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I could practically hear Solo telling me to shut up with the what-ifs and kiss me, so I turned my brain off and focused back on the way Solo’s mouth moved so perfectly in sync with mine. I could’ve kissed him for hours, but the sudden honking and whooping of a passing car made us break away.
Lips swollen and eyes glazed over, Solo had never looked sexier. Well, maybe he had when he was naked, but…
“Brain caught up yet?” I said, grinning at the dazed look he gave me.
“Brain…destroyed.”
I laughed and reached into the back seat for the bag of food, the smell almost as intoxicating as Solo. “How about we take care of a hunger that won’t get us arrested?”
When I turned back to see Solo still staring at me, I grinned.
“I have to say, I kind of like being the only person to get this kind of reaction out of you.”
Seeming to snap himself out of his daze, Solo reached for the bag. “And what kind of reaction is that?”
“Hmm…you look a little dazed and confused, lieutenant.”
“That’s an apt description. Throw in ‘hard as a rock’ and you basically have me in a nutshell.”
My eyes dropped to his lap and the delicious outline of his erection, and he let out a soft groan.
“Aww, come on… Haven’t you tortured me enough already?”
“Tortured you?” I raised my eyes to see him placing the bag over his lap.
“I mean, here you are finally all the fuck over me, and I can’t do shit about it for at least…how many days?”
I chuckled. “At least a week.”
His groan was painful, and he shut his eyes and let his head fall back on the seat. “You suck.”
“I could…if that would help?”
Solo turned his head and pinned me with an are you kidding me? look. “You enjoying yourself?”
“More than I expected.” Getting serious, I reached over and trailed my fingers down the side of his cheek. “Thank you for bringing me out here today.”
Solo took in a shuddering breath, and again I found it interesting that he seemed almost shy, as he nodded and reached up to squeeze my hand, drawing it down between us.
“Like you said, I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be than sitting in this car, sharing this meal, with a man I never knew I was looking for until today.”
12 Solo
THE SOUND OF Panther’s rapid breathing woke me up.
I turned onto my side toward the bed and looked up to see Panther tossing and turning, a sheen of sweat covering his body. A low moan left him, but before I could even debate whether to wake him from what seemed to be a nightmare, he gasped and shot straight up, his eyes opening wide.
“Hey.” I kicked off my sheet and moved up on my knees. “Some dream, huh? You okay?”
Panther nodded as he tried to get his breathing under control. I waited as he took his time, resting his head in his hands, and when he seemed steady again, he said, “This is starting to piss me off.”
“Two nightmares and a panic attack in twenty-four hours. That would piss me off too.”
“How do I make it stop?”
For once, I didn’t have an answer, which would no doubt shock him. “Lobotomy?”
He looked at me from under his hands. “Really?”
“I mean, that would do it.”
“Any other genius ideas?”
“Yeah. Move over.”
“What?”
I stood up and gestured for him to scoot. “Lie down.”
“Sex isn’t the answer, Solo.”
Rolling my eyes, I sighed. “You want to make it stop or don’t you?”
Panther eyed me and then slowly moved to the other side of the bed. I got in beside him, moving to my side and waiting for him to do the same. I pulled the sheet up over us, getting nice and comfy—which wasn’t hard now that I wasn’t sleeping on the floor—and debated where to start.
“I told you earlier that to get past all the crazy shit you’ve been through, you just have to push harder and keep going. And that’s true, but…” My brother’s face popped into my mind, clear as day. I would’ve given anything to have him back. Anything. Swallowing, I shifted onto my elbow with my head in my hand. “It’s been four years since I lost my brother, and I’d be lying if I said I’m okay.”
Alarm flitted through Panther’s eyes, but I waved him off.
“I don’t say that so you feel sorry for me. Please don’t. I say it because I don’t know if you ever get over whatever traumatic stuff you go through. You came out of this alive, but it doesn’t mean your head’s in the right place, and I get that. Seeing you eject brought back all those emotions from when my brother died, and I wasn’t expecting that. I thought I’d bottled that shit up, you know?”
