Slow Hand (Hot Cowboy Nights, #1)(24)

“The bank?”

“I thought of it last night. You said you need a credit card to get a duplicate license, so we’ll go get you one of those prepaid Visa cards. I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me yesterday.”

“But I have no money.”

“I can spot you a couple of hundred for the card until you get things sorted out.”

“Are you sure?” She chewed her lip. She hated to be even more indebted to him, but what choice did she really have? “I’ll pay you back, of course.”

“Don’t fret about it,” he scoffed. “Let’s just get the card and then we’ll go back to my office where you can get online and take care of things.”

“Don’t you have a laptop with you?”

“Sure I do, but it won’t do you any good without an Internet connection.”

“What do you mean? You don’t have Internet here?”

He shook his head with a laugh. “Hell, we only got a satellite dish a few years ago. Mama believes too much TV rots the brain.”

“You actually grew up like that?” Nikki was incredulous. “With no Internet or cable?”

“That’s right. We never had much idle time anyway after the work was done around here.”

“It was probably for the best,” she said. “You got into law school and I barely graduated high school—a fact I’ll gladly blame on MTV. Took me five years to finally get my act together.”

“And how did you do that?”

“I enrolled in college after I moved in with my grandparents, then waitressed my way through school. Took me six years to get a bachelor in business administration. Now I have a glamorous job processing insurance claims. Not exactly the dream career I’d hoped for.” She sighed. “But then life is all about settling, isn’t it?”

“Is that what you think? That you have to settle for less than what you really want?”

“I do now,” she said softly. “I’ve come to realize what I really want will always be out of reach, so I am trying to be content.”

“That’s too bad, sweetheart.” He squatted down beside her, meeting her eye to eye. She swallowed hard. He had the most beautiful crystal-blue eyes framed by thick, black lashes. And that chin dimple. Sweet Jesus. He was temptation on a stick.

“Maybe you’re just looking in the wrong direction.” He grasped her chin, staring deeper into her eyes, inciting sparks low in her belly. “I’ve found that what I really want is often right under my nose.” His gaze dipped to her lips.

She knew he was waiting for her invitation. Her pulse raced wildly, but this time she looked away. Who knows where another kiss could lead. The situation was growing far too dangerous.

“After all this?” She swallowed hard. Was he playing with her? He’d just held her hair while she puked. “You can’t possibly mean that,” she protested.

“But I do,” he insisted. “In Denver I thought you were a hot mess. Now I think you’re about the hottest mess I’ve ever seen.” His hands dropped to her shoulders and rested there, still waiting for her to initiate the next move.

She didn’t know whether it was the steam from the shower or the look in his eyes but it was getting hot as Hades. If she were truly the brazen type, she’d have stripped down and asked him to join her in that shower, but she was only bold in her fantasies. Unfortunately they’d already begun to include him—like in the shower just the day before. She’d wanted him then all right…and now here he was. She suspected he’d be a helluva lot more satisfying than that shower massager.

Her gaze darted to the shower. Stop it, Nikki!

“It’s getting really steamy in here, don’t you think?” He wiped the damp strands of hair from her brow, his crystal eyes holding hers captive. He still made no move to leave.

Breaking eye contact once more, her gaze trailed over his big, strong arms. How easy it would be to just let herself fall into them. Right here. Right now. In this moment he’d be there to catch her, but later? She just couldn’t take that kind of leap—not while stone sober and thinking straight.

“Yeah. It is,” she agreed. She stood with a nervous laugh. “And I’d hate to waste any more of that glorious hot water.”

“You need anything else?”

She wondered what anything else implied. Scrubbing her back, maybe? She suppressed the impulse to ask.

“Maybe just a towel?” she suggested.

“Sure thing.” He opened a linen cabinet and pulled out two thick terry towels. “That all?”

She took the towels. “Yup. I’m fine. I promise I won’t be long.”

She flicked a glance to the door. This time he took the hint, but paused after two steps, raking his eyes over her over again and turning her insides to jelly. “I’m patient, Nikki. I’ll be here…whenever you’re ready.”

What the hell did that mean? She stared after him, feeling a pronounced thud in her chest. Swagger and a silver tongue to boot? Shit! Nikki Powell, you are a goner.





Chapter 7


Once she’d showered and changed, Nikki felt like a new person, and far more prepared to deal with the challenges the day would bring. Foremost, she intended to quash the impression that she was easy game. No, indeed-y. He could look and lust all he wanted, but Nicole Powell of Decatur, Georgia, was off-limits to hot cowboy lawyers. There was no way in hell she was going to return home with her tail between her legs all because she’d let him put his there.