Page 91 of The Need to Know

“I don’t feel comfortable living in a mess.” He was right beside me. Still topless. Still tempting. Still acting as though this wasn’t a big deal.

I supposed it wasn’t, but damn. I yanked up a heathered blue T-shirt and handed it over, needing him to be covered already.

Ezekiel accepted it with no complaints and pulled it on over his head.

He’s even better in a T-shirt.

He wore a size that wasn’t baggy, but fit him like a glove, loose, yet managed to hug his impressive pecs. And the worst part about it? He seemed oblivious as I stood about to drool all over myself staring at him.

His body was a problem. I was almost enticed to pull him by his waistband to his big-ass bed.

“Well?” Ezekiel asked as he tugged on his tee.

I gazed down at his pants. “You could lose those.” I gaped up at him, a dare in my eyes.

Ezekiel peered down at his pants and returned to me. He let out a sigh, his minty breath fanning over my face with his frustration visible.

In another second he was picking me up, and instinctively my legs wrapped around his waist. The ease with which he was holding me, carrying me over to his bed while maintaining eye contact turned me on so much it was painful.

He set me down and hovered over me, his face a breath away from mine.

“Don’t start something you can’t finish.” It was a warning. One sealed with a look in his eye that had me squirming.

“How do you know what I can and cannot finish?” I challenged.

Ezekiel trailed his gaze down my body. Slowly he ran that pink tongue of his over his bottom lip. He backed off, smirking just a little. “I’m going to find some ‘appropriate’ pants to put on.”

I didn’t have the grace not to pout.

Lying on my back, I huffed loudly at the ceiling. “This is torture.”

“You’re telling me.”

I rolled my head and watched as he peeled off his pants and got down to his black boxer briefs. Sheesh he had a toned body.

He pulled open a drawer and collected a pair of khaki jeans. He stepped into them and grabbed his discarded pants and neatly folded them and placed them on top of the middle shelf.

Ezekiel came out of his closet and held his arms out, emphasizing his look. “Well?”

There were no words to describe how good he looked, so I just nodded.

He put on some white shoes and we were ready to go.

It was Friday, and Ezekiel had to work, so this wouldn’t be an all-night excursion. Paisley did indeed have plans with Sloan. They were going to the Saturday night date for the fair, where I wasn’t interested in being a third wheel.

“Do you have cash?” I asked as we walked from the parking area along the path toward the fairgrounds.

It seemed like in days the workers and staff had created magic in turning Belmont’s downtown area into a wonderland of lights, rides, and balloons.

“I got about maybe a hundred on me in cash,” Ezekiel said as he patted his pocket.

I snorted as we made it on to the grounds. “Rookie mistake.”

While I appreciated my fellow working man, some of these vendors charged an arm and a leg for the simplest of things.

“Maybe we should’ve pre-gamed at the house,” I suggested as I caught a booth in the distance illustrating five-dollar beers.

“I’ll probably only have one beer,” Ezekiel said. “Can’t get trashed before my shift.”