Summer Breeze Kisses - Addison Moore Page 0,402

She sits up in bed until I’m eye level with the girls. Lex has never been shy about her body, and dear Lord, she doesn’t have a reason to be. “If this is an engagement ring, I’m going to say no.” She bites down over a smile while stealing a moment to glance at me.

“It’s not an engagement ring.” I frown up at her playfully. “But now that I see how much pleasure the prospect of turning me down brings you, the next gift just might be.”

My phone buzzes over the nightstand, but I choose to ignore it. Whoever it is will have to wait until later, until tomorrow if I’m lucky. I’ll do every acrobatic stunt in the book to keep Lex locked in my bedroom.

She plucks at the old worn bow and peels the box back, exposing a frail gold necklace with a pendant attached with three shiny Xs attached in a row. “Oh my goodness! Triple X!” She gasps, pulling it to her chest with delight. Triple X was what I called her in private. But Lex did her part too and lived up to the moniker. “I love it!” Her feet kick at the sheets in an airborne version of the happy dance. “Help me get it on.” She hands me the box, and I carefully free the necklace from it and clasp it around her neck.

Lex holds the tiny pendant out, examining it from a new vantage point.

I brush a kiss over her hip before sitting up next to her. “I always knew it was all you would ever have to wear. It’s perfect on you.”

A laugh bubbles from her as she opens her arms and pulls me down on top of her. Lex is smiling right down to her toes, her golden eyes, each with a laugh of their own.

“Lex,” I whisper right over her lips. I can feel the words bubbling up inside me, begging to jet on out. “I love you. I still love you.” I dot her lips with a kiss. “I never did stop.”

A gasp gets locked in her throat, and she flattens her palms over my chest. Just as she’s about to either slap or deck me—probably both, the hard thump of a fist pounds over the front door.

“What in the hell.” I land a kiss at her temple before jumping into my pants and heading for the door. “Wait here.”

The pounding intensifies, and the doorbell goes off in spasms. The doorman would never let a madman through those gates, but then again, my phone did ring. Worst-case scenario—a madman made it past him, and he tried to warn me.

I peer through the peephole and spot an officer dressed in uniform, the magnification of the tiny hole barrels his chest out a little too much. He leans in, and the stubble on his face comes at me so fast I back up.

Lex ambles into the room and speeds next to me, desperately trying to button the dress shirt I wore last night. It’s a good look on her, and I can’t help but give a lopsided grin at the sight. “Who is it?” she hisses. Her nose does this cute little twitch that opens the floodgates to a thousand different memories, and all I want to do is carry her back to that bedroom.

“It’s a cop. I’d better see what he wants.” Just as my hand goes for the lock, the door thumps to life again.

“You in there, Lex?” a deep voice thunders from the other side. “Don’t make me beat this door down.”

Crap. My adrenaline skyrockets. “You know this guy? Is this some amped up ex of yours?”

“No.” She taps her hands in the air as if motioning for me to keep it down. “It’s my amped up big brother.” She hides her face in her hands a moment. “I forgot all about meeting him for coffee this morning.”

“Big brother—Marlin?” Crap. It’s been years since we last had the misfortune to meet, but something tells me it wasn’t long enough.

More pounding ensues, this time with the threat of taking me downtown.

“I guess I should let him in.” I unhook the lock, and Lex presses her body against the door. Her lips quiver as she looks up at me with fright.

“Have you lost your freaking mind? He’s going to kill us. You first, then me!”

The door pulsates with each thunderous bang. “Lex? I can hear you for crap’s sake. Open the damn door before I beat it down!”

I’m not