Never Give You Up by Shady Grace Page A

like this, especially after bawling like a child on him yesterday.
    “Good morning,” he mouthed.
    With a shaky hand, Mary opened the window. “Good morning. Aren’t you cold? June isn’t usually warm in the mountains.”
    He grinned. “If it’s cold I sure don’t feel it. Does showing my skin bother you?”
    God yes . Mary’s cheeks burned. “Of course not. How do you take your coffee?”
    “Black.”
    She nodded, and retreated from the window to prepare him a cup. A few minutes later she exited the back door and approached him at the chopping block.
    Terry took the cup and stared at her as he took a sip. His lips glistened from the brew, tormenting her, reminding her of their long ago kiss. The urge to stand on tiptoe and press against his hard chest and kiss him deadly, made her pulse race.
    “How do you feel today?”
    Mary tried not to stare at his wet lips and looked down instead, right at the thick matte of chest hair. She swallowed and looked up to his eyes instead. “Better. Sorry you had to deal with that.”
    She’d never touched chest hair before and the urge to reach out and skim her fingers through it made her face heat. Would it be soft or coarse? Did the hair represent the man beneath? Embarrassed and all tingly between her legs, she set her cup down and proceeded to pile the wood into the shed. She needed to do something other than think about him having his way with her on the chopping block.
    “Don’t be sorry about yesterday, okay?” Terry picked up the axe again and drove it into another log. The pieces fell to the sides. “It felt nice to comfort you.”
    Surprised he’d admitted that, she turned around and watched him, at a loss for words as he chopped another piece, having no clue how hard those words hit her. “You didn’t have to—”
    “Mary, stop it.”
    She swallowed, automatically assuming she was in trouble. “What?” Her heart hammered as she took a step back.
    Terry leaned the axe against the block and strolled up to her. “You’re always apologizing.” Before she could retreat he put his hands on her cheeks, lifted her face, and brought his lips to hers. She stiffened, completely shocked by his sudden move.
    So soft, light, yet he was confident as he explored her. His lips crushed hers, tasting, tormenting, taking all the time in the world. He tasted like coffee and man, passion and danger. And just like in her dreams, he had a hint of stubble to scratch and excite.
    Her body shook with nervous excitement. But as quickly as it started, he pulled back.
    It took a moment for Mary to open her eyes, and when she did, Terry stared down at her with lust and something else shining in those deep blue depths. “Are you sorry about that, too?”
    She swallowed and shook her head. “No.”
    “Good. Cause as long as you don’t push me away, I’ll make you not feel sorry every chance I get.”
    Mary exhaled a shaky breath as Terry went back to the chopping block, picked up the axe, and set another log on the block.
    Wow . She touched her lips and stared at him in shocked silence as he chopped another dozen logs, the sweat slithering down his back, making it harder and harder for her to do something useful.
    Why, oh why did I let him come here?
    Her body still trembled. She felt ridiculous yet wonderful all at once. How could he make her feel this hot without any effort? Was she so inexperienced that a simple kiss made her soaking wet and ready to lie down right there?
    He was dangerous. The son of a notorious crime boss. Maybe he killed people daily and snorted cocaine off of women’s breasts. She knew so little about him except for these scary things that made her nervous, she literally shook like a leaf in a steady wind.
    Maybe now was a good time to discover more about this mystery man who’d wormed his way into her life. She needed some answers to ease the crazy thoughts kicking her frazzled mind.
    “Do you like your job, Terry?”
    He paused with the axe above his