“You only have yourself to blame for that one.” I tug on one of her curls, brushing it behind her ear. “Then there’s also how you helped Jordan name Navy…well, Navy.”
She beams at the mention of her friend’s dog. Maddey treats Navy like he’s as much her nephew as baby Logan. It probably stems from playing mom when the girls got him during their sophomore year of college.
“You’re right.” Her hand splays across where I have the Budweiser tattoo inked on my chest, her fingers contracting and extending. “My heart belongs to the sea.”
Her eyes attempt to close as I stroke the line of her jaw with my thumbs and massage the tightness at the base of her skull with my other fingers. An mmmm escapes, and I need to know all the other ways I can get her to make that sound.
Her tits brush my chest with each deep inhalation she takes.
I continue to massage and stroke, content to stay like this for days if it means having her this close. Eventually her eyelids lose the battle and shut, her blonde lashes fanning across her cheeks as she luxuriates under my ministrations.
She’s so damn beautiful I can hardly stand it.
She sways in my hold.
Tits brushing.
Mmms singing in her throat.
Fingers contracting on my muscles.
There is zero trace of her earlier panic.
Her head lolls to the side, falling deeper into the hand cupping it.
Her lips part ever so slightly.
I want to kiss her.
I need to kiss her.
Need to learn what her lips feel like under mine, what she tastes like.
What will she do? How will she react?
I can’t imagine she would be a passive kisser. She has too much fire inside her to not meet me kiss for kiss, stroke for stroke, nip for nip.
There’s a hint of shine on those plump pillows.
This is it.
I’m doing it.
After years of imagining what it would be like to kiss Maddey McClain, I’m finally going to know what it’s like.
My thumbs press under her chin, tilting her face up higher. A whiff of watermelon hits my nose when I’m centimeters from her mouth. Ah, her lollipop.
Closer.
I lick my lips in anticipation.
Closer.
A deep inhalation.
Closer.
This is it.
I close my eyes.
Woof! Woof!
Maddey and I both jolt from Trident’s impromptu contribution.
Fuck!
Was I really about to kiss Maddey?
Maddey McClain?
The same Maddey McClain who has three older brothers?
Justin, Tyler, and Conner McClain—those older brothers?
Also known as my best friends?
The ones I’ve helped scare off anyone who tried to get close to her?
Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuckity-fuck!
What the hell was I thinking?
Not good. Not good at all. Just over forty-eight hours and I’m ready to forget the reason I’m here.
To protect her.
To catch her stalker.
The Die Hard Trilogy doesn’t trust many people when it comes to keeping Maddey safe, and they chose me.
I can’t break that trust by making a move on her.
Abort mission. Head for the LZ.
It’s time to listen to the orders coming from the command in my head and make tracks. I need to put distance between Maddey and me before I do something I can’t take back.
Ignoring the questions swimming in those blues and the furrow between Maddey’s brows, I spin on my heel and flee like I’m still a tadpole and not a badass frogman.
Chapter Sixteen
From the Group Message Thread of The Coven
QUEEN OF SMUT: HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT!
* * *
MOTHER OF DRAGONS: What happened?
* * *
MAKES BOYS CRY: Whose ass do I need to kick?
* * *
ALPHABET SOUP: Isn’t that my line?
* * *
YOU KNOW YOU WANNA: *GIF of Jimmy Fallon saying, “Oh, snap!”*
* * *
THE OG PITA: Shhh. Don’t distract her. I want to know what happened.
* * *
SANTA’S COOKIE SUPPLIER: *GIF from Grease with “Tell me more, tell me more.”*
* * *
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF: *GIF of Willy Wonka saying, “Please, tell us more.”*
* * *
BROADWAY BABY: Yes. Please don’t take advice from Aaron Burr and talk less. Give us the deets.
* * *
DANCING QUEEN: Can you tell we were rocking out to the Hamilton soundtrack on our drive last night?
* * *
QUEEN OF SMUT: YOU GUYS I’M FREAKING THE FUCK OUT RIGHT NOW!!!
* * *
PROTEIN PRINCESS: She must be telling the truth—she’s still talking in shouty capitals.
* * *
ALPHABET SOUP: Oh, good point, Gem.
* * *
YOU KNOW YOU WANNA: This isn’t one of your books, Madz.
* * *
YOU KNOW YOU WANNA: Stop leaving us in suspense.
* * *
YOU KNOW YOU WANNA: *GIF of Joey Tribbiani saying, “I need an answer now.”*
* * *
SANTA’S COOKIE SUPPLIER: Good use of a Friends GIF. I strongly approve.
* * *
MOTHER OF DRAGONS: The twins are going to be graduating high school before we find out what happened.
* * *
MAKES BOYS CRY: *GIF of woman spitting out water*
* * *
QUEEN OF SMUT: Okay. Here’s what happened. Let me set the scene…
* * *
THE OG PITA: Forever an author.
* * *
SANTA’S COOKIE SUPPLIER: Shh…I’d read the phonebook if Maddey wrote it. Don’t distract her from giving us words.
* * *
BROADWAY BABY: Damn, it’s a good thing I excel at improv—otherwise I’d never be able to keep up.
* * *
DANCING QUEEN: Wrong! It’s all those years you lived with me and Ella. We were good practice.
* * *
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF: *GIF of man waving his hand side to side saying, “This.”*
* * *
QUEEN OF SMUT: So I’m in my office, working on formatting the newest hockey hunks book, listening to I Never Expected You…