worst possible scenarios. Blood. Possession. An empty room.
He did not expect Rebecca to be sitting up on the bed, her hair tousled and her cheeks pink.
“Are you alright?” He lifted her to her feet, checking for anything out of the ordinary. Slowly, his fingers ran up her arms, and his intentions changed. He wasn’t examining her anymore, he was enjoying the soft, silky skin of her shoulders and delicate throat. Beneath his palms, her pulse thrummed.
Rebecca blinked like she wasn’t sure yet whether he was a dream or not. “I fell asleep.”
She parted her lips, and Holden couldn’t catch his breath. He hadn’t been that scared in a while, and the rush of emotions was dizzying. He wanted to touch this woman, to crush her against his chest and kiss the hell out of her.
Chapter Eight
It took a good thirty seconds for Becca’s brain to reboot after falling asleep on the gross motel bed. But she was thinking clearly again. She just couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
Holden’s breath was coming in little puffs. His chest tensed, revealing the ridges of his pecs and shoulders as he held her face in both hands and stared at her with those unbelievably blue eyes like he wanted to kiss her. And Becca melted like an ice cream cone. Because she wanted to kiss him, too. She was dying to grab his shirt in her fists, stand on her tiptoes, and mold her mouth against his.
But kissing was not part of the plan. Find the necromancer. Break the spell. Move to Raleigh, and be happy. That was the plan. Not kissing Holden Clark, no matter how delicious his lower lip looked. Or how he’d kicked her door down like an action-movie hero.
It wasn’t that she didn’t like him. She did. It was that relationships took care and nurturing. At this point, she didn’t have the time or energy, frankly, to share with anyone else. Her business came first. If she couldn’t devote herself to another person, it was better to be alone. Because when she got married, it would be for keeps. No do-overs. She couldn’t go through the fallout of a failed marriage the way her dad had.
“Sorry if I scared you.” She backed out of Holden’s reach, and his fingers slid down her jaw line. “See you in the morning,” she whispered.
Holden leaned down, recaptured her face, and kissed her like it was his last chance.
Rebecca wilted, losing herself in the taste and feel of his warm lips and unshaven jaw. Tiny bursts of static electricity sparked across her chest and down her spine.
With a moan of pleasure, he snaked an arm around her waist and lifted her so high against his chest her feet left the ground. He deepened the kiss, sweeping his tongue inside her.
Proof of his desire pressed against her through their layers of clothing.
Rebecca came to her senses, reluctantly, and broke the kiss.
“This is a bad idea,” was the first thing that popped out of her mouth, followed by an equally lame, “I don’t get involved with people I work with.”
Her patented, tried-and-true response to any and all flirtatious advances. Of course, the truth was, the only men she knew were men she worked with in some capacity or another. And if a seller’s kind of cute younger brother hit on her, she told him, “Sorry, but I don’t date family members of my clients. It’s not good for business.” Which may or may not be true.
The point was, she didn’t date. Not since David. That had been her first mature, grown-up relationship, and all it had done was complicate her life, eat her up with stress, and, in the end, cause her unending amounts of pain when he abandoned her to marry a pretty bank teller. She wasn’t in a place right now for a relationship.
Holden slowly let her go, sliding her down the entire length of his torso. He stepped back, and the temperature in the room dropped at least twenty degrees.
“It’s for the best.” Good God, she was babbling and couldn’t stop. “I have a lot of respect for you. I don’t want to ruin our
He did not expect Rebecca to be sitting up on the bed, her hair tousled and her cheeks pink.
“Are you alright?” He lifted her to her feet, checking for anything out of the ordinary. Slowly, his fingers ran up her arms, and his intentions changed. He wasn’t examining her anymore, he was enjoying the soft, silky skin of her shoulders and delicate throat. Beneath his palms, her pulse thrummed.
Rebecca blinked like she wasn’t sure yet whether he was a dream or not. “I fell asleep.”
She parted her lips, and Holden couldn’t catch his breath. He hadn’t been that scared in a while, and the rush of emotions was dizzying. He wanted to touch this woman, to crush her against his chest and kiss the hell out of her.
Chapter Eight
It took a good thirty seconds for Becca’s brain to reboot after falling asleep on the gross motel bed. But she was thinking clearly again. She just couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
Holden’s breath was coming in little puffs. His chest tensed, revealing the ridges of his pecs and shoulders as he held her face in both hands and stared at her with those unbelievably blue eyes like he wanted to kiss her. And Becca melted like an ice cream cone. Because she wanted to kiss him, too. She was dying to grab his shirt in her fists, stand on her tiptoes, and mold her mouth against his.
But kissing was not part of the plan. Find the necromancer. Break the spell. Move to Raleigh, and be happy. That was the plan. Not kissing Holden Clark, no matter how delicious his lower lip looked. Or how he’d kicked her door down like an action-movie hero.
It wasn’t that she didn’t like him. She did. It was that relationships took care and nurturing. At this point, she didn’t have the time or energy, frankly, to share with anyone else. Her business came first. If she couldn’t devote herself to another person, it was better to be alone. Because when she got married, it would be for keeps. No do-overs. She couldn’t go through the fallout of a failed marriage the way her dad had.
“Sorry if I scared you.” She backed out of Holden’s reach, and his fingers slid down her jaw line. “See you in the morning,” she whispered.
Holden leaned down, recaptured her face, and kissed her like it was his last chance.
Rebecca wilted, losing herself in the taste and feel of his warm lips and unshaven jaw. Tiny bursts of static electricity sparked across her chest and down her spine.
With a moan of pleasure, he snaked an arm around her waist and lifted her so high against his chest her feet left the ground. He deepened the kiss, sweeping his tongue inside her.
Proof of his desire pressed against her through their layers of clothing.
Rebecca came to her senses, reluctantly, and broke the kiss.
“This is a bad idea,” was the first thing that popped out of her mouth, followed by an equally lame, “I don’t get involved with people I work with.”
Her patented, tried-and-true response to any and all flirtatious advances. Of course, the truth was, the only men she knew were men she worked with in some capacity or another. And if a seller’s kind of cute younger brother hit on her, she told him, “Sorry, but I don’t date family members of my clients. It’s not good for business.” Which may or may not be true.
The point was, she didn’t date. Not since David. That had been her first mature, grown-up relationship, and all it had done was complicate her life, eat her up with stress, and, in the end, cause her unending amounts of pain when he abandoned her to marry a pretty bank teller. She wasn’t in a place right now for a relationship.
Holden slowly let her go, sliding her down the entire length of his torso. He stepped back, and the temperature in the room dropped at least twenty degrees.
“It’s for the best.” Good God, she was babbling and couldn’t stop. “I have a lot of respect for you. I don’t want to ruin our
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