelled nice. “I’m glad you were here.”
Bray got her next. “Thanks for sharing with us. It would have been hell, having to wait until tomorrow to hear the news.”
She laughed and patted his chest, amazed that it was rock hard. “Thank you for picking up the test.”
Karen gave her a quick hug. “Let’s get together soon, okay? With Skye out of town, do you have more time to visit?”
“Or,” Lucy said, also hugging her, “we could visit you, since you’re dog sitting. Just let us know a good time.”
“I’d love that.” The offered friendship had her head swimming. “Thank you both.”
“Out,” Knox said, opening the door in a not so subtle hint. “Love you all, but you gotta go.”
They teased him mercilessly on the way out, saying, “While you stay?” and “Why such a rush?” and “About time you settled down.”
Laylee had no idea how to react to that last comment.
Settle down? She’d barely kissed the man!
Never mind that she’d known him for a while now, liked him a lot—okay, more than a lot—and trusted him completely.
Trust was a biggie for her, especially because she’d recently been burned.
Still, they were missing a few steps in the relationship department.
No date, only a minimum of kissing, and no sex.
She really wanted to remedy the sex part tonight.
Actually, any minute now.
Maybelline and Tank wanted to see everyone off. It had been quite the day for them, too. Laylee scooped up Tank before the little rodent could slip out, but she let Maybelline do her thing. The big lug never ran off, and her biggest crime was her slobbery kisses. Not really an awful thing at all.
Because everyone was a lover of animals, they took turns bidding the dogs good night and then, finally, Knox closed and locked the door.
He turned to face her, his gaze watchful, his hands loose at his sides. For several seconds they were both silent until Tank began to squirm. Knox asked, “Do you think they need to go out one last time?”
Tank yapped and Maybelline headed for the back door.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” Gently, Knox took the dog from her. “While I take care of this, why don’t you …” He gestured toward the hall. “Do whatever you need to do?”
“Right.” Unable to think of what she had to do, but certain there was something, she pivoted away. Though she didn’t look back, she heard Knox chuckle.
In the bathroom, she looked around, spotted her toothbrush, and practically jumped on it. It struck her that she was nervous when she was never nervous with men. Good experiences, bad experiences, memorable and forgettable—she’d had them all. So why was her pulse racing and her breath coming fast?
Sudden insight hit her: With other guys, she’d been in control. With Knox, things kept getting turned around and it was … exciting. How was she to know she’d like that so much when men usually let her have her way?
But she did. Or at least, she did with Knox.
Knowing the dogs wouldn’t take long this time of night, she quickly brushed her teeth, removed the ruined remnants of her makeup, and brushed her hair. She thought about changing her clothes but then decided against it.
She wanted Knox to undress her.
And she wanted to undress him.
When Knox looked past the open bathroom door, Laylee was still standing there daydreaming. “Oh. Hi.”
Smile curling, he said softly, “The dogs bedded down in the kitchen. Is that where they sleep?”
She answered just as quietly. “Usually. As long as it’s not storming. Or I’m not up reading or watching TV.” Or just being restless. “You turned out the lights and locked the doors?”
“Yeah.” He reached out and caught her hand, bringing her forward into delicious contact with his body. “You okay?”
“Anxious.” Nuzzling her nose into his neck, she breathed in the scent of his warm skin mixed with the humid outdoor air that clung to him. Everything in her tingled. Oh, man, she had it bad. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
She tried to urge him along, but Knox didn’t budge, and when she glanced at his face, it was to see a hot glimmer in his dark eyes and a slight, sexy tilt to his mouth. The tingles sparked into a heat wave. Seriously, she couldn’t wait a second more.