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“Is your ankle okay?”
“My ankle?” She glanced down. “Oh, yeah. It’s sore, but fine. Um...good night.”
He watched as she slowly sank down onto her makeshift bed. He could practically hear her thinking and he knew full well she was replaying how far she’d let him go. Hell, he was, too, but he had to push that aside and keep his eye on the main reason he was here and not how close he’d been to getting her to explode in his arms.
“Don’t overthink this, Zara.” She continued to lie there, looking up at the ceiling. “Get some sleep.”
Because the sooner she fell asleep, the quicker he could start looking through the house.
* * *
How could the man just fall asleep? Seriously? Braden acted as if this was no big deal, as if he’d patted her on the head and sent her off to bed like an obedient lover.
And the longer she lay here, the more she was wondering how she’d lost control of that situation so fast. Oh, yeah. He’d touched her. That was it. The man touched her, looked at her with those piercing eyes, and she’d been helpless. For the briefest of moments she’d forgotten all about her job, the fact her boss had his hands beneath her shirt and was working his way into her pants. Thankfully, she’d come to her senses before they’d crossed a point of no return. She needed this job, even more than she needed a one-night stand.
Braden O’Shea was a powerful man, and she was not immune to his allure. Yet she’d told herself over and over this evening how she couldn’t get intimate with him, no matter how much she wanted to. She couldn’t risk losing this job because she was a sad cliché and slept with her boss. How tacky was that? She prided herself on being a professional, yet the man who’d written her a colossal check was snoozing in her bed.
Whatever his secret for flipping the horny switch, she’d like to know because she was still just as turned on as before she’d put the brakes on.
She’d never known a man who was so giving, but then she hadn’t known many men like Braden O’Shea. Something told her he was quite different than any other guy she’d dated.
Zara nearly groaned as she tugged on her blanket and rolled over. Dated? She and Braden were far from dating. He’d given her a few minutes of toe-curling excitement, and that was all. He was stuck in her house thanks to Mother Nature’s fury, and that was the extent of their personal relationship.
From here on out, no more touching, no more kissing. Though she had to admit that kiss had been nearly as potent as the touching.
What would morning bring? The questions whirled around in her head. Would he act as if nothing happened? Would he be able to leave, or would he be stuck here for another night? Zara wished he weren’t her boss, wished this powerful, sexy man were stuck in her house under different circumstances, but the fact was he was helping to pay her bills. And without the prestige of working for him, it would take her a lot longer to get the recognition she needed for her new company.
She wasn’t worried about his questionable reputation. The O’Sheas were legends, and despite the rumors surrounding Braden’s father’s dealings, Zara had only heard praise about Braden. He may be tough when needed, he may even show off his brute force like he had with Shane, but none of that made him a bad guy. And the way her body was still thrumming, Zara felt Braden was indeed a very good guy.
No matter what her common sense was telling her now, Zara couldn’t help but want more. Not being able to touch Braden at all left her feeling somewhat cheated. Those broad shoulders, those lean hips...a man with a body like that surely knew how to use it in the most effective ways.
Gripping her blanket beneath her chin, Zara tried not to think about the man who lay just behind her, in her bed, shirtless. She tried not to think of how he’d looked at her when he’d been kneeling on the floor. She tried to keep her body from tingling even more at the fantasy of how they’d be if she crawled in between those sheets with him.
Her best hope now would be to fall asleep and dream, because having the real thing was simply out of the question.
* * *
Braden padded from the bedroom. It had taken Zara over an hour to fall asleep. She’d tossed and turned, letting out soft little moans every now and then, and there wasn’t a doubt in Braden’s mind she was just as sexually frustrated as he was.
Zara was one of the most passionate women he’d ever met. And when she let her guard down...purely erotic. Knowing she was lying over there restless nearly had him forgetting the plan to search the house tonight and instead dragging her back up to her own bed and finishing what they both wanted.
