No One's Hero (Chadwell Hearts) by Kelly Walker

you think you’ve said enough?” Okay, so maybe his statement earlier stung more than I realized. I force my shoulders to ease as I turn and offer him a tentative smile. “Really, everything’s fine, we don’t need to have this talk. We’re good.” I think he’s said more than enough.
    Kevin seems to be frozen for a moment, weighing his options. Accepting ‘no’ doesn’t really fit with what I’ve learned of his nature, but what guy wants to apologize when given a way out? His eyes lighten, and it’s clear he’s come to a decision. “All right then. If not a talk, how about a dance?” He stretches one hand toward me, palm up, waiting for my answer.

Chapter Fourteen
    —-♥—-
    K evin
    She’s wavering, I can tell. It seems the secret to getting Lexi to do what you want is to give her what she wants and wrap it up in self-centered packaging. It sounds easy, and it should result in both of us being happy, but it’s not. I’m pretty sure it’s going to mean at least one of us is doomed, because the more she rewards me with that smile, the more I want to see it. It would be all too easy to forget my purpose here and focus only on making her happy, but I can’t go down that road again. I’ve got to stay on my guard.
    So why am I asking her to dance, just so I can hold her close enough to talk?
    Because I’m a fucking idiot.
    Before I can withdraw the invitation, her hand is in mine—small, light, and slightly clammy with nerves. Holy hell she’s adorable. She has no fear at racing down a farm road, too fast for her own good, or riding on the back of a thousand-pound, unpredictable animal, but the prospect of one dance in a dimly lit club has her on edge and unsure of herself. I thought this was what she came here for?
    Finally past that crowded-ass bar that’s going to make my night a living hell, we reach the dance floor, and I spin toward her, then stop, transfixed in this devil-girl’s spell. Because she looks...breakable. Lexi sucks her lower lip in between her teeth and then lifts her eyes to mine. “I...I don’t know how to do this,” she mumbles.
    “Do what?” I ask, honestly confused.
    Her cheeks turn crimson. “Dance.”
    Unbelievable. “You’ve never danced before?” How is that possible? Aren’t homecoming, prom, and the like staples of every high-school education? But then I remember the things Axel told me about her—how she spent all her free time working at the farm, saving up whatever money she could. And it probably didn’t help that we’d ensured most of the student body of the male persuasion was afraid to come within a ten-foot radius of her. So great, this adorable awkwardness that’s now going to endear her to every red-blooded college jackass who discovers her is also sort of my fault. I’ve been screwing up with Lexi since before I even knew her, and now, all I can think about doing is finding a way to fix it. She’s right. She needs to be given a chance to live—truly live—and I’m just going to have to figure out how to make that safe for her.
    A tiny tug on her hands pulls her against me, and I try to ignore how fucking good that feels. She’s perfect, and I’m toast. My hands glide around her waist, my fingers tingling with the desire to slip beneath the flimsy fabric she’s trying to pass off as a shirt. “It’s easy.” I smile, trying to put her at ease. “Just let the music move you.” At first she’s stiff and fights me, but then her eyes begin to droop, and her hips start to sway on their own, with hardly any guidance from me. The music picks up and she presses closer, shimmying and swaying to the beat, sending a fire burning straight through to my dick.
    Thank God the song ends, dropping to a much slower but still intoxicating number that leaves me with no choice but to keep my arms around her, swaying. At least the slow song will give us a chance to talk. “About what I said back at the room—I know you said I didn’t need to say