Claimed By The Devil - Joanna Blake Page 0,16

if she even felt the same way about me. For all I knew, she thought of me as ‘Uncle Nick’, like all the little kids in our crew did.

Dirty Uncle Nick, more like.

I helped Melissa off the bike and removed her helmet. She looked windblown and happy. In fact, the look in her eyes nearly took my breath away.

“Did you like it?”

She nodded and exhaled.

"I loved it! I'd love to learn to ride one myself. Do you ever go . . ." I leaned in to listen to what she was saying. "Faster?"

My jaw literally dropped. I had been driving a little slower than usual, taking every precaution to make sure she was safe. But hearing her say that made me almost double over with lust.

"Yeah," I said in a rough voice. "I go faster."

There was an unintentional double meaning to my words, but she didn't seem to notice. Probably because she is an innocent and not a filthy perv, I reminded myself. She smiled happily and looked around. There were a lot of bikes outside Devlin and Kaylie's lake house, but most of the guys had brought SUVs with the families. Not Jack, I realized, seeing his massive custom ride. Janet had a full car load just with the kids.

I watched as Melissa ran her fingers through her hair, shaking it loose with a laugh. She was so natural and beautiful. There was nothing fake about her. It took every bit of strength I had not to yank her against me and kiss her senseless.

"Come on," I said, taking her hand again. Every time I touched her, I felt a shock at the contact. I was never going to get used to being around this girl. I was desperate to find out if I was a creepy old pervert or if I had a chance in hell to win her for myself.

Because if I didn't . . . I was going to have to stay away from her. Forever. There was no middle ground with this girl. As much as it would break my heart. I couldn’t think about that, though. Not yet.

We walked around the back toward the deck where it jetted out over the water.

"Oh, my gosh, it's beautiful," she said, and I looked at her. She was so pure and sweet. All I could think was that she was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.

We made the rounds. I felt so proud introducing her to everyone. Everyone took to her right away. I could tell. Kaylie gave me a secretive thumbs-up. But I didn't know if that meant she liked Melissa or that Melissa liked me.

I offered her a drink from the cooler and she took a beer. Of course, she was a college kid. College kids drank beer. I wasn't going to drink, though. Not even a beer. Not with her on the back of my bike.

I watched her drink it. I didn’t say much. I exhaled as the girls surrounded her and dragged her away. And then I waited.

“Relax, man, it’ll be okay,” Drake joked. I gave him a dirty look. He’d never even had to think about whether he was doing the right thing. The guy wouldn’t know a nice girl if she kicked him in the face.

Actually, that was probably the only way he’d get the attention of a nice girl.

Not that you’re much better, my friend. Perving on some college girl.

But she wasn’t just some girl. She was Melissa. Over the past few weeks, I’d fallen for her, hook, line, and sinker. And I prayed to God that she felt the same way about me.

Chapter Nine

Melissa

“I’m Kirsten,” a stunning brunette said as I was guided onto a wood bench that ran the length of the railing.

“But everyone calls her Angel,” an equally beautiful girl named Molly said. She was close to my age, I realized. Most of them were a couple of years older, at least, with two girls who might be in their early thirties. But all of them were extremely good-looking and ageless. I felt like a duckling hanging out with a bunch of swans.

All the girls here were gorgeous. Ridiculously so. I imagined Nick’s view. I looked like an awkward dumpling in the middle of them. A redhead with the longest legs I had ever seen cocked her head to the side and stared at me.

“Have you known Nick long?” she asked, her aquamarine eyes boring into me. A beautiful girl with golden brown waves giggled at