Stripped Love (Guys Next Door #1) - Baylin Crow Page 0,22
did when he was amused. "It's a case of picking sides. Which is the lesser evil, I guess."
"And, who wins?" I asked as I ran my hand over the cover.
He shrugged. "I have no idea."
I laughed and finally cracked open the book. "You haven't decided on an ending?"
"I haven't picked a side yet," he answered as if that explained everything. Hell, maybe it did.
"Why not?" I glanced at the first page as he mumbled, "Because there are always reasons behind actions. They both have motives for why they cause so much destruction."
Archer had drawn a vivid swirl of dark blue water with white capped waves. A sinister looking creature covered in dark green scales—a female, based on her tits, covered by crumbling black shells—reached abnormally long fingers with sharp black claws toward a jagged wall of rock.
On top of the cliff stood a man, eyes narrowed in fury at her. He wore dark clothing and looked very much an evil pirate with a patch over one eye as the other lit bright amber. A scar ran the length of his face, and he bared his teeth. His sword dripped blood at his side, and a crumpled heap lay by his tall boots. I looked closer and found another siren curled in on herself, limp and vacant eyes to the sky.
What the fuck? I snuck a peek at Archer from the corner of my eye. He'd left the couch and stood staring out the sliding glass patio door, sipping his beer. Archer had a dark side, it appeared. And for some reason, I was drawn to it. I wondered how and why he chose that narrative. What made him tick.
"Does the book have a title?" I asked and he glanced over his shoulder.
"Not yet. I figure I better finish it first. It's hard for me to title something when I’m not sure how the story ends."
Trying to understand him better, I probed. "So, when are you going to decide whose team you're on?"
"When inspiration strikes, I guess." He paced back to the couch and plopped back down.
I hummed under my breath and turned the next page and then the one after. The depictions were dark, but in an odd way, both villains only engaged in the deadly battle for their loved ones. Both wanted revenge on behalf of their families, and like Archer, I didn't know which one I'd rather see come out on top. It should have been a clear the sirens started it, but Archer had put his own spin on the tale. They'd been protecting their home from the pirates who'd journeyed too close.
When I finished flipping through the unfinished book, I closed it and set it on the table.
"What do you think?" he asked with a hint of nervousness.
"I think I'm glad you showed me." I chuckled. "It's definitely not what I thought it would be, but you are insanely talented."
His cheeks tinged with pink and his tongue darted out to wet his lips. "You think?"
"I wouldn't say so otherwise." Eyes locked on his mouth, I reached across the couch and ran a finger down his arm, leaving chill bumps racing down the path. "So, writing... Getting published. That’s the goal?"
He shivered when I continued to tease his skin but didn't pull away. "It's what I want to do for the rest of my life."
There was a time when I knew that feeling. The ache to create and share my work with others. A small burst of remorse flickered in my chest before I extinguished it. This wasn't about me.
"I think you have a real shot," I told him honestly. "I'm already a fan and want to see which direction you go. What made you decide to write this story?"
He tilted his head and was silent for a beat. "I think I just found blunt honesty with it. No pretense. Two species unapologetically acting on their animal natures."
I watched his mouth move, enraptured by the intensity of how he spoke of his work, his thoughts and how much I wanted those lips on mine.
"Phoenix?" His voice had quieted.
"Yeah?" I responded while steadily stroking his arm.
"You keep staring at my mouth." On cue, he sucked his full lower lip into his mouth.
My gaze flicked up to his, and I groaned at the mix of innocence and heat swimming in those deep pools of rich brown.
He puffed out a shaky breath. "Either I have something on my mouth…or you want to kiss me."