Holly Jolly Cowboy (The Wyoming Cowboy #7)(44)

Her gaze flicked to his mouth, as full and appealing this morning as it was last night. Oh god, why did she want to kiss him again when she was sober? Was she out of her damn mind? “You . . . We went as friends. You didn’t like them—my kisses. And I just—”

“You were drunk,” Adam said softly, his gaze locked on hers. “I would never take advantage of a drunk woman, not even if she kissed me. But that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t interested.” He stated it again, cool and calm, as if he were reciting facts.

Goose bumps prickled all over her skin. “O-oh?”

He leaned forward, and sweet lord have mercy, she realized he was going to kiss her again. His mouth lowered toward hers and then he paused, his gaze flicking over her face. “You want me to stop, Holly?” His breath was warm against her cheek and smelled like coffee and sugar. “Say the word.”

She was practically panting. “No, I don’t want you to stop—”

She couldn’t even finish her statement before his mouth was on hers. The kiss was different than last night, she realized. This time, he was kissing her with enthusiasm. His tongue slicked into her mouth, surging against hers in a wicked claim. Holly moaned against him, her hands curling against his shirt as he plundered her mouth, turning her world upside down.

The kiss was over far too soon. He pulled away and gave her a heated look. “What time do you get off work tonight?” he asked, leaning in. His nose nudged against hers in a gentle brush of skin, and it made her nipples prick in response. “Or do I get you all night?”

Holly blinked, dazed. “I . . . work until eleven thirty or so. We close at ten and then I need to clean up and make dough . . .” She stared at his mouth again.

He moved forward, and instead of kissing her, he just nipped at her lower lip with his teeth. It was the lightest scrape, followed by a lick of his tongue, and lord, she felt her body pulsing in response. “I’ll wait for you for dinner. See you tonight.”

Then Adam turned and headed out of the kitchen, leaving her weak-kneed and utterly distracted.





CHAPTER EIGHTEEN





Holly thought about that kiss all day.

She was pretty sure it wasn’t a good idea. She and Adam bickered more than they got along. He’d quite explicitly said he wasn’t looking for a relationship. She knew all that and she still wanted to kiss him again anyhow. The kiss had felt . . . really good. It had felt utterly wonderful, and the way he’d caged her against the counter had made her heart race.

She was attracted to him, if she admitted the truth to herself. Adam was all the things she liked in a guy—handsome, athletic, sharp-witted, and protective. If that sharp wit was sometimes turned against her, well, that could be a problem.

It wasn’t as if she had to marry him, though.

He wasn’t looking for anything permanent, and really, was she? Holly had too many balls in the air. She rarely had free time to herself, and when she did, she spent it baking or trying to hustle up a few extra dollars to send to Polly. She worked six days a week, scoring extra shifts as often as possible. She barely had time for herself, much less a relationship.

And she was an adult.

As an adult, if she wanted a no-strings-attached sort of fling, she could absolutely have one, couldn’t she? No one needed to know. Carson was gone. Sage and Jason would be out of town for a few more weeks. Polly wasn’t coming home for the holidays.

The only one around was Adam.

Really, she was allowed a little bit of fun, she reasoned. She worked hard. Wasn’t the saying that you should play hard, too? Maybe she’d “play” with Adam a little. The thought gave her goose bumps.

Work was slow, which she normally hated. Slow meant less tips. But Holly was distracted anyhow, so she didn’t mind if less people came in. It was the time of year that people skipped going out to lunch or dinner and saved the money for Christmas gifts. Idly, Holly wondered if she should buy something for Carson for his return . . . or for Adam.

Okay, she was mostly thinking about Adam.

Everyone else in her life was getting baking. Sage and Jason and their family would get their favorite cookies. Becca, Wade, and everyone else would also be getting a large tin of Christmas cookies, all in their favorite flavors and cut into festive shapes. She’d already sent an entire fleet of cookies up to Polly. But if she got something for Adam, would he read more into it than she wanted? Would it irritate him? She was already baking for him, so making his favorite cookies wouldn’t seem like a present, and she wasn’t the type to knit a scarf or anything. You had to sit for more than five minutes at a time for knitting, and Holly was constantly on the go.

No present, she decided. After all, they were going to do casual. If they never kissed again, fine.

Well, not really fine. She’d be irked at his hot-and-cold nature, but she’d get over it.

On her lunch break, instead of heading back to the ranch, she sat in the back room of the restaurant. It was a cowardly move, of course. If she went back, she might run into Adam. What if he was waiting for her to show up so he could explain that the kiss had been a huge mistake and it’d never happen again? That they should just go back to being enemies on a truce or whatever it was that they were at this point.

So she pretended to be super into her phone as she ate a sandwich. She poked at a game she never played, scrolled through an Instagram account she never updated, and eventually gave up and texted her sister.