Oh, Keep Your Shirt On - Michelle Pennington Page 0,55

looked at him blankly, not sure what he was talking about.

“I’m ending things with Tessa, remember? Do you have any instructions for that by the way?”

“Just show up at the office around lunch time with some flowers and act like you’re apologizing. The receptionist will call me, now that I’m Tessa’s secretary, and I’ll bring you up. We’ll try to make sure at least a few people witness it so the rumor mill can take care of the rest. Easy, right?”

“Oh sure. But since I’ll probably need to wear a shirt for that, I’ll be sure to wear a tight T-shirt to show off my awesome build.” His eyes glinted teasingly, and it was so strange because he was at once arrogant and adorable—mostly because I knew he didn’t take himself seriously. And he didn’t expect me to either.

“You’re completely shameless. But I have news for you. I’ve gotten so used to seeing you like this that it doesn’t even affect me anymore.”

“Oh yeah?” he asked, straightening.

“Yeah.” It was hard, but I kept my expression dialed to “bored beyond words”.

Wait, why was he coming around the counter?

“So, basically, you’re telling me I need to step up my game.”

My eyes widened despite myself, giving away my reaction to his coming closer. “Don’t you dare try to kiss me,” I said, backing up a step.

All at once, he pulled his shirt off his shoulder and whipped it behind my back, catching it with his other hand. He used it to tug me closer. “I was going to tell you the same thing.”

“But I wasn’t going to.”

He smiled, his eyes steady on mine. “Maybe not. But you want to. I can see it in your eyes.”

“No, you can’t.”

“Sweetheart, you don’t talk much or smile much, but you’ve got the most expressive eyes I’ve ever seen.”

His words caught me off guard, and I stopped straining away to put distance between us. “I do?”

“I didn’t think you knew. That’s why you’ve never managed to scare me off. I see too much vulnerability and curiosity in your eyes to take all your scary glares seriously. And right now…”

Why did I feel so…melty and fuzzy? “Hmmm?”

“I see exactly what I was hoping for.” He bent closer until his lips were inches from mine.

My doorbell saved me from my weak, pitiful self. At least, that’s what I told myself when it rang.

Damien growled softly but didn’t release me. “Who is that?”

“How should I know? I can’t see through the door either.” I grabbed both his forearms and pushed them down. He finally released me, but he looked grumpier than I’d ever been able to manage. “Oh, wait,” I said, unable to resist teasing him as I went to the door. “Maybe it’s my new boyfriend.”

“Don’t mess with me, Krista.” But despite the fact that he knew I was making it up to annoy him, he still followed me to the door, turning on the hall light for me.

I literally had no clue who it could be, so when I opened the door and saw both my mother and Victoria standing outside, all I could do was stare at them uncomprehendingly.

Then I saw the two suitcases behind them. “What the—”

“Krista, you’re home,” my mom said, stepping inside so fast I stumbled trying to get out of her way.

“Where else would I be?”

“Well, we didn’t see many lights on except up in your bedroom.”

“Because I was about to go to bed.” But since I was too busy eyeing Victoria and her suitcases to pay much attention to what I was saying, it took me a minute to remember that having a shirtless Damien standing a few feet away put a whole different spin on my words.

My mom stared hard at Damien, who just smiled at her before putting his shirt back on.

I couldn’t believe this was happening. But even after I closed my eyes and opened them again, they were still there.

“Aren’t you going to invite us in?” my mom asked, her voice sweet but sharp with underlying authority.

“I wasn’t planning to,” I said.

She glared at me but turned back to Victoria. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t raise her to be this rude.” Then she grabbed the handle of one of the suitcases and used it as a battering-ram to force her way further inside.

I had no choice but to step backward or get run over. “Why are you guys here?”

Victoria smiled like a pleased cat as she came in. “I need somewhere to stay for a few days, and