“Not sure,” he says as I lift my palm to his chest, and he covers it with his own. “You’re cold.”
“I’ll live,” I say, ripping my eyes away from him so he can’t see the desire begin to blind me. I focus on a seagull who drunkenly lands a few feet away. Where before it was easier to distance myself, it’s now a constant struggle not to touch him more intimately, especially feeling as raw as I do. “So, there’s my sad little tale, which isn’t even mine. Pathetic.”
“You’re bored. You’ve realized it. You followed a trail that piqued your interest, and it led to a little self-discovery. It’s not a fucking crime to realize that you feel you’re lacking in some ways. What would make it a crime is if you didn’t do shit about it. You’re an intelligent woman, and now you know what you want and what you don’t. Figuring it out is all part of it, right?”
“God,” I grin while wiping away the few errant tears gliding down my cheeks. “That pep talk must have been so painful for your A-side.”
“I got close to jumping in,” he jests in a velvet tone that has me inhaling an extra breath.
“Yeah, well, I guess thank you for not throwing me over. You’re a pretty decent guy, Easton Crowne.”
Gripping my hand, he surrounds it with his own and pulls me to his side, “Come on, let’s walk some more until you get tired.”
“I’m sorry, Easton,” I repeat because it bears repeating.
As we walk away from the pier, he laces our fingers together in response. Relief trickles in as I glance over at him just as we pass the dock light, and I see no trace of judgment but an accepting warmth in his eyes. It’s then I feel the totality of the warm embrace Stella described when she first arrived in Seattle. That and the knowledge I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be and with the right person—even if I don’t understand or have the crystal clarity of why. He pulls me into his side as we stroll along the edge of the water, my head resting on his chest before we get lost in our footfalls.
Easton stops short of the sliding doors outside of the hotel and wordlessly lifts our clutched hands before pressing his lush lips to the back of mine. Heat sparks through me as the buzz between us amps up, crackling and intensifying with every passing second.
“So, you don’t hate me?”
“No,” he answers, quickly crowding me on the sidewalk. His potent, desire-filled gaze destroying my will to keep him at arm’s length by the second.
“Not even a little?”
“No, but do you want a little more clarity?”
“Think I can handle it?”
His lips lift in a barely-there grin. “You’re a little more villain than you think.”
“Yeah,” I sigh. “I have to agree with that.”
“We all have one in us,” he imparts.
“You’re completely different than I thought you would be,” I admit, “but in the best way.” My limbs thrum with recognition that the gorgeous distraction towering over me is taking up every inch of my headspace.
“Easton, maybe I’ve been presumptuous in thinking…but if I wasn’t,” I whisper as his body cradles mine without contact, the invisible thread between us strengthening, “if I wasn’t—”
Using our clasped hands, he jerks me flush to him, his breath hitting my ear a second before his heated declaration. “If you weren’t so determined to keep me out of your bed, I’d be fucking the breath out of you right now, Natalie.”
I let out a shaky exhale as his erection brushes against me. “In my mind, I’ve already sunk inside you a thousand times.”
A whimper leaves my throat as he pulls back, undeniable heat burning in his darkening emerald gaze.
“This is crazy,” I swallow.
“No, it’s not,” he says, brushing his thumb seductively over the back of my hand. Allowing it briefly, I lose myself in the sweep of his touch as I imagine the type of lover he would be. He seems to read my thoughts easily, as he has since the day we met, all the while naturally disarming me.
Exhaling heavily, he pulls back slightly, reaching into his jean pocket where he retrieves a pack of breath mints. His dark lashes flit over his cheeks as he unwraps the candy. Lifting a piece of it, he gently pushes it between my parted lips. Embarrassment threatening, I draw my brows just as he pops a piece into his own mouth before flicking the mint skillfully along his tongue. “I’m so tempted to ignore your words and listen to everything else you’re not saying.”