Chapter 12 – Violet
If Lee thought he was being subtle, he needed lessons.
Then again, maybe it was a good thing I could read him so easily.
He liked to play into the inscrutable author stereotype, but inside?
Big ol’ softy. The couple at dinner was adorable.
Young and in love. The envy had almost choked me, but I’d beat it down.
How could I be envious of anyone else when Lee had taken me out on the closest thing I’d had to a date on island in years?
He’d even dressed for the occasion, styling his hair and trimming his beard. From somewhere, he’d unearthed a pair of black slacks and a button-down shirt, then ironed them. No small feat in his boot.
He could call it a thank you, but the way he stared at me over dinner made the time I spent primping and doing my makeup worth it. Lee might not be ready to admit his feelings for me, but he wasn’t that good of an actor. He was finally seeing me as a woman. Not just Drew and Zach’s sister.
Part of me wanted to capitalize on the new awareness between us. Drive the point home before he spooked and backed away. But at the end of the day? I didn’t want a man so weak that he’d yield to pressure from my brothers. If he wanted me, then dammit, he had to act. I wouldn’t do it all for him.
I deserved to be wanted. Desired. And if he didn’t want me enough to risk a little small-town gossip, then he wasn’t worth my time.
Except part of me whispered he was. His suggestion that we order everything on the menu, just because he knew it’d make me happy was peak Lee.
For all the times he was absent-minded or late because he was working on his next novel, when the man showed up, he showed up.
He went hard. I bit back the urge to snicker.
Writing. Running. SAR missions. Everything he did, he did with passion and total commitment.
“Do you need anything?” I asked when we got home.
He held my gaze, disappointing me when he said, “Not tonight.”
“Thanks for dinner.”
“My pleasure.”
Slowly, I trudged upstairs, stowing our leftovers in Lee’s beautiful kitchen before climbing the last steps to his bedroom. I’d just finished hanging up my dress and slipping into pajamas when I heard a thud from downstairs.
Frowning, I made it to the first floor in record time, my heart thumping loud in my ears when I didn’t spot him on the couch. I knocked on the bathroom door.
“Lee? You okay?”
He’d been maneuvering so well, it was easy to forget he was hurt.
“Fine,” he called back gruffly. Sounding decidedly not-fine. The hint of pain edging his words made me pause. Sounds of shuffling came through the door. I leaned against the opposite wall, not wanting him to feel like I was surveilling him but unwilling to leave. Not until I knew he was okay.
A few minutes later, he cracked the door and shuffled into view.
He’d taken off the slacks and button-down from earlier.
In their place, he’d tugged on a pair of flannel pajama bottoms. But only the bottoms. Acres of broad chest filled my field of vision.
For a man with an indoor job, Lee still maintained an impressive amount of muscle.
Maybe it was all the running. Or the search and rescue training.
Either way, hiding his body behind snarky writer tees and the occasional button-up was a crime.
“Can I help you?” he asked dryly. He arched one tawny brow.
Heat flushed beneath my cheeks. Getting caught staring wasn’t the worst thing, but it made me self-conscious about my outfit.
In my rush to check on him, I hadn’t thought about what I was wearing.
Compared to my dress from earlier, my pajamas were modest. Nun-ish even.
So why did he look so intrigued by the vee in my purple henley?
My sleep pants had dogs on them, for christsakes.
I wasn’t exactly winning any awards for seduction.
But that didn’t stop my nipples from popping out against the soft cotton like candles on cupcakes, inviting him to make a wish.
I crossed my arms over my breasts, shielding my tattletale boobs from his gaze. “I heard you call out and thought you might need me.”
His blue eyes flared, to be snuffed out almost faster than I could catalog the emotion. He grimaced, shifting to lean back against his own piece of wall, crossing his arms.
“Anything I want or need can wait,” he finally said, watching me steadily. “Do you need anything before bed?”
My slutty nipples said yes, but luckily, they didn’t control my mouth. “Want to watch something before we turn in for the night?”
Or maybe they did. I had a perfectly good phone. Any earlier resolutions about making him come to me turned to dust. If I was going to survive in his house, I needed the distraction of a show. Watching the big screen in his office was safer than sliding around upstairs in his sheets, all alone.
There was a flaw somewhere in that logic, but his naked chest fogged any genuine attempt at analysis. Wide, with hard slabs of muscle. The hint of a tan, though he was paler than I bet he’d be in the summer. My nipples wanted a piece of that action.
“Sure.”
His response was abrupt. Difficult to read. Not quite reluctant. Carefully friendly.
He pushed away from the wall. Trying not to notice the play of muscles in his biceps and forearms and not noticing were two entirely different hobbies. I chose the fun one, watching the flex as he moved gracefully toward his office.
“Coming?” he asked.
I stood frozen, admiring the way his waist drew in. The corded muscle wrapping his torso. Even the hollow of his spine was sexy. Life was absolutely unfair.
“Not yet. Give me a minute.”
A silent war consumed me. My hands, breasts, thighs — all of them wanted to stroke and hold him close.
