But I believed her, damn it. Her face was so earnest, a vulnerability to her that I had seen before.
I sighed, flexing my bandaged hand.
“Sorry,” I said.
“For what?” she murmured.
“The other night. And this.” I gestured to the destroyed office. “I lose it like this sometimes… You saw the walls in my place. This is another level. I’ve just been… losing my mind lately.”
Ingrid reached out, her tender hand warm on my wrist. “Why?”
“…It’s everything. Boxing. Work. My father.You.” I hesitated. “And then Amber—she tried to kiss me yesterday. It’s been messing with my head.”
Ingrid retracted her hand as though stung. Without a word, she packed away the first aid kit, rose, and headed to replace it in its bracket on the wall by the door. Her shoulders were already curled inward.
“Ingrid?” I called after her.
“I’ll tell Mr. Locke you’ve settled,” she whispered without turning around. Her voice trembled, and I felt something inside me break.
I moved. I was taller and faster and in two long strides and I was on her, cutting her path as she reached for the door. I braced one hand against the wood above her as she reached for the handle.
“Doll... Talk to me.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” she murmured.
I reached out, catching her shoulder and turning her to face me. She wouldn’t look up. I was going insane with the distance between us.
“What is it?” She didn’t speak. “Is it Amber?”
At the mention of her name, she took in a quick breath. Her lip trembled. She looked like she was about to cry.
“Ingrid,” I said, reaching down to place a hand on her cheek.
She closed her eyes. “Just let me go, please.”
“There’s nothing between me and Amber,” I said.
“Please—”
“Ingrid,” I growled, low. She opened her eyes, gazed up at me. “Amber came on to me. I pushed her away. I’m not interested in her.”
Her voice cracked. “You said she put your head in a spin.”
“Yeah, she did,” I sighed. “How couldn’t she? For weeks someone else has been stuck in my mind, and then she comes over and does what she does and puts it into fucking overdrive. I feel like I’m going crazy.”
Ingrid swallowed heavily. Her gaze flickered from my eyes to my lips and back again.
“Wh-who?” she whispered. “Who else…?”
She didn’t answer the question, her words hanging in the air. I didn’t think. I grabbed her face in my hands, my thumbs brushing over hercheekbones. I moved closer, closing every inch of space until I could feel the heat radiating off her skin. Then, driven by an impulse so primal, I leaned down and kissed her.
Hungry, claiming, weeks of restraint detonating at once.
She froze for a heartbeat, a small intake of breath catching in her throat that I wanted to fucking swallow. Then, her hands moved from my chest to edges of my jacket, gripping the fabric shakily as she pulled me closer. I pressed her flush against me, my body aligning with hers, pinning her lightly to the door without a single ounce of force.
She kissed back like she’d been starving for it. Soft lips, trembling breath, a little whimper—Christ, the sound of it shot straight to my dick. I angled my mouth over hers again, deeper this time, her sexy little body arching into mine like she couldn’t help it.
My hand slid to the back of her neck, guiding her, keeping her exactly where I needed her. Her lips parted for me on instinct, and I devoured her.
