Heart Beats (Joker's Sin #3) - Davidson King Page 0,16

knew it wasn’t a good one. “Or maybe Atlas or someone at work sent something?”

“They’d just give it to me at work.” He was scrutinizing the box like it was something awful.

When the elevator opened, he carried it to the living area. The familiar roar I heard when I first came here didn’t scare me this time.

“It’s okay, Lion, it’s just me.” Ledger dropped the box and went to the kitchen to get a knife just as Lion flew over from one of the beams and landed on the box, immediately pecking at it.

“Hey, stop.” Ledger came over and moved the bird. He sliced the box open, and inside was a huge teddy bear holding a small box.

“Oh…um.” I didn’t know what to say; this was awkward, and I wondered if it was personal.

“What the fuck?” Ledger sounded bewildered as he took the small box and opened it. Nestled in black velvet was what appeared to be a USB drive.

“That’s weird.” I examined the gift. “Who sent this?”

Ledger put the box down and searched the rest of the packaging. There was a tiny card, but all it said was, “You’re so fucking special.”

“Okay, so that’s…” I didn’t know what it was.

Ledger dropped the card and quickly walked out of the living area. I was going to follow but honestly, I didn’t know what to do. This was weird. He came back with his laptop. He grabbed the box and took out the USB drive.

“Be careful,” I urged. “What if it’s some virus?”

He looked at me through narrowed eyes. “I’ll chance it.”

I wasn’t about to argue with the man, who was clearly upset, so I sat on the couch. A minute later Radiohead’s “Creep” began to play from his laptop. And the gift went from weird to downright freaky.

Chapter Eight

Ledger

“Could it be some sick joke from Max or something?” Shane asked when the song ended. I hadn’t intended to listen to it all, but I’d wanted to see if there was more on it. There wasn’t.

“Not Max’s thing. He’d glue dildos to my car or something. This is…fucked up.”

Shane came over and looked at the card. “I can’t tell if it’s an endearment or if they’re angry.”

“I don’t give a shit; I want to know how they got my address.” I pulled the USB drive out of my laptop and slammed the lid closed.

“It’s not hard to find your address, Ledger. Even if you’re not listed, anyone could find it.” Shane wasn’t being creepy; he was being factual. I never saw myself as a big deal, so security wasn’t something I really had, but I should probably reconsider that.

“It’s likely some groupie from the club,” he said as he tossed the card down.

“And the flowers?” I had to wonder.

“Trinity, totally.” He smiled, but there was a twinge of disgust in his voice.

“I told you that wasn’t her thing.” I stood, liking how close Shane was to me.

“We’ll tell Ciro. I’m sure he’ll keep an extra special eye on you at work.” He wasn’t moving away, and when I placed my hands on his hips, I loved the low moan he let out.

“Maybe I can call the delivery company too, you know, see if there’s a return address.” I pressed closer to him, slowly leading him to the couch.

“Mmhmm, yeah.”

The feel of Shane’s fingers as they gripped my shirt was like a pulse, a jumpstart to my heart.

“I’m going to kiss you.” I leaned closer, smiling when his eyes widened.

“Please.”

The softness of his lips was a contradiction to the force he put behind the kiss. His fingers gripped my shirt and pulled me infinitely closer. I loved how he nibbled my bottom lip and dipped his tongue inside my mouth. His breaths tasted like new life, and all thoughts of the creepy gift fell away as we crashed onto my couch.

His legs wrapped around my waist while my fingers threaded through his red strands. The noises Shane made were the best music I’d ever heard.

“You feel amazing.” I spoke against his lips, unable to break away. He moaned in response. I felt his cock, hard as it pressed on mine, and I wanted to strip him and take it down my throat.

I reached for the zipper of his jeans, his chants of “Yes, yes, yes,” all I needed to hear. When I reached in and felt his hard, thick cock hot in the palm of my hand, I couldn’t wait to taste it.

“I want—” The sound of my cell phone cut me