Every erogenous zone screamed for more. Holding on to my pride, to the desire for him to make the first move left me feeling like I was hanging from a cliff by my fingernails… one torn and ragged edge from falling.
He paused, back muscles rippling as he turned to look over his shoulder. “Let me guess – the view is better from there?”
His knowing gaze taunted me. My pulse skipped, betraying me, and I latched on to the first excuse that didn’t involve throwing myself at him. “No. I’m just waiting for you to clear the hallway. I thought I’d run upstairs and get us something to drink. What would you like?”
Was that a flash of disappointment?
“Any of the sparkling waters would be fine.” His voice was deeper than usual, a rough, throaty baritone that scraped along my nerve endings, but his words were calm. Innocent.
“Got it,” I said faintly.
Upstairs, I stuck the upper half of my body in the fridge. Cool air washed over my cheeks, dousing the fire pricking under my skin. Any farther inside, and I’d come out with the Goose Hollow logo branded across my chest.
Lee had settled on the couch by the time I returned. I’d half expected him to put a shirt on, but he spread nonchalantly across the couch. His broad chest looked inviting. As if daring me to touch him.
I settled on the next couch cushion, careful to keep my distance.
“This okay?” A comedy special was paused on screen at the opening credits.
Nodding, I took a hasty sip of my water, choking and wheezing on the bubbles. It sent me into a coughing fit. Lee frowned, reaching one large palm out to rub my back.
“You okay, honey? Just breathe.” His hand between my shoulder blades only made it harder to draw in air, my lungs constricting.
I gasped, trying to draw oxygen. Stalled and a little bit panicky.
He pulled me closer. “With me.” He held my gaze as he inhaled, pausing at the top before exhaling in a long gust.
His blue eyes mesmerized me into complying, the vise wrapped around my lungs easing as we synchronized our breathing, his chest rising and falling with mine.
When he was satisfied with my return to regular rhythm, he snuggled me under his arm, tugging me against his torso. “That’s better,” he murmured.
For who? Whom? Who the fuck cared?
Lee’s chest was hot beneath my cheek, his skin a sleek furnace. As first moves went, it was both too subtle and way over the line.
“What are we doing?” I blurted out, keeping my eyes glued to the comic on screen.
“Snuggling on the couch,” Lee said without an ounce of remorse.
My heart tripped. Snuggling. As if it were the most ordinary thing in the world, when my pulse was acting like I’d just run a 10K.
“Are you hitting on me, Murphy?”
He glanced down. A broad grin overtook his usually solemn features.
“You’re just now noticing? Keep up, Cupcake.
I’ve been trying really hard not to corrupt you.
But my resistance is about gone.” He dropped a quick kiss on my forehead.
“Close that mouth Vi, before you catch flies. If you’d like to opt out of future corruption, please let me know.
Otherwise, once my ankle is better: watch out. ”
I snorted. If this is what corruption looked like, A. I liked it. And B., I took issue with who was seducing who. Whom? Dammit.
“Why is your ankle ruling our love life?” I tried to follow his logic. Or lack thereof.
Heat pooled low in my stomach. God help me, I wanted him reckless, ankle or no ankle.
“I can’t exactly whisk you off your feet until I’m better.” He wrinkled his nose. “Plus, I don’t want to pressure you unfairly.”
The sentiment was sweet, if totally off-base.
“You think because you’re injured, I can’t say ‘no’?” I rolled my eyes. “Have you met me, Murphy? Thanks to my brothers, saying ‘no’ to men is my favorite hobby. They ask me for shit I won’t do all the time.”
“Not to state the obvious, but I’m not one of your brothers.” He held my gaze, his blue eyes glittering. “And the things I want to ask you for require all of my parts to be in full working order.”
“That’s bold of you.”
Bold and devastating. My insides did a ridiculous swoop, like his words alone had short-circuited something vital.
“Relax, honey. I’m talking about dating. Not deflowering.”
“You know I’m not a virgin, right? My brothers to the contrary, I crossed that bridge at least a decade ago.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Even if you haven’t flaunted your relationships at home, I know you’re too beautiful not to have enjoyed life on your own terms. And thankfully, I think you finally passed the age of consent in your brothers’ eyes.”
“Thirty? They think thirty is past the point of unfair seduction?”
Talking about my brothers cooled me faster that an ice bath.
He shrugged. “I don’t pretend to understand how your sibling dynamic works.”
“Wait. You actually talked to them about this? Before talking to me?”
I didn’t know whether to be impressed or annoyed. We didn’t live in the Dark Ages. Had he really asked my brothers if he could date me?
He scratched his head, avoiding my eyes. “It’s a loyalty thing. I may or may not have helped with the occasional protection caper in my youth.”
My eyes narrowed. “Lee. Really?”
He shrugged, grinning sheepishly. “I knew from the beginning you were special. Worth protecting.”
“Worth cockblocking, you mean?”
His grin turned guilty. “That too. But none of those guys were worthy of you.”
“Exactly how involved were you with my brothers’ protection racket?”
Lee coughed into his fist, his mumble lost in the rough sound.
“How involved, Lee?”