Hidden Ink (Montgomery Ink #4.5)(17)

Her teeth bit into her lip as she fought not to laugh at whatever Sierra, Austin’s wife, had said. She had flour on her apron, but other than that, she looked pristine—not like a woman who had probably been on her feet for a full shift.

He’d always known she was strong, but now that he knew the truth, he saw the depth of that strength. He was a big man—big hands, large chest—just big. He could break her if he weren’t careful.

He could break her with more than his strength, he knew. The fragility that slid under the surface of her skin wasn’t easy to see, but he saw it. She could be the strongest woman in the world and still carry that.

He couldn’t hurt her.

But he just might.

She turned to him then and smiled, though there was wariness in her eyes. It made sense, after all. He hadn’t come by for coffee and this was the first time they’d seen each other since he’d left her house the night before. He wasn’t sure if he should go to her, kiss her senseless, then carry her out of the building over his shoulder, or stay here and watch her from afar.

He stuck his hands in his pockets and let his smile rise just a little so she would know he liked seeing her.

Sierra looked between them and smiled like the Grinch at Christmas. She all but rubbed her hands together in glee. Of course, he only saw this out of the corner of his eye, as the rest of his attention was on the blonde in front of him—the blonde he wanted in his arms.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey.”

Sierra clapped her hands together, this time in truth, and slid off her stool. “Hi, Sloane. I’m going to head to Harry and Marie’s to pick up the kids.” She grinned. “They wanted time with the grandbabies today. Hailey was just telling me she was done for the day since her closing crew is here. Perfect timing.”

She waved and said her good-byes before she headed through the door to Montgomery Ink, presumably to kiss her husband on her way out.

That left Sloane and Hailey awkwardly standing in front of one another in silence.

Hailey cleared her throat. “Uh, yeah, I was about to get off.”

He wanted to get her off.

Jesus, his mind needed to stay out of the gutter.

From the way her cheeks blushed, her mind had gone there, too. Interesting.

“Want to get something to eat?” he asked. His stomach rumbled then. Loudly. He winced. “Apparently, I really need to eat.”

She smiled then and waved at the counter. “Let me get you some stew. It’s the kind you like. I’ll get a bowl, too.”

He met her gaze. “Can we take it to go?”

She studied his face for a moment then nodded. “That I can do. Where are we going?” She bit her lip again, this time her gaze traveling down his body, slowly.

“Your place,” he whispered, and she sucked in a shaky breath.

“Oh. Okay.” She looked up again and licked her lips. “We can do that.” She turned back to the kitchen, and he swallowed hard.

He didn’t know what they would do once they got there, but he couldn’t wait to find out. She came back quickly, her jacket on and a large bag in her hands. He took it from her, their hands brushing.

They both sucked in a breath, and he had to smile. “I’ll follow you,” he said softly before leaning down to brush a kiss against her lips.

She pressed closer and he had to hold back a groan. They were in public—her shop and place of business. It wouldn’t do to have him pick her up by the waist and place her on the counter so he could get a better angle at her mouth.

He’d have to wait for them to be alone for that.

When he pulled back, she licked her lips again. “See you at my place,” she breathed, then took his hand and led them to the parking lot.

The relief that hit him was heady. He’d been afraid they’d have to hide this since things were so new, but that wasn’t the case. He hadn’t thought twice about leaning down to kiss her once he’d seen her, and he was damn lucky she hadn’t pulled back too quickly.

They needed to talk, but first…first he needed her taste.

As soon as they entered her home, she locked the door behind them and pressed her back against the hard wood.

“Hungry?” she asked.

He nodded but set the bag down on the entry table. “Yeah, I am. But I think food can wait.”

She smiled then. “Good.”

He cupped her face then crushed his mouth to hers. Her lips parted for him, and he tangled his tongue with hers, both of their resounding moans going straight to his dick. She put both hands on his back, her fingernails digging into his beat-up leather jacket.

That wouldn’t do.

He wanted to feel. He pulled away then tugged off his jacket and threw it on the floor before doing the same to hers.

“You want this, Hails?” he asked, his voice ragged. He needed to know before he moved on.

She reached up and bit his chin, sending a shock down his back. “Yes. I want you. I’ve wanted you for years. I wanted you to come over today and kiss me good morning, but I’m glad you didn’t. Because if you had, then I’d have taken you to my office and had you right there on my desk. Probably not the best way to try and get work done.”

He stared at her a moment, then threw his head back and laughed. “Jesus, I’m so f*cking glad I’m not alone. I tried to keep you off my mind like I have for so long, but it didn’t work. When I wasn’t thinking about if I should come over to your side or not, I was thinking about what I wanted to do to you as soon as I saw you. It’s bad, Hails. I want you so much that I don’t know if I can be gentle.”