Read Online Princess by Christina Skye - Free Book Online

worry, Jess. All day I’ve felt off, and I couldn’t stop thinking about you. It’s that spooky twin thing again, isn’t it?”
    “I can always tell when you’re in trouble, Sum. Like when you were down in Mexico with Gabe on that assignment.”
    “Not over a cell-phone line,” her sister said quickly. “So now that I know you’re safe, tell me about this man on the motorcycle.”
    “He’s taking a shower right now, but he’s fine. A little bruised, actually. Funny, he told me the trauma came from an old accident.”
    “You’re sharing a hotel room with him?” The shrill edge was back in Summer’s voice.
    “Don’t worry, he knows your friend Izzy, so everything will be fine.”
    “Izzy Teague is there? You saw him with this man?”
    Jess heard someone ask Summer a question. She barked at them to wait, which wasn’t like her. “He just appeared after the accident, Summer. The man is completely gorgeous, by the way.”
    “Put Izzy on the phone,” Jess’s sister ordered.
    “No can do, Sum. He left.” Jess bit back a yawn. “I’m going to sleep now. It’s been one heck of a day and I’m dead on my feet.” Jess looked up as the bathroom door opened, and her heart did a double back somersault.
    Hawk was shirtless and barefoot, water glistening across his muscled chest. “Oh, my,” she murmured.
    “Oh, my
what
? Jess, I need to know exactly what—”
    “Talk to you later, Summer.” Without a hint of regret Jess broke the connection. Her exhaustion had vanished the moment she set eyes on Hawk, damp, disheveled and dangerous.
    Before she could say a word, he tossed his shirt and towel down on the open sofa bed. “Get moving,” he ordered. “I’m sleeping here.”
    “That’s not necessary. You’ll be more comfortable on the bed.”
    He nudged her out of the way like a tank plowing over soft sand. “I’ll keep an eye on things out here. This way I can hear the door.”
    There it was again, the cool way he simply moved in and took over.
    But Jess didn’t need anyone to take over for her.
    Okay, so she was currently in financial freefall thanks to her lousy investment strategy, and her car was maybe held together with duct tape and chewing gum. Probably her job choice was lousy, too, but she had her independence, and this tough-eyed stranger had no business muscling his way into her plans.
    It was time to draw a line in the sand.
    “I’ll sleep here.” Jess crossed her arms and didn’t move.
    “You want to go one-on-one, Jess?” Her name was a harsh whisper. She was mesmerized by the challenge in his eyes as he tossed a pillow onto the bed.
    His hands went to the waistband of his jeans, and the button popped open. His zipper hissed down.
    Though it took incredible willpower, Jess didn’t allow her eyes to follow his zipper, because there was absolutely
no
reason she should be curious about what lay beneath.
    “If this is some kind of perverted test of wills, I remain unimpressed.”
    Ugh. Too prim,
Jess thought. Why did this man bring out the worst in her?
    “It’s no test. I’m dead on my feet.” His fingers hooked in the waistband of his jeans. “In three seconds, the jeans and anything else I’m wearing will be gone. If you’re still here, that’s your problem.”
    Despite all her willpower, Jess’s eyes flickered downward. Dark hair arrowed across his chest. Taut muscles lined his open jeans.
    Jess swallowed, her face filled with heat. She had to explain things clearly. “I need to leave my bedroom door open. It’s . . . a thing I have. I don’t like small spaces.”
    “No problem. I’ll make a note not to lock you up in the trunk of a car anytime soon.”
    Jess heard fabric rustle. His jeans shifted and began to fall.
    She spun around quickly. “Fine, be a jerk.” Grabbing her purse, she headed toward the bedroom, trying not to hear his soft laugh or the sound of his jeans hitting the floor. The sound left an unforgettable vision of a naked male body imprinted on