If She Dares (Contemporary Romance) by Tanya Michaels Page A

win, but Anna Tyler liked to control all variables. And all tenants. She probably had hopes for eventual global domination.
    “You raise a good point. Forget moral support, you need a bodyguard. Do presidential candidates get a secret-service detail? Maybe I could borrow a bulletproof vest from the department.”
    She laughed. “I feel safer already.” That’s what Jack had done for her ever since they’d been trapped in that elevator together—made her feel safe. Maybe not from real-world risks, but from her own troubling ghosts. They had less hold over her now, and part of her adored him for that.
    Then there were other parts of her that mostly adored the way he looked from behind in a pair of jeans.
    She cleared her throat. “Um, I just need to grab my keys.”
    With her hormones back under control, she locked up and headed toward the steps with him. “I have a confession to make.”
    He rubbed his hands together. “Is it wrong that I’m hoping for something really sinful?”
    Maybe instead of admitting something that painted her as insecure, she should just make a joke about the handcuff-related thoughts she’d had over the weekend.
No, tell him the truth
. Not that the handcuff fantasies would be a lie. “Before you stopped by, I was starting to wonder if you were dodging me.”
    “Why would I do that?”
    “Because of how I behaved on Saturday.”
    “Yeah,” he scoffed, “I hate it when a woman’s fun to be around and mind-blowingly sexy.”
    Mind-blowingly, huh? Grinning inwardly, she set that compliment aside for later savoring. “So I was just being neurotic?”
    He was quiet as they descended the last set of stairs.
    “Jack?”
    “I wasn’t going out of my way to avoid you, but I did want some time to think.”
    So her women’s intuition wasn’t totally off base. In this case, she almost wished it had been. “About me?”
    “Yeah.”
    She swallowed. “Good or bad?”
    He opened the door for her, and they stepped into the hallway where other tenants were filing into the meeting room. Then he gave her the most heart-stopping masculine smile she’d ever seen in her life. “All bad,” he promised. “Very, very bad.”
    * * *
    I T WAS J ACK ’ S first tenant meeting since moving into the building, so he couldn’t say for sure, but he doubted it was supposed to be a sensual experience.
Then you shouldn’t have sat next to Riley
. She smelled amazing. The faint sweetness of raspberries kept reminding him of her playfully taunting expression when she’d revealed the body wash she’d bought. And her bright blue turtleneck was like a beacon, constantly drawing his gaze. It was long-sleeved and covered her practically to her chin, but the way the material molded to her curves made the top every bit as sexy as a low-cut shirt.
    But even more appealing than a piece of clothing or a teasing scent was the woman herself. When she stood up to say a few sentences about running for board president, she was funny and intelligent, despite Anna Tyler trying to interrupt twenty seconds into her statement. Riley smiled graciously and kept going, but Mrs. Tyler tried at least two more times to cut her short.
    “That’s all well and good, Miss Kendrick, but I’m sure you understand the board has some important things to discuss tonight, so—”
    “I couldn’t agree more.” Riley nodded emphatically. “As you’ve demonstrated in your term, leadership of the board is very important. Really, it was the example you set that inspired me to run.”
    Jack bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing while Mrs. Tyler narrowed her eyes, trying to decide if she’d been praised or insulted. Her ill-tempered interjections were beginning to remind him of a toddler tantrum, while Riley handled herself with class and confidence. Depending on how scared Mr. Tyler was of his own wife, the election might be unanimous.
    Once Riley sat down, the board moved on to other topics, but Jack was barely listening. He