Neve yanked him from his convoluted musing. “I’m a little surprised you got involved with your incident commander.” He cocked a questioning eyebrow. “You’re usually so practical. Didn’t it occur to you that things might go off the rails and get awkward at SAR?”
“It did.” He swallowed an uncomfortable knot. “But we talked about that possibility beforehand, so I thought we were on the same page. I also believed things would eventually fizzle out and go back to the way they were before.” He held up his hand. “Don’t say it. I was an idiot.”
To his relief, the look she gave him was one of benign appraisal rather than one that telegraphed she thought he was a dumbass. “What did you see in Chelsea?”
He opened his mouth and closed it again.
Neve’s brow lifted slightly. “You can tell me. No judgment here.”
“Sex,” he blurted out. “It was about sex with someone who could relate to my world.” If she hadn’t before, Neve now knew what a complete douchebag he was. “I can’t believe I just said that.”
Oddly, her face didn’t give away any emotion. No surprise, no disgust, no pity. “Would you have admitted that to anyone else?”
“Hell no!”
“Then I’m flattered.”
Not the reaction he expected. “Because?”
She took a thoughtful sip of tea. “It means you feel comfortable enough with me to be honest. I know how closely you hold everything to the vest, and I consider it an honor that you trust me.”
“I’ve known you my whole life,” he reasoned.
“You’ve known Mickyhiswhole life too. Would you have shared that with him?”
“Good point. I wouldn’t even share that with my brothers.” They probablytrulybelieved he was a virgin. Ha! Reece sat back and sighed. “So youdon’tthink I’m a douche?”
“I didn’t say that.” A cute little smirk curved her rosy mouth—a mouth he was spending way too much time looking at, with memories of how it had felt against his haunting him.
“So youdothink I’m a douche.”
“I didn’t say that either. What I do think is that you’re not this impenetrable tower of superhuman strength and that you’re as normal as the rest of us. I see you, Reece Hunnicutt. Know what else? Chelsea’s not the only one who can relate to your world. Others might not be in the same field as you, but we get it.”
Her words rang with truth and washed another wave of warmth over him. He turned cold with her next remark.
“We all need that physical connection from time to time.”
The thought of Neve having a “physical connection” with anyone made his stomach turn over. “Even you?” he prodded, though he couldn’t figure out why he wanted to torture himself.
She nodded. “Even me.”
“But not with Cantrell.”
“Not with Leo Cantrell. At least not yet.”
A burst of fury detonated inside him. “But you’re not seeing him anymore.” His words held a keen edge he hadn’t intended.
“Not while I’m married. I’m not seeing anyone. But once this thing with us”—she motioned between them with two fingers—“is over and done with, who knows? I wouldn’t mind finding out if he and I can pick up where we left off.”
“Cantrell’s not good enough for you, Neve,” he growled—with intention this time.
She straightened her shoulders.
Against his own better judgment, Reece barreled ahead. “He’s a pretty boy with more money than brains.”
“Which must explain why he’s got more money than God,” she deadpanned. “No brains involved there at all.”
Heat simmered in his veins—not the good kind. “Does money mean that much to you?”
