Only His (Fool's Gold #6)(24)

“Shut up,” she demanded.

“Over me?”

“I swear, Tucker, I’ll pull an Ethan on you.”

“This is getting more interesting by the minute.” He liked where their conversation was going. “You’re saying that you were attracted to me before.”

She set down her mug and folded her arms across her chest. Her brown eyes snapped with irritation. “I slept with you. What did you think?”

“I am pretty irresistible.”

“Not today.”

“You’re still attracted to me.”

She rolled her eyes. “What is with you? We work together. It’s a long-term project. Why are you trying to be difficult?”

“It comes naturally to me.”

“I’m not attracted to you.”

He winked. “It’s okay. You can tell me. I’ll keep your secret. You want me.”

“Only so I can back the car over you.”

He was curious about how much of her indignation was real and how much was self-protection. She was wary around him, something he wouldn’t have expected. Did she feel the chemistry between them, too?

He did his best to remind himself that they were working together and this was a complication neither of them needed. Still, Nevada was smart, funny, sexy and willing to go toe-to-toe with him. No way he could ignore that.

“GO AHEAD,” HE SAID SOFTLY. “Kiss me. Come on, get it out of your system and you’ll be able to concentrate.”

“I can concentrate just fine,” Nevada told him, her teeth gritted. “Your ego is the size of Mars.”

“I have big hands, too.”

She groaned. “Go away.”

“Chicken.”

“I’m not chicken, I’m sensible.”

Hanging on to self-control was proving more of a challenge than Nevada would have thought. For reasons she couldn’t explain Tucker pushed buttons she didn’t even know she had. As much as she wanted to hit him really, really hard in the stomach, she wanted to kiss him just as much. Maybe more.

Even more inexplicably, she hadn’t been thinking about kissing him until he’d mentioned it. Now the idea filled her brain, making her toes curl and her insides quiver with anticipation. Talk about crazy.

He made a clucking sound.

“Stop it!” she demanded. “Make me.”

There was something to be said for a man who knew how to play, she thought, grabbing on to his shoulders, raising herself onto her toes and leaning in. Something good. Something that—

Her lips touched his. In that split second of contact, she felt as if she’d been transported out of the temperature-controlled trailer and drop-kicked into Mississippi in August. There was heat everywhere. Intense, muggy heat—the kind that clung to your skin and didn’t let go for three days.

The air felt heavy, just like her body. Her blood was thick, but still moving quickly, carrying need to every part of her.

She drew back and stared at him. His dark eyes were unreadable.

“Is that all you’ve got?” he asked softly.

“No.”

She leaned in again and tilted her head slightly. Her mouth settled on his. The heat came again and she found herself wanting to rip off her clothes. Not only to cool her body, but so Tucker could touch her.

She felt tingly and ached in the most interesting places. She wanted to wrap her arms around him, to pull him hard against her. She wanted to run her fingers up and down his chest, to dip lower and find out if he was feeling what she was feeling.

Instead she kept still, not moving her mouth, not trying to deepen the contact. Her intent had been to give him the kiss he would never forget. Only she couldn’t. She was too afraid of how she would react.

She straightened, pulling away, aware he would probably tease her again. This time she didn’t know how she was going to defend herself, because kissing him wasn’t an option. Not when a simple, platonic peck had left her trembling. What would happen if he made any effort at all?

“Happy?” she asked, turning away and walking back to her desk.

“Very.”

She drew in a breath and told herself to stay strong. “It’s all about you and your ego, isn’t it?” she asked, facing him.

He looked bemused and a little stunned. “It was back then. Now it’s different.”

They stared at each other. She didn’t ask why, because she was as afraid of the answer as she was of kissing him again. If he’d felt it, too, if he’d been on the verge of losing control, then they were in big trouble. Better not to risk it by going there at all.

Last time…

No, she told herself firmly. There had been too much remembering. She wasn’t going to do that anymore.

“We need to go over the blasting schedule,” she said, randomly pulling a piece of paper off her desk and hoping it was relevant. “It requires coordination with several agencies, including the Fool’s Gold Fire Department. I’m happy to coordinate with them, if you want.”

“Sure. That would be great.”

“It’s my first time,” she said, then held in a groan. “I mean, I’ve never been on-site with blasting before.”

“It’ll rock your world.”

Despite feeling uncomfortable and awkward and more than a little scared, she laughed. “I’m not sure I need my world rocked.”