Dare to Resist (Wedding Dare, #0.5)(3)

“So what’s plan B?” Colton asked the soldier.

“I’ve been authorized to take you to the motel in town whenever you’re ready.” He slipped his phone into his pocket.

“Lead the way,” Colton said, tucking his bag under the flap of his suit coat.

Kady sighed as she followed the soldier out the door and into wind blowing so hard the rain pelted sideways. Hugging her bags to her chest to protect her laptop, she ran for the white government van knowing no matter how fast she moved she was going to be soaked. This was one of those times when it was a good thing she wasn’t high maintenance.

“Think it’ll rain today?” Colton called over the deluge.

Kady couldn’t hold back a smile. “It’s the freaking desert, Brooks. Never rains here.” She clambered into the van’s middle seat, her feet floating in her heels and her cute white blouse plastered to her skin. Which reminded her that she didn’t have any other clothes with her.

Maybe there was a store in town where she could pick up a few basics? If not, she’d be putting the blow-dryer to good use so she at least had something to sleep in. No matter. It was just one night. She could make do. As long as she had her laptop and her personal hot spot, she could be happy just about anywhere.

When Beckstein took the front passenger seat, Colton tugged the sliding door to the back shut and shifted into the seat in front of her. He gazed over his shoulder, his mouth half open with some smart-ass comment no doubt, when he did a double take and turned toward her, a scowl darkening his expression. The next thing she knew he was shrugging out of his suit jacket and handing it over the seat to her. “Put this on,” he said in a low voice. “Now.”

“Excuse me?” she said. His bossiness was totally not one of his more endearing qualities.

He arched a brow and gave her a pointed look.

Kady gazed down at herself. Oh. Oh, shit. The rain had turned the crisp cotton of her favorite white button-down with the square neckline and the ruffle collar absolutely sheer. So sheer the pattern in the lace of her bra showed through. Meeting his gaze again, she rolled her eyes but accepted the jacket. “Thanks,” she said, muscling back any embarrassment. After all, it wasn’t like this was the first time he’d seen her breasts.

Before she had the suit coat halfway on, she already knew agreeing to wear it was a huge mistake. Because it smelled frickin’ fantastic. Like clean soap and spicy aftershave and something entirely Colton—in other words, something entirely intoxicating. Her mouth watered and her heart raced, and that irritated her because damnit she hated that he had this kind of power over her body. And it wasn’t even him touching her. Not that he would. Or that she would let him.

She was pretty sure he’d met and exceeded her tolerance for humiliation this decade, thank you very much. Not that she cared anymore. Their one night together was ancient history as far as she was concerned. And she’d be surprised if he ever thought of it at all.

“It’s wet,” she said as the rain-chilled wool settled on her shoulders.

“Not as wet as you,” he murmured.

She gaped up at him and…yup. His blazing eyes and ticking jaw told her he was fully aware of the double entendre of his words—and that those words had the power to heat her cheeks—and other places. Kady bit down on the snarky response that flew to the tip of her tongue: Wouldn’t you like to know? Colton had always given good banter, but why the hell was he pulling out the innuendo when he’d been the one to back off and decide the two of them together was a bad idea? She tugged the jacket closed. It was so big, it easily crossed over her chest in overlapping layers. “Happy?”

“Ecstatic,” he deadpanned, lips pressed tight and eyes narrowed. As the van got under way, he glanced forward, allowing her to drink in his profile. The rain had turned his hair nearly black and she had to fist her hands against the urge to catch the droplets of water running down his jaw with her fingers. Or her tongue.

They hit an alignment-destroying rut in the road and Kady threw out her arms to steady herself on a surprised cry. One hand grasped the back of the seat in front of her, brushing Colton’s forearm in the process.

His gaze cut back to her and his eyes narrowed at the gap in the front of the suit jacket her position had created. “Better hold on tight, cupcake.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Colt, I will,” she said, returning his annoying term of endearment with the nickname she knew he found equally grating. His gaze was almost a physical caress on her face and breasts, but Kady refused to meet it because she didn’t want him to see that his words had affected her again. But in truth, the stupid little term of endearment curled anger into her belly because it took her right back to the night three years before when the competitiveness and tension between them had flashed red hot and led to the single most intense sexual experience of her life. And they hadn’t even had sex. Not because she hadn’t wanted to, but because Colton had developed second thoughts and declared the whole thing a mistake.

The wheels caught in another pothole that tossed Kady in her seat.

Their hookup had happened at the party welcoming Colton home from the military. Before that night, she’d only seen him now and then when he’d come home on leave and hung out with her brother. But that night, from the moment she’d seen Colton out on the back deck leaning against the railing, beer in hand and absolutely glorious smile on his suntanned face, he’d totally stolen her breath. During his two tours in the army, he’d gone from a gorgeous boy to an incredibly hot man who had the filled-out, muscular body, survival skills, and wartime experiences to justify the arrogance that had always been part of his personality. Her friend Regan, who had a knack for summing people up in just three words, didn’t refer to Colton as a loyal, driven badass for nothing.