find him right behind her. Her pulse stuttered, pounding a little harder. “The rocks are in there,” she said again, a little weakly.
“So you said. They’ll wait.” His blue eyes glinted. “About that drink…”
He was standing so close and his eyes were so blue, she felt like she was falling upward into the sky. She swallowed hard. “My roommate works at the saloon, and she stocks a full bar here at home too. So whatever you like, we probably have it.”
“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”
Conscious of his attention on her, she was aware of every little motion as she mixed up two rum and cokes. “It’s top shelf,” she said. “Well, not the coke.”
“Now who’s high and mighty?” he murmured.
Maybe she was high, that would explain why she was liquoring up a strange man in her living room. “I don’t usually do this,” she felt compelled to confess.
“What? Steal meteorites from customers?”
She chuckled nervously. “That either. I meant…” She handed him the tumbler of the slightly fizzy drink.
“I think maybe it is unusual for both of us.”
He took a drink and his eyes widened. “This is quite good. It’s the same color as the coffee, so I thought…”
She lifted one eyebrow. “That it would be larf piss?”
His other eyebrow shot up. “You won’t let me live that down, will you?”
She shrugged. “Probably not.” The warmth of amusement and rum in her faded a bit. It wasn’t like he’d be around to tease much longer. She gulped back half her drink for boldness. “C’mon. Let’s go look at those rocks.” She led him into the living room and settled on the couch.
He hesitated, then settled beside her. He pulled the bag she’d filled from the shop toward him. “Quite the collection.”
“Yeah. This place seems to collect more than its fair share of space junk.”
He glanced up at her through his lashes. “Indeed.”
For a moment, she was dazzled by the crystal blue of his eyes. She tried to stare past the brilliant had-to-be contacts to glimpse whatever true color he was hiding. “Do you see the one you want?”
“I do.” His gaze never left her while he pocketed one of the fragments.
She half expected him to rise then. Instead he leaned back and unfurled one arm across the back of the couch behind her, as if he had nowhere else to be.
To keep him squared in what remained of her view, she had to lean back too. Her shoulder brushed his forearm, sending a little shiver of awareness down her spine. God, it’d been such a long time since she played these flirting games, and she hadn’t been good at them even back then.
Without moving his arm, he angled his hand to wind one finger through a lock of her hair. The little shiver deepened to a full-on ache. Oh, he was so much better at this than she was.
He wrapped another loop around his knuckle. “When you said you weren’t dating…”
She waited a breathless second, but he didn’t continue. “When you said we should proceed immediately to the mating…” She left him hanging as he’d done to her.
His lips curved upward, and she reluctantly admitted those gorgeous blue eyes were all his, no faking. The aroused spark that ignited his gaze would be impossible to counterfeit. He really was too hot, completely out of the realm of reality for someone like her.
But here he was on her couch. Well, Delaney’s couch, technically, in Tisha’s house. But whatever.
Slowly, as much to give him time to evade the maneuver as to make sure she gauged the distance correctly, she reached up to cup his cheek. His jaw was firm and so smooth he must’ve just shaved despite the late hour.
He leaned into her caress at the same time his grip on her hair tightened, a strange medley of surrender and dominance. “I don’t know your ways.”
The confession, softly voiced, reassured her. As high and mighty as he acted, he wasn’t an irredeemable jerk.
“I’ll show you.” She stroked her thumb across the
“So you said. They’ll wait.” His blue eyes glinted. “About that drink…”
He was standing so close and his eyes were so blue, she felt like she was falling upward into the sky. She swallowed hard. “My roommate works at the saloon, and she stocks a full bar here at home too. So whatever you like, we probably have it.”
“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”
Conscious of his attention on her, she was aware of every little motion as she mixed up two rum and cokes. “It’s top shelf,” she said. “Well, not the coke.”
“Now who’s high and mighty?” he murmured.
Maybe she was high, that would explain why she was liquoring up a strange man in her living room. “I don’t usually do this,” she felt compelled to confess.
“What? Steal meteorites from customers?”
She chuckled nervously. “That either. I meant…” She handed him the tumbler of the slightly fizzy drink.
“I think maybe it is unusual for both of us.”
He took a drink and his eyes widened. “This is quite good. It’s the same color as the coffee, so I thought…”
She lifted one eyebrow. “That it would be larf piss?”
His other eyebrow shot up. “You won’t let me live that down, will you?”
She shrugged. “Probably not.” The warmth of amusement and rum in her faded a bit. It wasn’t like he’d be around to tease much longer. She gulped back half her drink for boldness. “C’mon. Let’s go look at those rocks.” She led him into the living room and settled on the couch.
He hesitated, then settled beside her. He pulled the bag she’d filled from the shop toward him. “Quite the collection.”
“Yeah. This place seems to collect more than its fair share of space junk.”
He glanced up at her through his lashes. “Indeed.”
For a moment, she was dazzled by the crystal blue of his eyes. She tried to stare past the brilliant had-to-be contacts to glimpse whatever true color he was hiding. “Do you see the one you want?”
“I do.” His gaze never left her while he pocketed one of the fragments.
She half expected him to rise then. Instead he leaned back and unfurled one arm across the back of the couch behind her, as if he had nowhere else to be.
To keep him squared in what remained of her view, she had to lean back too. Her shoulder brushed his forearm, sending a little shiver of awareness down her spine. God, it’d been such a long time since she played these flirting games, and she hadn’t been good at them even back then.
Without moving his arm, he angled his hand to wind one finger through a lock of her hair. The little shiver deepened to a full-on ache. Oh, he was so much better at this than she was.
He wrapped another loop around his knuckle. “When you said you weren’t dating…”
She waited a breathless second, but he didn’t continue. “When you said we should proceed immediately to the mating…” She left him hanging as he’d done to her.
His lips curved upward, and she reluctantly admitted those gorgeous blue eyes were all his, no faking. The aroused spark that ignited his gaze would be impossible to counterfeit. He really was too hot, completely out of the realm of reality for someone like her.
But here he was on her couch. Well, Delaney’s couch, technically, in Tisha’s house. But whatever.
Slowly, as much to give him time to evade the maneuver as to make sure she gauged the distance correctly, she reached up to cup his cheek. His jaw was firm and so smooth he must’ve just shaved despite the late hour.
He leaned into her caress at the same time his grip on her hair tightened, a strange medley of surrender and dominance. “I don’t know your ways.”
The confession, softly voiced, reassured her. As high and mighty as he acted, he wasn’t an irredeemable jerk.
“I’ll show you.” She stroked her thumb across the
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