brow and half smile. The man had a dangerous
smile.
This
was going to be a long night.
* * * *
Attie
wearing nothing but a towel was dangerous to Noah’s peace of mind, but Attie in
a man’s dress shirt was lethal. For the sake of cameras, he allowed his
appraisal to be open and genuine and the flare in her eyes indicated she knew
exactly what he was thinking. But somewhere in the logical part of his
conscience he knew he couldn’t act on the attraction.
He
didn’t know Santiago’s motivation for allowing him to spend the night with
Attie and he wasn’t going to question it, but he would keep his guard up.
Santiago didn’t do anything without purpose.
Attie
slid into bed beside him and surprised the hell out of him when she rolled over
onto his chest and practically draped herself on top of him. Her hands went to
his shoulders and her lips hovered an inch from his.
“Let’s
make this look good,” she whispered, and kissed him just as the lights went
out. Noah barely gave Santiago any thought as he crushed Attie to his chest and
took control of the kiss. He had never known hunger like this. Like diving into
uncharted territory without a swim buddy, with the potential to complicate his
life in ways he wasn’t prepared for.
He
clamped an arm around her waist and laid her more fully on top of him.
Attie
stiffened and pulled away. She was still for a moment and he could hear her
breathing heavily, then she rolled onto her own side of the bed.
“Shows
over,” she said, her voice low and strained.
“Attie—”
“No.
Please. Let’s just go to sleep. I need…sleep.”
She
sounded upset, so he let it drop.
This
was going to be a long night.
* * * *
Long didn’t even begin to describe it.
Noah
lay on his back, hands stacked under his head for safety reasons, scowling at
the ceiling, which he couldn’t see in the darkness. He had no idea how long
he’d been like this, but definitely too damn long. Attie was wedged up against
him. Sound asleep. He was wide-awake and ready to explode. It had taken her a
long time to fall asleep and he had ended up talking softly to her in the dark,
telling her stories of his childhood with Camron and how they used to get into
trouble together.
The
memories were good ones he hadn’t thought of in a long time, but telling Attie
took his mind off what he really wanted to be doing. Her breathing had
eventually slowed. He managed to get a few minutes of sleep, but Attie’s
restlessness made it tough.
Before
now she had been tossing around the bed, kicking him every time she turned over
and landing an occasional blow with her hand. This woman didn’t sleep
peacefully and it drove him nuts. She didn’t seem to be having a nightmare like
the other night; she was just restless. The quilt lay somewhere on the floor,
having been kicked off long ago by her flailing legs. The sheets were now
tangled around her and he sure as hell wasn’t taking them back. At the moment
she slept soundly and that was far better than the alternative.
Attie
let out a low moan and moved restlessly, bumping his chin with the top of her
head.
“Please.
Stop. Oh, pleeease…” she murmured, shifting on top of him. She sounded
desperate, as if she’d lost something. The torment in her voice made Noah’s
chest ache. He wrapped his arm around her and held her close, wishing she were
wearing something more than a man’s shirt. He shouldn’t be lusting after her,
but his body didn’t care, it ached for her anyhow.
“Can’t
get…to…you…can hear…have to…save you…”
Her
voice wavered as if she were on the edge of tears, but Noah didn’t feel any
wetness on her cheeks when he touched them. The anguish in her voice almost
undid him. He had never heard her sound so distraught.
Damn
it. She wasn’t given a moment’s peace. During the day she was plagued with
memories of the past and in her dreams she relived them. Small wonder she
functioned at all. Many people with PTSD suffered
smile.
This
was going to be a long night.
* * * *
Attie
wearing nothing but a towel was dangerous to Noah’s peace of mind, but Attie in
a man’s dress shirt was lethal. For the sake of cameras, he allowed his
appraisal to be open and genuine and the flare in her eyes indicated she knew
exactly what he was thinking. But somewhere in the logical part of his
conscience he knew he couldn’t act on the attraction.
He
didn’t know Santiago’s motivation for allowing him to spend the night with
Attie and he wasn’t going to question it, but he would keep his guard up.
Santiago didn’t do anything without purpose.
Attie
slid into bed beside him and surprised the hell out of him when she rolled over
onto his chest and practically draped herself on top of him. Her hands went to
his shoulders and her lips hovered an inch from his.
“Let’s
make this look good,” she whispered, and kissed him just as the lights went
out. Noah barely gave Santiago any thought as he crushed Attie to his chest and
took control of the kiss. He had never known hunger like this. Like diving into
uncharted territory without a swim buddy, with the potential to complicate his
life in ways he wasn’t prepared for.
He
clamped an arm around her waist and laid her more fully on top of him.
Attie
stiffened and pulled away. She was still for a moment and he could hear her
breathing heavily, then she rolled onto her own side of the bed.
“Shows
over,” she said, her voice low and strained.
“Attie—”
“No.
Please. Let’s just go to sleep. I need…sleep.”
She
sounded upset, so he let it drop.
This
was going to be a long night.
* * * *
Long didn’t even begin to describe it.
Noah
lay on his back, hands stacked under his head for safety reasons, scowling at
the ceiling, which he couldn’t see in the darkness. He had no idea how long
he’d been like this, but definitely too damn long. Attie was wedged up against
him. Sound asleep. He was wide-awake and ready to explode. It had taken her a
long time to fall asleep and he had ended up talking softly to her in the dark,
telling her stories of his childhood with Camron and how they used to get into
trouble together.
The
memories were good ones he hadn’t thought of in a long time, but telling Attie
took his mind off what he really wanted to be doing. Her breathing had
eventually slowed. He managed to get a few minutes of sleep, but Attie’s
restlessness made it tough.
Before
now she had been tossing around the bed, kicking him every time she turned over
and landing an occasional blow with her hand. This woman didn’t sleep
peacefully and it drove him nuts. She didn’t seem to be having a nightmare like
the other night; she was just restless. The quilt lay somewhere on the floor,
having been kicked off long ago by her flailing legs. The sheets were now
tangled around her and he sure as hell wasn’t taking them back. At the moment
she slept soundly and that was far better than the alternative.
Attie
let out a low moan and moved restlessly, bumping his chin with the top of her
head.
“Please.
Stop. Oh, pleeease…” she murmured, shifting on top of him. She sounded
desperate, as if she’d lost something. The torment in her voice made Noah’s
chest ache. He wrapped his arm around her and held her close, wishing she were
wearing something more than a man’s shirt. He shouldn’t be lusting after her,
but his body didn’t care, it ached for her anyhow.
“Can’t
get…to…you…can hear…have to…save you…”
Her
voice wavered as if she were on the edge of tears, but Noah didn’t feel any
wetness on her cheeks when he touched them. The anguish in her voice almost
undid him. He had never heard her sound so distraught.
Damn
it. She wasn’t given a moment’s peace. During the day she was plagued with
memories of the past and in her dreams she relived them. Small wonder she
functioned at all. Many people with PTSD suffered
Similar Books
