Page 30 of Her Defiant Warrior

The doorbell rang.

Here goes nothing.

* * *

“Did you look through your peephole?” Jase asked as she opened her door.

“It’s seven o’clock, so I knew it was you,” Bonnie answered as she motioned for him to come in.

“It’s not safe for you not to use your peephole.”

“I always do when the kids are home with me. And I have the deadlock set up real high so they can’t reach it and open the door.”

She looked gorgeous, all legs, ass, and tits. And she’d had a killer smile until he’d started talking about her safety.

“Bonnie, you look gorgeous.”

“I just need to change out purses, and I’ll be ready to go.” Her voice was frosty.

“I was just worried about your safety.” He went over to the kitchen table where she was grabbing things from a huge purse and putting them into a tiny silver clutch. When he saw her take out cash and credit cards from her wallet, he reached out and touched the back of her hand.

“You won’t need that tonight. I’ve got you covered.”

She moved away from him and finished putting the cash and credit cards into her clutch. “Nothing personal, Jase, but if you turn into even more of an ass, I want to be able to pay for my half of the dinner and a cab to take me home.”

He threw back his head and laughed.

She scowled at him. “What’s so damned funny?”

“If any of my teammates heard how hard you’re busting my chops, I wouldn’t stop hearing about for ten years.”

“Poor you,” Bonnie said as she closed her clutch with a decisive click.

“Bonnie, can I start over?” he requested softly.

He stood there watching her as her blue eyes assessed him. “I’ll give you one do-over.”

“One each date?” he asked hopefully.

“No. Just this once.”

“I am so screwed. I make a lot of mistakes.”

“Then, you should stop.”

Jase had to bite the inside of his lip to keep from laughing. He’d heard her use the same tone of voice with Lachlan and Amber.

“Okay, let’s pretend you’ve checked the peephole and opened the door.”

Bonnie rolled her eyes. “Fine, I checked the peephole.”

“I would then look at all that is you. From those blonde curls of yours that don’t seem to want to stay up, to your beautiful face, with your big eyes and kissable lips. Then I would see you in your outfit that makes you look both sexy and fragile. My eyes would travel down to your feet and see you in shoes that have me thinking of you wearing just those when I finally get you into my bed.”

Jase saw her pupils dilate and the pulse in her neck beat twice—like it had when she was angry with him.

“After I saw just how beautiful you were, I would reach out,” Jase reached out and grasped her right hand. “Like this. And I would kiss the inside of your wrist,” he kissed the inside of her wrist. She had such soft skin, and he felt her shiver. “Then I would tell you how grateful I am that you decided to go out on a date with me.”

This time it was Bonnie who threw back her head and laughed. She pulled her hand out of his grip. “My God, man, you are one smooth operator.”