He’s wearing nothing but a pair of black running shorts. Sunlight glistens across his hard muscles and his tattooed, sweat-slicked skin as he moves up the path below. Loose tendrils of dark hair have fallen free from the bun at the back of his head, sticking to his forehead and temples, while the rest shifts on every movement. His broad shoulders flex rhythmically with every stride. Ink coils over both his powerful arms, swarmingacross his chest, down his ribs, and along the sharp V of his hips before vanishing beneath the dark waistband of his shorts, riding low enough to make my entire brain short-circuit.
“Jesus…” I mutter weakly to myself, my mouth going dry as he runs toward the front door.
As if hearing me, Damon glances upward. Directly toward my window. My eyes blow wide.
“Oh shit—” I duck under the windowsill so fast, I nearly trip over my own feet, my cheeks burning violently as my heart launches into panic mode.
Shit.
Shit.
Why was I staring like that?
I press myself against the wall, swallowing hard while my pulse pounds wildly in my ears. After several painfully long seconds, I cautiously lean forward just enough to peek outside to find the path empty. And so is the front of the house.
Maybe he didn’t see me.
A sharp knock raps against my bedroom door, and I nearly jump out of my skin, every muscle in my body tensing instantly.
If I ignore it, maybe they’ll go away.
Another knock follows, a little harder, more deliberate.
“I know you’re up.” Damon’s voice carries through the door, low and rough, scraping along my nerves in a way that feels deeply irritating, considering the circumstances.
My stomach drops.
Shit. Hedidsee me.
“I’m going to grab a shower,” he converses casually from the other side of the door. Against all reason, my brain betrays me with an image ofexactlywhat that might look like.Damn it, Kenz.“Breakfast downstairs in ten minutes.”
“I’m not hungry,” I shout back immediately.
“You need to eat.”
“I said, I’m not hungry.”
“I didn’t ask if you were hungry, trouble. I said you need to eat,” he states calmly before lowering his voice slightly. “You’ve got ten minutes before I drag you out of that room and throw you over my shoulder, no matter what you have on.”
I scowl at the door, as though he can see me. “Is that supposed to scare me?”
“Yes.”
Annoyance flares hot in my chest, and I storm toward the door, wrenching it open hard enough to slam against the wall as I nearly collide with him.
Damon is standing just beyond the threshold to my room, his tattooed forearms folded across a broad, bare chest still damp with sweat from his run. Up close, even all musky from exertion, he smells so good that it immediately scrambles my thoughts. The hallway light catches the sharp planes of his face, carving shadows beneath his cheekbones and along the beard covering his jaw. A few damp strands of dark hair still cling to hisforehead, softening absolutely none of the danger in his expression.
His gaze drifts slowly over my body, causing goosebumps to erupt instantly across my skin. His Adam’s apple bobs once, and my pulse stutters hard. When his eyes pause briefly on my chest, I suddenly become hyperaware of the thin white tank top I slept in and the fact that I’m not wearing a bra.
When I glance down, I confirm that I’m not leaving much to the imagination. Heat floods my face, and I quickly cross my arms over my chest to cover myself. While it protects my modesty—all be it too late—it does nothing to eliminate the tension between us that is suddenly so thick it’s practically palpable. We stand in silence for a moment, him staring at me as my heart races so fast, you’d thinkIwas the one who just ran a lap of the grounds.
“Get dressed,” he commands, finally breaking the silence. Something dangerously close to amusement flickers across his face as he steps back and walks down the hallway. After a few steps, he calls over his shoulder, “Ten minutes.”
“Whatever,” I grumble, slamming the door shut a little too hard. The second the latch clicks into place, I lean against it and stare at the ceiling.
What the hell, Kenz?
You have a boyfriend…
