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“Next time,” he said hoarsely, shaking his head at his own strained patience.
“What next time?”
“The next time I see you.” He knew by the way she winced that he’d been right.
“No,” she said. “This time.” Her fingers hooked into his belt and tugged him closer. His feet took a step before he could convince his body that he really meant to say no.
He huffed another half-tortured laugh and closed a hand over both of hers. “You’re trying to tell me there won’t be a next time, aren’t you?”
Her gaze slipped away from him. She cleared her throat.
Alex smiled. “And I’m telling you there will be.”
“I can’t. You don’t understand. This isn’t...a thing. It can’t be. And you’re leaving in a few days. So...”
“So. There’s tomorrow. Unless you have other plans.”
She opened her mouth, but he cut her off.
“Even if you have other plans.”
That narrowed her eyes. He wanted to smile, but he suspected there might be a temper under those mild manners. Sophie raised her chin. “You can be as bossy as you want, but there’s no reason for me to see you again. I already got what I needed.”
Oh, he smiled now. A wide smile full of every filthy thought he was thinking. He stepped closer again, backing her into the railing, just as she’d been earlier when she was coming.
“Oh, Sophie,” he whispered. Her fingers tightened around his belt as he raised a hand to brush his knuckles over her jaw. “I can tell by how hard you sucked my thumb before you came that you didn’t get half of what you really need.”
When his thumb touched her lip, her eyes fluttered closed for a brief moment as her breath whispered over him. Then she jerked her chin away and shoved him.
Alex stepped back, but he was still smiling. “Come on, darlin’. I’ll give you a ride home.”
“I won’t invite you in.”
“I didn’t ask to come in.”
She stared at him for a moment, then raised her chin and brushed past him. Alex watched her walk. Her hips swayed as enticingly as ever, but he could see she wasn’t quite steady. Next time, she’d be too weak to move. He’d make sure of it.
CHAPTER FIVE
“HI, DAD,” SHE called out as the screen door slammed behind her.
“Hey, princess,” his deep voice called from the back of the ranch house.
Sophie headed toward the bright yellow kitchen and the scent of coffee. He was there, of course, hands warming around a steaming mug and eyes on the cattle prices in the newspaper. He could get more current figures online, which she’d explained a million times. She’d even bookmarked it on his laptop for him, but he hated the computer. Which was why she was here.
“Everything good?” she asked, leaning down to kiss his cheek.
He patted her arm and nodded. “Things are fine.”
She grabbed a cup of coffee and headed for the small office tucked between the kitchen and his bedroom. The ancient office chair creaked ominously when she took a seat, but the sound made her smile. She’d loved this chair when she was little and would sit in the corner and color while her dad worked. The casters and base were made of steel, the seat itself upholstered in thick, ugly green leather. It would never wear out. It was steady. Like her dad.
“Did you get the new bank statement?” Sophie asked.
He still banked with a local ranching bank that sent paper statements. There was no talking him out of this. She’d tried.
“Honey, I’ve told you you don’t need to do this.” He edged into the little office and slipped the statement onto the ledger.
“Dad.” She didn’t want to have this conversation for the thousandth time.
