The Protector (Game of Chance, #1)(43)

“I was just picturing someone trying to get away from an alien invasion and coming here to hide out,” she told him.

“You ever thought about writing your own books?” he asked.

Carlise blinked in surprise. “What?”

“You translate others’ words. Have you ever wanted to write your own?”

“Oh, I’m not an author,” she protested. “I just translate for other people.”

Riggs stared at her for a long moment, and it felt as if he could read her mind. “I bet you could do it.”

“Do what?” But she knew what.

“Write a book.”

“Why would you think that? You just met me,” she said a little defensively.

“I have a feeling you can do whatever you set your mind to,” he said without hesitation.

His belief in her, the way he sounded so damn sure, made her belly flip-flop.

“Besides, from what it sounds like, you’ve translated a lot of books. I’m sure you’ve gotten your own ideas from doing what you do.”

Carlise nodded reluctantly.

“What’s holding you back?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Well, I think you should go for it. Even if it’s just for yourself. Maybe you can write an alien romance. The heroine hides out from the evil aliens in a bunker in the woods. Then a benevolent alien finds her and reassures her that he’s there to help. Help all the humans. He earns her trust. They spend some sexy time in the bunker, then come out and kick evil alien butt. She goes back to his planet because it turns out he’s the king of his people and can’t stay on Earth forever, and she lives happily at his side as his queen.”

Carlise stared at Riggs in disbelief.

“What?” he asked with a grin.

“I . . . you . . . what the heck?”

“I may or may not have read an alien romance or two in my time,” he said, laughing.

“Seriously?”

“Yup.”

Carlise shook her head. “You never fail to surprise me.”

“Good. Want to keep you on your toes,” Riggs told her, stepping into her personal space.

She had to tilt her head back to maintain eye contact. That intense expression was back.

“What are you doing to me?” he murmured.

Carlise swallowed hard. She wanted to ask him the same question. She felt rooted in place. Frozen. Had his head lowered? It had. God, was he going to kiss her? She wanted him to. More than she wanted to breathe.

She tilted her chin up, letting him know she wanted this. Wanted him.

“May I?” he whispered, still holding her gaze.

Goose bumps rose on her arms under her long-sleeved shirt and jacket. The way he always asked for permission to touch her was one of the many things that she adored about him. “Yes. Please.”

Instantly, his lips were on hers.

They were cold from being outside for so long but quickly warmed. The kiss started out sweet and soft, two pairs of lips caressing, learning each other. But before long, the chaste touch turned into more.

Carlise suddenly felt as if she couldn’t get close enough to Riggs. Her hands gripped his jacket tightly, and she held on. One of his hands went to her back to hold her against him, the other to the back of her head. He held her still as he devoured her mouth.

She’d never been kissed like this before. As if he needed her to breathe. Their tongues swirled around each other, he bit and sucked on her bottom lip before diving back into her warmth.

The way he held her against him might have made Carlise uncomfortable if she was with any other man. But this was Riggs. He held her tightly, but she had no doubt if she made the slightest move to back off, he’d let her go in a heartbeat. But she didn’t want to back off. She wanted more.

A groan moved from his throat to her mouth, and immediately Carlise’s pussy wept. Knowing Riggs was just as turned on made her want him all the more. Their kiss had gone from zero to four hundred and twenty-two in seconds, and as she kissed him more urgently still, Carlise cursed the fact that they were in the middle of the woods instead of inside his cabin.

She wanted this man. It didn’t matter that it had been less than a week since she’d met him. It didn’t matter that she wasn’t the kind of woman who engaged in flings. This felt like anything but a fling. She needed this man more than she needed air.

It was Riggs who finally pulled away, but he didn’t let go. He kept his hands right where they were and stared into her eyes as they both panted, trying to regain their equilibrium.

“Holy hell,” he whispered after a moment.

Carlise grinned. “Yeah.”

“I want you, Carlise,” he said baldly. “I don’t think I’ve ever wanted a woman as badly as I want you. But not for a one-night stand. There’s something about you that’s gotten under my skin. I can’t stop thinking about you. Wondering what I did right in my life to have you appear as if out of nowhere.”

“I shouldn’t have been on that road,” she whispered. “My plan was to stay on Route 2 to Bangor.”

“But you didn’t. You drove to me. To my mountain. My cabin.”

“Yes.”

This was an important moment. Carlise could feel it. She wasn’t sure what it meant, if things with her and Riggs could ever work out, but she wanted them to. So damn bad.