way pure, raw lust replaced her shock. Nearly as fast as it arrived, the lust was masked by cool disdain.
Her full lips were parted as she struggled to control her breathing. Skylar’s chest—piece of fucking art, in his mind—rose and fell in time with her rapid breathing. Her workout pants and sweatshirt didn’t do anything to hide her curvaceous figure. He wanted to pull the material away and indulge.
“What are you doing here?” There was far too much animosity in her tone.
He struggled to pull his eyes off her and focused on the slab of wood between them.
Fuck, that’s incredible.
Intricate carvings of wolves, trees, and more. They damn near leaped off the wood. She was making a door.
“You did this?”
She flattened her lips. “While I realize I don’t jump out of planes, do all that other by sea-air-or-land shit your motto states, I do have a job. What I’m good at.” She held up her hand. “Or used to be.”
She made zero effort to conceal her bitterness.
He crossed his arms to keep from touching either the wood on the sawhorses or her. “Those are the SEALs, darlin’. I’m a marine, as you well know, not a squid.”
She didn’t bat an eye. “Basically, you’re informing me that there’s room for improvement, then, on your end.”
Cheeky. He admired her spunk. What he didn’t think so highly of was the approval in Gibson’s gaze as he observed her.
“Gibson, Ioan’s looking for you.” His comment was a flat-out lie, because knowing his friend, he had his dick in one of the two women he’d last been seen with, or they were both sucking him right now.
His friend quirked a brown eyebrow. “Guess I should go then,” he drawled in a slow, unhurried way. He took his time strolling toward the door and dared to stop by Skylar.
Parker bit back his possessive growl as Gibson dipped his head close to hers and whispered something in her ear. Her blinding smile ratcheted up his jealousy, and he purposefully slowed his breathing and tried not to envision stabbing Gibson in the throat with the chisel lying close to his hand.
“Call me if you need me.” Gibson kissed her cheek, all the while pinning a smirking gaze on Parker. “You have my number. Don’t forget it’s the one listed right above the one tagged ‘Asshole.’ You know, Parker’s number.”
Yep, his friend deserved to die by Parker’s hand. A slow and oh-so-painful death.
Not moving until it was just the two of them in there, he refused to look away from her. Wanted her off her game. Wanted her to wonder what he was thinking.
“Something you needed?”
Okay, so her reaction wasn’t quite what he’d hoped. Most women he knew would be blushing and flirting. Not his Skylar. She obviously struggled to ignore the desire between them. He had to get her to stop that.
“I came to check up on you.”
Some of her anger and defiance fell away. Not the surprise, though. And again, he got it. He was the asshole of a neighbor.
“Thank you. I’m fine.” She lowered her gaze to the door, then lifted it once more, erasing the stress that had appeared when she looked at the wood slab. “I appreciate you taking time from your party to do so.”
He narrowed his eyes and made his way around to where she stood. His cock was iron hard, and he inhaled, his dick throbbing at the evocative scent that surrounded her. He had no idea what it was, but he wanted it all over him. And his scent all over her. A frown tugged at the corners of his mouth at the slight scent of Gibson’s cologne.
She does not need to smell like him at all.
“What?” The edge in her tone had him grinding his jaw.
Capturing her chin in his hand, he tipped it up. “You keep pushing yourself.” He gave a slight shake of his head and took a deep breath. “You need to rest. Doc’s orders. And either you head for bed, or I will put you there.” He passed over her with a heated rake of his gaze. “What’s your choice?”
Please let me put you there, although I don’t think you’re ready for what I want to do to you. I fucking love your hair. He wanted to touch it, smooth it along his fingers and indulge in the silkiness he knew it would embody.
“I’m going, I’m going. Go back to your party. I’ll take my meds and head to bed.”
He cocked a brow. “I’ll wait.