Instant Temptation (Wilder #3)(12)

“It wasn’t a complete flash, I caught the towel before it hit the ground, and I was just trying to get the damn newspaper.”

“Focus, Harley. The begging.”

Harley pictured herself leaning into TJ, all muddy and turned on, staring at his mouth as she touched his chest…“It’s embarrassing.”

“Walk me through it. You begged him to kiss you. And he didn’t.”

“Yeah. Pretty much.”

Skye looked at her for a moment. “Harl, you don’t ever ask for help on anything. I just don’t see this happening.”

“This was more of the silent type of begging.” And worse, it hadn’t been the first time. She flashed back to al those years ago, to that one night she and TJ had shared.

The one he didn’t remember, the ass.

She could still feel his warm hands on her back, the pleasure those hands had brought her, how she’d been reduced to begging then, too.

Damn it. Damn him. She sighed. “Okay, so the begging was mostly done with my eyes. I might have leaned into him. And set my hand on his…chest.”

Skye’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “In the center of his chest, or did you touch nipple?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“A lot.”

Harley blushed beet red. “Maybe I got nipple. But I didn’t mean to.”

“Doesn’t matter. You took the casual touch to the next level.”

“Involuntarily!”

“You put up a red flag. You might as well have announced you weren’t wearing any underwear.”

Harley groaned and covered her face. “Nothing happened!”

“Which reminds me—how does anyone resist any of the Wilders? They’re all so hot. TJ especially. He’s the biggest and the baddest, and when those sharp green eyes land on you…” Skye sighed. “He’s something.”

He was something, all right. “I’m dating someone else.”

“Oh, for God’s sake. Stop saying that. It’s not even true.”

“Yes, it is. Nolan and I have gone out twice.”

“But one of those times was an accident!” Skye sighed. “Look, Nolan’s great. Okay? He is. He’s just not great for you. I mean, he’s cute and smart and has a job, the major three requisites, but…”

“But…?”

“The two of you are too much alike. Sweet, kind…”

Harley narrowed her eyes. “Beta?”

“Well not alpha, that’s for sure. Get back to the begging.”

“Hellooooo, didn’t you hear my story? He leaned in, and I…touched him and closed my eyes and begged for the kiss.”

“Silently.”

“Yes, but he knew. He even laughed.”

“Laughed—or chuckled?”

“What’s the difference?”

“Laughing would imply he was a tease and an *. Chuckling softly would imply that he was as thrown as you, and is possibly just proceeding with caution since you’re not exactly an easy woman to deal with.”

Harley blew out a breath. Hard to dispute the truth. “Okay, maybe it was just a chuckle.”

Skye gave her a smug smirk.

“We’re so done talking about this.”

“Look, if you wanted a kiss, why didn’t you just grab his ears and make him kiss you, mud and all? You could have hosed each other off, and then moved to his shower, and then let the real begging begin.”

Harley, who’d just taken an unfortunate scoop of cereal, choked on it.

Skye smiled. “Look at you, all aflutter. Who’d have thought, you and badass TJ, circling each other.”

“See you’re not listening at all. We don’t even like each other.”

“Oh, I’ve been listening. But I don’t think you are. You like your comfort zone, I get it. We all get it. You’re a creature of habit, and keep your own counsel. Well, guess what? In that single thing, you and TJ are two linked souls.”

“Huh?”

Skye shook her head. “Let me simplify. You need to get laid. He’s hot as hel . By the way, he’s the opposite of beta. Honey, that man is allll alpha. There’s so much tension between the two of you that the air sizzles and crackles when you’re within a hundred yards of each other. Just do it already.”

Harley had spent much of the night imagining exactly that, remembering how he’d looked after he’d shrugged out of his outer shirt and wrapped it around her, leaving him in just a mud-spattered T-shirt, which had clung to his shoulders and abs. If it hadn’t been for the threat of Cam and Nick coming around the corner, she’d have jumped him right then and there. The only thing worse than knowing that was the fact that he’d known it, too. “If there’s any ‘doing it’ to be had,” she said. “It’ll be with Nolan.”

Skye grimaced.

“What?”

“Stop hiding behind the fantasy of being Nolan’s significant other. He’s like…Clark Kent, okay? He’ll never be your Superman. He’ll never match your passion.”

“Okay, no more Lifetime movies for you.”

“I’m serious.”

“Me, too,” Harley said. “Passion fades. How many times have Mom and Dad proven that?”