know that what Annie and I do is none of your damn business,” Emmitt said, loving to watch Gray squirm. “I also know she’s a grown woman capable of making choices for herself, unless you think otherwise. I’d be happy to pass on your concerns about her ability to navigate the dating world, Doctor.”
“Just leave her alone. You can have any other woman in town, just not Annie,” Gray said, and Levi shook his head. “What?”
“Man, you just issued him a challenge,” Levi said.
“Which I have accepted. And I’ll pick Paisley up at two.”
Chapter 5
Annie was in a bad mood. Any hope she’d had that her new roommate was just some terrible nightmare vanished when she was jarred awake at two in the morning by the front door slamming shut, signaling his return.
If his mother had taught him any manners, he’d long since forgotten them.
Emmitt flicked on every light in the house, including the hall light, which lit up her room like a solar flare. Then—as if to let her know it was intentional—he made himself a smoothie of metal bolts, glass shards, and the wails of small children.
Not even her noise-canceling headphones could block out the sound.
Whistling, he opened and closed some cupboards—seven to be exact—then slammed a few more before settling in for a long summer’s snooze. Based on his sonic boom of a snore, evidently the hall light didn’t bother him, because he’d left it burning bright.
And he’d been the one to make her feel guilty for waking him up at an hour when most people would be sitting down for dinner.
Beyond irritated by the hypocrisy of it all—another thing to add to her WORST ROOMMATE EVER list, right between HUMBLE-BRAGGING and STEALING MY BEER—she flung back the covers; marched out the door; and came to a sudden, startled stop as the bottom of her stomach dropped out.
Sweet baby Jesus. Her lungs seized, unable to release any air because three feet in front of her was Rome’s very own Romeo. Sprawled out on the recliner, with his ballcap pulled low, he and his Calvin Kleins were on full display. The man clearly had a thing against wearing pants.
Or he was marking his territory. Bringing out the big guns—the big everything.
She barely had time to register that he’d moved the recliner one hundred and eighty degrees, leaned it all the way back with the footrest fully extended, successfully blocking any escape come morning. Because her attention was drawn elsewhere.
With her blue fuzzy blanket only partially covering him, she was able to watch the hypnotic rise and fall of his chest—his very defined chest that had just the right amount of hair and just the right amount of muscle.
The peaceful way he slept irritated her. One arm flung over his eyes, a leg resting on the floor, and—hello—if that was his morning wood at two a.m., her body sighed a breathy oh my at the thought of how it would look come sunrise.
Placing a hand to her chest, Annie gave herself five seconds to gawk. Five seconds, then she’d retreat and he’d never know, because he’d clearly won this battle. As she saw it, her only other options were:
1. Hope that he’d wake up before she had to go to work and move the chair—not likely, because he was settled in for the long haul.
2. Nudge him awake and tell him he was a jerk—which meant admitting he was getting to her.
3. Come morning, crawl under the footrest—only, she was done shimmying for any man.
4. Crawl over him while he was half-naked—and wouldn’t that just make his entire year to catch her on top of him, her heart going pitter-patter.
Which led her to another problem. When he was sleeping and not spewing man-speak, he almost looked human.
She could see how some women could find his strong, capable hands and washboard abs appealing. He was tall, fit, handsome in that worldly way that showed he’d lived a full life.
Oh, who was she kidding. The man was sex-tabulous.
“Reconsidering that spooning offer?” The deep rusty voice brought her attention to the fact that while she had been watching him, he’d been watching her. “There’s room.”
He patted his lap, mere inches from his mighty impressive package, and Annie’s heart picked up pace as if it were racing in the Indy 500.
She pinned her guilty and embarrassed gaze on his, which was not embarrassed at all. His lack of pants didn’t seem to affect him one iota, just brought a charming grin to his