Rance scoffed. “This is nothing. It’ll fizzle out in a few days, and then Grae will come to her senses and see who she really needs.”
Caden’s jaw clenched, anger flaring in his expression. Then he looked down at me, those hazel eyes swirling into a mix of greens, browns, and golds that hypnotized me. He lowered his head slowly and quickly, all at the same time. My heart hammered against my ribs as time slowed.
I should’ve moved, given him my cheek,something. But I didn’t. I was held captive in the spell that Caden wove with his presence alone.
At the first touch of Caden’s lips, I was lost. Heat and need swirled around me as my lips parted on instinct, and his tongue slipped inside, stroking. A buzz lit low in my belly—one I’d never felt with any other kiss, no matter how much I’d searched for it. That buzz deepened into a hum that spread through my muscles, making my knees weak.
When Caden finally pulled back, I blinked up at him and could only think one thing.
He’d completely ruined me.
4
CADEN
I was so unbelievably screwed.
As I looked down at Grae, her cheeks flushed to a deep pink, her blond hair mussed, and her blue eyes shining, I knew that I’d made a fatal mistake. I’d seen the gleam in Rance’s eyes, one that said he had no plans of giving up. I had heard the challenge in his words. I’d just wanted him to back off, and this seemed like the easiest way to do that. But I’d been so incredibly wrong.
Kissing Grae was like downing a shot of whiskey set on fire. She burned through my system in a way that would leave scars in its wake. It was hard enough to ignore her pull on a good day. Now that I’d tasted her? It would be nearly impossible.
Rance cleared his throat, his eyes flaring with anger. “I’ll be here to pick up the pieces when you take off for who knows where with some model.”
Temper surged in my gut, and I bit back the snarl that wanted to escape my lips. “Can’t imagine why I’d leave when I have everything I want right here.”
I hoped he read the truth in my words, even though I knew I was playing a dangerous game. But something about Rance had always put me on edge. Maybe it was because he’d been staring at Grae with need in his gaze for as long as I could remember. Maybe it was just because I thought the guy was a douche. Whatever it was, I wasn’t about to leave Grae open to his clearly unwanted advances. But it would’ve been a hell of a lot safer to just deck the guy and be done with it.
“We’ll see about that,” Rance muttered. “I’ll talk to you later, Grae.” And with that, he took off back toward the fire station.
Grae’s shoulders slumped. “What is wrong with him?”
I forced myself to release my hold on her, but it was like pulling away from the sweetest heat I’d ever experienced. “Tell me what’s really going on.”
Grae worried her thumbnail with her forefinger. “It’s not that big a deal.”
“Clearly, it is,” I snapped.
She clamped her mouth shut, and I sighed.
“Please, tell me.”
“I don’t want to,” she said quietly.
The timidity in her voice had my skin prickling. It was so unlike her.
“Why not?” I struggled to keep my voice gentle, something deep inside clawing at me to find out what had her shrinking in on herself.
Grae’s gaze dropped to the sidewalk between us. “I hate the way you look at me when you think I’ve screwed up.”
My spine snapped straight. There was such defeat in her tone, though it was mixed with something else—grief, maybe? “What are you talking about?”
Her head snapped up, a little more fire in her eyes now. “You look at me like I’m a moron who can’t handle her own life.”
My jaw dropped as a slideshow of memories flowed through my mind, and I tried to see them through her lens. I’d needed emotional distance from Grae like I’d needed air, but I hadn’t been able to let her go entirely either. It was a shit thing to do, but sticking around and needling her was the best option I had. Her annoyance and frustration had guaranteed the distance I’d so desperately needed, but I still got to be in her presence. Only now, I saw that my selfishness had done real damage.
“Gigi, the last thing I think you are is a moron.”
She scoffed. “Sure.”
