Twisted Up (Taking Chances #1) - Erin Nicholas Page 0,54
were a lot of people at the school who saw us go out to the shed together and then come out with you in my shirt and me without a shirt.”
She was instantly assaulted by the memory of how Jake had looked—and felt—without his shirt on. Why did his voice have to get all sexy and husky like that? And why did he have to smell so good? And stand so close?
But she made no move to push him away.
“We have a story,” she said.
The corner of his mouth curled slightly. “We do?”
“Yes.”
The streetlight on the corner was the only illumination, but Avery somehow felt Jake respond.
“You want to use our real story?”
She shrugged. “I think sticking with the truth as much as possible is a good idea, don’t you? Less room for error, less chance for one of us saying something the other doesn’t.”
He leaned in. “What are we saying about the shed?”
He’s just a guy. Just a guy. Just a guy. She kept up the internal mantra as she said, “I think we tell everyone we were out there to get streamers and then took shelter when we realized the storm had kicked up.”
“What if someone asks why you came out wearing my shirt?”
Was it her imagination or was Jake’s voice a little raspy? She smiled. Okay, so she could understand the fun in getting a reaction. As long as she had to pretend to like him, she might as well enjoy it.
“We’ll let them fill in their own blanks,” she said.
“You don’t mind if they say we were having a quickie on the workbench?” he asked with a full grin.
She lifted her shoulder again. “We were having a quickie on the workbench.”
“You’re an upstanding part of this community.” Jake lifted a hand and brushed her hair back over her shoulder. “You’re okay with them knowing what you’re willing to do in a shed?”
She felt the goose bumps dance down her arm from his touch. “But you’re Jake Mitchell.”
He leaned in and put his lips against the side of her neck he’d exposed. “What’s that mean?” he said softly against her skin.
Her whole body seemed to say Jake’s back! Jake’s back! when his tongue flicked out against her neck for a moment, before he kissed the spot.
She let her head fall back against the bricks of the building behind her. “It means you’re a god here, and no one would expect me to resist you. I’m not worried about other guys thinking they would get the same result in the shed.”
Yeah, her voice was a little breathless now, but she couldn’t help it.
He trailed his lips to her collarbone, then up to her jaw and over to her mouth.
“Since no one would expect you to resist me, and because I’ve made no secret of the fact that I like to kiss you, no one would be surprised if your lipstick got a little smudged before we went inside, would they?”
Avery snorted over that ridiculousness. Or she tried to. With his mouth so close to hers, it came out more as a sigh. “I’m sure they wouldn’t.”
“Good.” He sealed his lips over hers and pressed her back into the wall of the bar with his hips.
Avery wondered briefly if maybe the god thing was true, because she didn’t expect her to resist him. Maybe if he hadn’t been trying to find that little girl’s dog. Maybe if he hadn’t made Mary Wilson cry. Maybe if he hadn’t given Avery a sandwich. Maybe she would have been able to resist him if even one of those things hadn’t happened. But they had all happened. Jake was a good guy. Who could certainly kiss like a god.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and went up on tiptoe, deciding to blame it on the ham salad.
One of Jake’s hands cupped her butt, the other braced against the wall so he could fully lean in to her.
Avery felt the evidence of his arousal, hard and hot behind his fly, and felt that thrill of affecting him again. He was kissing her like he was starving for her, and holding on to her like he wasn’t ever going to let go.
In a flash, she wished for a big king-size bed and plenty of light.
Light, in particular.
She’d been with Jake twice. Had sex with him a total of four times. Still, she had yet to really see and appreciate this big, hot body. The first time, they’d been on a blanket laid out on