He did the same, completely off-balance at her unexpected good mood. Actually, it was more than good. Her entire demeanor had shifted into a happy space, and he narrowed his gaze, unable to figure her out.
“Okay, dammit, why aren’t you yelling at me?” he asked, unable to wait for her to slam him for placing Rick on her tail.
A sexy smile lifted her lips, and she laughed. “Am I making you sweat?” she asked cheekily.
He liked this sassy Meg. “Yes. Care to explain?”
She lifted one delicate shoulder. “When I realized I had someone following me—”
“You mean when Olivia pointed Rick out,” Scott corrected.
Meg raised her hand. “In her defense, I had already mentioned we’d been to Tyler’s and that he was helping me out. She assumed I knew about the bodyguard.”
He inclined his head, less interested in his sister’s role than Meg’s feelings on the subject. “Go on.”
“When I realized you had someone following me, I was furious.”
Her eyes flashed with emotion, and he braced himself. “Here it comes.”
“No. Because as I drove home, I realized that, thanks to you, I could get out of my car and walk to my door without looking over my shoulder or fearing Mike would pop out of the bushes to attack me. And I realized how lucky I was to have someone in my life who wanted to look out for me.” She took another sip of her drink and looked at him over the rim of the glass, a light blush covering her cheeks.
“So you aren’t angry.”
“I’m not happy you didn’t talk to me first. Or warn me. But no, I’m not angry.”
He stepped closer, drawn to this softer, more open Meg. “I’d already decided that I’d made a mistake. I would have filled you in tonight.”
She ran her tongue over her lips, and his gut tightened as he followed the sexy movement. “Is that why you’re here? To discuss security?” she asked.
He placed his drink on the kitchen counter. Took hers from her hand and set it down beside his. “No, I’m here because I can’t stay away from you. But I’d much rather get the lecture out of the way so we can move on to more pleasurable things.” He stroked his knuckles over her cheek, around her jaw, and down the soft skin on her neck.
She visibly swallowed hard. “Are you going to ask me before you make decisions that involve me from now on?”
“Yes. Unless you’re not around, in which case I’ll run them by you as soon as possible afterward.”
She nodded. “And if I don’t agree, we’ll reach a compromise?” she pressed on.
Now she was pushing him to make promises he couldn’t keep. “I won’t compromise on your safety, but we will talk.” It was the best he could offer.
As he spoke, he trailed his fingertips along the loose edge of her tank top. Goose bumps prickled along her chest, her skin there flushed, and her nipples became harder peaks. He was dying to take one into his mouth, but they needed to finish up this conversation, and he shifted positions to accommodate his thickening length. The hard denim of his jeans was damned uncomfortable.
She let out a long sigh. Tipped her head, her hair trailing along the top of his hand. He actually fucking shivered at the soft tickle.
“I’ll accept that for now,” she finally agreed.
He narrowed his gaze. “Can I ask what’s making you so . . . accommodating?”
And that was the change, he realized. She was suddenly more accepting of him in her life. More of a willing participant in wherever things between them might go.
“I spent the afternoon with someone who knows how to handle a domineering Dare man.” And on that note, Meg wrapped her arms around his neck and settled her soft lips on his.
Chapter 6
On the way home from shopping, Meg had thought over everything Riley and Olivia said. Olivia especially. Meg understood she could keep fighting this thing between herself and Scott or she could enjoy what he offered and move on when he was ready. Once she let go of her fear, it was surprisingly easy to let him in.
Especially when he showed up that night with sparkling water and in an obvious panic because he’d been caught being high-handed. How could she resist the man when, beneath the control freak, he was so amazingly sweet? Not to mention drop-dead sexy. She’d looked through the security hole to find him on her doorstep wearing a pair of dark jeans that accentuated his hard thighs and a navy T-shirt that brought out the blue in his eyes and showed off the defined muscles in his forearms.
Making the first move was easier than she would have thought, and she’d clearly taken him by surprise, which she had to admit, she liked doing. But the minute her mouth touched his, he groaned, cupped the back of her head in his big hand, and took over. He slid his tongue across her lips once, twice, then plundered. He kissed her over and over, long, drugging kisses that weakened her in the knees. He tugged at her hair, a gesture that she somehow felt in her core. He kissed her like he couldn’t get enough.
She knew she couldn’t. She wanted to feel his hot skin on hers. She grasped his shirt and pulled up at the hem, sliding her hands up his abdomen, feeling the hard muscles beneath her fingertips.
He broke the kiss and pulled in a ragged breath, giving Meg the opportunity to take over. She reached for the button on his jeans, popping it open and yanking down. He attempted to grasp her wrists and stop her, but she was faster, and she wriggled the denim over his lean hips. With a grunt of acceptance, he helped, and the denim pooled around his ankles. His cock sprang up before her, thick and hard, ready for anything.
She grinned and lowered herself to her knees. This
