Overcoming Fear (Growing Pains #2)(24)

“I’ve heard. You were in the middle of something—sorry to interrupt.”

Krista shook out the soggy page of Marcus’s idea. “I was trying to interpret Marcus. Ben couldn’t do it. Looks like I couldn’t, either.”

“Lemme see,” Sean sat in a chair as Krista handed over the still-dripping page.

As Krista cleaned up the rest of her desk, he analyzed the half-page of notes. The ideas were written in a messy scrawl, barely contained within the lines. It looked like a kid in grade-school was learning to write. He shook his head slowly, “It seems like something to do with celebrities, but I can’t work out what.”

“Celebrities?” Krista asked, straightening up and reaching for the page.

Sean handed it back, noticing that coffee splashed across her white shirt, turning the material a brown-opaque. He could just make out a purple, lacy bra holding up her perky, round br**sts. He got uncomfortable immediately, shifting to try and ease tightness in his pants.

It wasn’t working.

“Can that wait?” Sean asked, standing up. He needed to walk it out.

“Huh?” she stood up, still analyzing the page. “Uh…” She glanced up, and then did a double-take. Her eyes slid down his body and paused on his groin. She sunk into an unconscious, slinky pose that had Sean taking a step forward. He needed an interruption. He needed someone else on this floor to barge in. He needed it now.

“Yes,” she said in a throaty voice.

Sean took another step forward, unable to stop himself.

“We should go,” she said softly.

Sean nodded, trying not to step forward again, and failing. He was right in front of her now, inches away. She angled her head up to him, her lips parted, her chest heaving. He put a hand on the top of her neck, and with his thumb, pushed her chin up a little higher. All he had to do now was bend down and claim her.

“We should go,” she whispered, her eyes on his lips.

She was right. This was not the way to do it, not with her. She was too logical to allow her first move to be inspired solely by passion. She’d balk, then run, making his eventual success harder. But God, he needed it. He needed her so bad it was physically painful.

Sean’s eyes were trained on her lips, they were breathing the same air. Her small hand touched his chest, lightly pushing. He didn’t yield, combusting with her heat.

Just as he was deciding to go for it, he felt a second hand on his chest, pushing harder now; a forceful block. His eyes roamed her face, only then noticing her lips were closed in a bloodless line and her eyes were wide with fear.

It killed the mood instantly.

Sean backed off, relenting, allowing her to push his body back a step. Then he felt like he got sprayed with artic water.

Krista’s face was devoid of color, her hands in front of her chest as though she expected violence and might need to cover her face or protect her body. Her body hunched, fear-stricken, as she backed against the wall, cowering from him. In this state of fear, some people ran or tried to fight back. She cringed, trying to make herself as small as possible; trying to disappear so as not to receive his rage.

It didn’t take a genius to realize he’d triggered something from her past. Like that day she flinched from his supportive hand, she was reliving a past horror and applying it to him. Inadvertently, he’d put up another road block, all because he couldn’t keep control around her.

Sean took two hasty steps backwards, bumping against the door frame. He tried to lean in a relaxed sort of way, hoping to make light of the whole thing. Hoping to joke it away, like at the winery. Or with the biting episode. He was out of his league with this one; he didn’t know how to help.

“Sorry about that. Got carried away,” he gave a grin he didn’t feel.

Krista stared at him with fear-drenched eyes for another long beat. It seemed like she was wondering if he would turn aggressive, which was just absurd. He’d never hit a woman, or rough her up in any way. He’d spent his life protecting his sister, for crying out loud.

But Krista didn’t know that. She wasn’t in the same room as him. He didn’t know where she was, but he did know that whatever happened to her in the past was some bad, bad shit. Life-altering. His pride felt a little easier about all the rejections. His logic got worried—there was more involved than just working closer and finally getting that promise he’d been after throughout their whole existence together. She was not a woman to mess with; to dick around as was his default setting. She’d been through too much without his efforts.

With that damning thought rolling around in his head, Krista unrolled from her curled ball of fear and gingerly stepped to her desk, where she made herself busy shutting off her computer and putting everything away. She didn’t speak.

“Are you okay?” he asked, deciding joking wasn’t the right way out of this.

She shrugged and nodded at the same time, not meeting his eyes. “I’m stupid. Sorry about that.”

Sean straightened up slowly, confusion seeping into his awareness by her response. He could see her effort not to cry.

“Don’t be sorry. I was the one coming on to you. I’m sorry about that. I saw boob and turned into a man.” He smiled again, willing her to make light of this. To turn back into the sassy woman he’d grown to admire.

She paused as she stowed her calculator and glanced down at her chest. Sean was careful not to follow her gaze. “Oh,” Krista shook her head. “Yeah. Sorry about that. I shouldn’t have led you on.”