Playing For Her Heart - Megan Erickson Page 0,20

skirt. He couldn’t believe she was the same girl who’d opened herself up to him in that hotel room. The Chloe last night was quiet and reserved. He wanted to know more about her, which was probably insane.

But it wasn’t just that he was jonesing to see Chloe again, to be in her presence—he was awed at her close relationship with Ethan. Her brother adored her; it was easy to see. Grant knew he’d only seen the tip of the iceberg when it came to Chloe’s personality. Ethan’s devotion to her made Grant curious to know more.

And frankly, he wanted to know if that wanton princess act was real.

Twenty minutes later, Grant found himself in Ethan’s driveway, listening to his engine cool down.

He bit his nail and jiggled his leg. He’d thought of calling Ethan last night and telling him the truth, but that would be a violation of Chloe’s privacy. So instead, he had to find some way to weasel her number or address out of Ethan.

He stepped out of his car and took the porch stairs two at a time. He knocked on the door, but after a couple of minutes, he didn’t get an answer.

Figuring Ethan was probably in the shower or something, Grant tested the door, which was unlocked. He opened it and walked right in.

“Ethan!” he called, wiping his feet on the mat. “Where are ya?”

He had to be there, right? The guy rarely went anywhere other than Grant’s house, and Grant knew he wasn’t there.

He heard a sound in the kitchen, a female voice, and he walked toward it, wondering if Ethan had a guest.

It didn’t hit him until he was one foot in the kitchen that a female voice in Ethan’s house would most likely be…

Chloe.

Because yep, there she was, scrubbing the countertop, earbuds in her ears, shaking her ass to music only she could hear. She wore short shorts and a thin, tight tank. He didn’t know what she was doing here, cleaning Ethan’s house, but Grant wasn’t going to miss this show.

She sang softly, and Grant had to grin, because she was definitely singing Pink.

That said something about her, that she was here cleaning her brother’s house on a Saturday when she could be at home doing something for herself. Everything about her so far showed a lot of heart and dammit if Grant didn’t selfishly want some of that for himself.

He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest, enjoying watching her when she wasn’t nervous or anxious. She was…happy, and free. And yes, it was voyeuristic, but dammit, she was beautiful with her face lit up, her now-short hair swinging about her face.

That is, until she spun around, spotted him, and screamed. She jerked the earbuds out of her ears and clapped a hand over her mouth, green eyes huge in her flushed face.

He didn’t move, waiting to see how she’d react. The gears were turning in her head, something working behind her eyes. Slowly, she lowered her hand, her fingers grazing her neck, until her palm rested on her upper chest.

Grant figured this could go one of several ways. She could ignore him. She could tell him to leave. They could engage in super awkward, weeks-after-dirty-hotel-sex conversation until Ethan got back.

Or they could fuck again.

He watched her, studying her body language. Her lips were parted, gaze roaming his face and chest. If he hadn’t seen her aroused before, he wouldn’t have noticed. But he had seen her, naked and so fucking needy.

As Sari, as his princess, she’d been bold, unafraid to voice what she wanted. There’d been no shyness to Sari, no hesitation to seek pleasure, no embarrassment for wanting a simple human need. In a role, Chloe had been dynamic; she’d been able to say what she wanted. And maybe he was reading her wrong there in the kitchen, but if he was right, she wasn’t opposed to Grant touching her again.

Time to see if his wanton princess wanted to come out and play.

This could crash and burn in epic failure. Grant was a thirty-two-year-old man and this was probably a horrible idea. But he couldn’t get Chloe’s green eyes out of his head, the way she kissed him, the way she moved under his palms. And, fuck, the way she tasted… So, he took a deep breath and went for it, knowing this could completely end in Ethan ripping out his heart like in that Indiana Jones movie.

Grant tipped up his lips and