Chapter 4 #2
“Oh, I’ll show you sassy.” She sprays some of the foam window cleaner into the palm of her hand before setting the bottle on the floor.
She steps toward me with a sexy sway of her hips.
“You can’t come at your opponent when their back is turned,” she says, and this time, the smile she graces me with lights up those big, beautiful blue eyes.
“You do it where they can see you,” she says, before taking her hand that’s filled with foaming window cleaner and pressing it against my cheek, sweetly. “Like this.” She smirks.
My arms band around her, and I pull her close. Her body is aligned with mine, and fucking finally, she’s where she belongs. “You’re going to pay for that,” I say, bending a little to rub my nose against hers.
“Oh, yeah? How’s that?”
“What do you think your punishment should be, Ms. Moran?” I ask, wanting to draw this out as long as possible.
“I think it was payback.” She grins. Her wet hand is still pressed against my cheek, while the other rests against my chest. She’s not pushing me away.
She’s just resting it there, as if she’s trying to feel my heartbeat, and it’s possible because my heart is thumping wildly at having her in my arms.
“Payback?” I murmur, my voice quieter now, rougher around the edges. “Come on, Moran, you can do better than that. Tell me what your punishment should be.” Her breath hitches, just slightly, but I catch it. I always catch everything when it comes to her.
“Oh, I think I did just fine,” she shoots back, but there’s a softness creeping in, threading through that sass she hides behind. “You look ridiculous, by the way,” she says, dropping her hand from my cheek.
I huff out a laugh, tightening my arms around her just a fraction. “Yeah? And you look really proud of yourself.”
“I am.” She lifts her chin like she’s daring me to challenge her. She has no idea what she does to me.
My thumb brushes along her side, barely there, testing the waters, to get her reaction. She still doesn’t move away. Instead, her fingers curl slightly into my shirt. That’s when it hits me. She might not know that she’s all I’ve ever wanted, but maybe, just maybe, in this moment, she can feel it.
“I think I like this game,” I confess, my voice dropping, my gaze flicking to her lips before I can stop myself. Her eyes follow mine. Just for a second. But it’s long enough for me to catch the shift, the flicker of what I’m telling myself is interest.
“What game is that?” she whispers, and now there’s nothing teasing about it.
I lean in closer, close enough that if either of us breathes wrong, we’ll cross that line.
“The kind where you don’t realize you’ve already lost,” I say.
Her lips part, but no words come out, and neither of us moves.
The room is silent except for the sounds of our mingled breath.
Her head tilts, causing her nose to brush mine.
This feels like a test, one I’m about to either pass or fail.
I told myself it was too soon, that she just dumped his sorry ass, but this moment, it’s one I won’t shy away from.
I won’t miss another opportunity to be with her, no matter the circumstances of when it presents itself.
My grip on her waist tightens.
“Then maybe,” she says softly, her voice barely there, “you shouldn’t be so sure you’re the one winning, McBride.”
A slow grin pulls at my mouth, even as my chest feels like it might crack open.
“Careful,” I murmur.
“What’s my punishment?” she asks, and to my ears, she’s begging me to kiss her.
I tilt my head closer, bringing my lips to her ear. “This,” I murmur, as I slide my hand up her shirt and tickle her side. She squeals with laughter as she squirms in my arms, but my grip is solid, never wanting to let her go.
“M—M—Mack.” She giggles, and finally, I have mercy on her. I stop tickling her, but I leave my hand beneath her shirt. My fingers slowly trail over the soft skin of her back, before finally, I force myself to pull my hand away.
“You play dirty,” she says, smacking at my chest, still laughing.
“For you?” I lean in close. “Always,” I say, pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose.
“Uh-huh, laying it on thick, McBride. Just wait, I’ll pay you back when you least expect it.”
“I hope so, darlin’.” I wink, and she rolls those big blue eyes at me, thinking that I’m joking. “Now, stop horsing around and get to work.” I swat her ass. She yelps, then giggles, as we both get to work cleaning.
Two hours later, the room is shining and smells like the lavender cleaner we used.
The guys start hauling down furniture, and I jump in to help them.
It’s nearly midnight by the time we leave.
Courtlynn pulled out the leftovers from the shower, and we all ate again before finally saying our goodbyes.
Copeland waves us off and carries his wife to their new room. Bowen says something that has Courtlynn rolling her eyes and turning her back on us as she makes her way upstairs without a word or a glance.
“She’s cranky when she’s tired.” Baylor laughs.
“Thank you for your help.” Leighton hugs Dixon and me before she, too, heads off to bed.
“I needed this. We all needed this,” Baylor says.
“Bring it in,” Dixon tells her. He hugs her and tells me he’ll see me later, and then it’s just the two of us. Thankfully, their hug was a short one. It’s hard for me to think of her as anything other than mine, now that my mind is made up, but I know I have to tread lightly.
“Thank you,” Baylor says.
I open my arms, and she smiles, before stepping into my embrace. I hold her tightly before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Anything, Baylor. I mean that. No matter what it is, I’m there.”
Without stepping out of my embrace, she tilts her head back to peer up at me. “I know you’re talking about the move, but your words… It’s nice to be around honest men who are not afraid to say what’s on their mind.”
I nod and swallow hard. “You want to know what I’m thinking right now?” I ask her.
“Yeah, I think I do.”
I pull her a little closer. “You’re beautiful, Baylor. That’s what I’m thinking.”
She laughs and swats at my chest. “Stop.”
“I’ll always be honest with you,” I tell her. “And since you brought up honesty, I should also tell you that you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.”
“Shit’s getting deep in here, McBride.” She steps back as she shakes her head. “Thank you for everything. I’ll see you around, Macklin McBride.”
“Yeah, you definitely will.” Not able to fight the temptation any longer, I lean in and kiss her cheek. “Goodnight, Baylor,” I murmur before forcing myself to turn and walk out the door.