Shock - Marie Johnston Page 0,37

least I don’t have pizza stains on my top.

It’s Ford. It shouldn’t matter if I’m in my uniform or my pajamas. But it does.

My house is dark. I could pretend I’m asleep. Maybe he didn’t see the TV flickering, maybe he didn’t see me moving around.

But it’s Ford. He drove across town at night and he’s here. The door’s open before my brain can even decide to face him.

Chapter 10

Ford

Fuck, this is a bad idea. She’s probably not even going to answer. What single woman, sitting home alone, is going to whip open their door after dark?

I should’ve called. Should’ve messaged. But by the time Cass left after stumbling through my house, collecting Jayden’s things and apologizing profusely for how long she’d napped, I didn’t even realize I’d made this decision.

When Cass drove off, I was in my car and parked outside of Lia’s home before I knew it.

There’s no going back. I ring the doorbell. Either she’ll answer, or she won’t.

The door inches open. She’s scrubbed clean of all makeup, and her hair’s tumbling over her shoulders like it’s had little more than a finger comb. She’s disheveled and sexy as hell.

“Is everything all right?” she asks.

Her rich voice is enough to short-circuit my mind, which was already struggling with her take-me-to-bed appeal. I nudge the door open further. She steps back, her confused gaze on me, her brow crinkling.

“I had to come,” is all I say. I take another second to drink her in. The frilly shorts she’s wearing bare her legs more than anything I’ve seen her wear. Her skimpy shirt fails to conceal her full breasts.

Damn, she has nice tits. Creamy and round, I can fondle them while I suck a sweet nipple into my mouth.

Lust rams into me. I’ve admired every other part of her body, including her brain, but this is the most I’ve seen of parts I’ve been trying hard not to think about for over a year. Now, they’re right here, and the reasons why I shouldn’t do this aren’t coming to mind. Instead, the memory of her sultry voice saying, “We’re adults,” loops over and over in my head, drilling need into me until I have to taste Lia more than I have to breathe. Desire coils under my skin, writhing, waiting for a sign from her, anything that says it’s okay for me to unleash everything I’m holding back.

Way too long passes before I lift my gaze to her face. Even in the dark, it’s obvious her cheeks are flushed. Probably because she can tell I want to eat her alive.

“You’re here,” she breathes. “Now what?”

I back her into the wall. It’s not like me to be the aggressor. I usually don’t have to be. I’m not exactly fighting them off, but I also don’t have to prove how fucking much I want this. “What do two adults usually do when they’re alone together?” I lean back just enough to rake my gaze down her long body. “Especially when one of those adults is wearing pretty pink pajamas that show me everything.”

Lia’s lips part and her eyes flare, but she doesn’t shrink away. We’re moving at light speed, blurring the lines. One of us should point that out, but it’s not like either of us has been in this situation before. People might assume I have all the experience, but with Lia, I’m a rookie all over again.

She licks her lips and rests her hot hands on my shoulders. As soon as she touches me, my body ignites. My muscles shake with the effort to restrain myself.

Real relationship or not, Lia means something to me. The best thing to do would be to turn on my heel and leave.

But the only thing that could peel me off Lia is Lia herself.

I lower my head until my lips are a whisper above hers. “Do you want this?”

Her breath hitches. “It seems like the best idea and the worst idea at the same time.”

“Exactly.” I close the distance. My mouth lands on hers, and like the other times we’ve kissed, I’m lost. She’s solid, she’s real. She’s not the coworker I’m forbidden to have dirty thoughts about. She’s not a random hookup I have to keep at an emotional distance. She’s my partner, my friend. She’s also undeniably sexy and now she’s mine.

I should get an award for my restraint this past year.

But the dam’s been blown. All the things I want to do to this woman are flooding my brain.

A hint