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“What kind of burger?” Gray called.
“You two eat. I’ll grab something from the fridge later.”
If Gray thought it was strange, Noah didn’t care. It was better than sitting across from his best friend knowing how pissed he’d be if he picked up on the obvious chemistry between Max and him, a chemistry Noah was doing his level best to fight. If only he knew for sure his level best would be good enough!
Chapter 7
“WHERE’S GRAY?”
“I told him I wanted an early night. He’s gone.”
Noah flexed back in the chair, watching her with a sense of caution. “Do you want an early night?”
Her eyes landed hard on his, thud, thud, thud, and she shook her head slowly. “I want to have dinner with you. And seeing as you were obviously trying to avoid having dinner with Gray, I got rid of him.”
He dipped his head forward, hiding a smile – his first reaction – even as a danger signal blared.
“We’re safe in my home, right?”
He studied her.
“There’s no risk to me here? So much as you can tell?”
He nodded. “You’re safe here.”
“So you can be distracted. Just for a little while.”
“Max.” He stood up, his voice a growl, but it was Max who interrupted, her voice ringing with strength. “I am terrified, Noah. My life is spinning so far out of my control, I feel powerless and like I’m second guessing myself all the time. But when I’m with you, it’s like everything has gravity again. I feel safe and alive and happy. Can’t we just pretend, tonight, that we met under different circumstances? That you’re not here to protect me, that you’re not my brother’s friend, that there’s not some psychopath smearing blood over my car park?”
Resist this. Say no.
But she moved closer, brushing her body to his, looking up at his face. “Please?”
Damn it. He could resist a lot, he could say ‘no’ to a lot but Max begging him to give her something was a compulsion he couldn’t fight.
“Haven’t we talked about playing with fire?”
Her lip lifted in an impish smile. “Maybe I want to get burned by you.”
Possessive heat fired through his body. “You don’t know what you’re asking of me.”
She pressed a finger to his lips. “Right now, I’m asking you to have dinner with me. That’s all.”
He lifted a brow. “Really?”
Another impish smile, then no response. She pulled her phone out, loaded up an app and swiped through it. “Thai? Pizza? Burgers?”
He felt his own control slipping away, the gravity of his world shifting, shrinking, jerking, dropping him into hers. He expelled a rough sigh, his eyes locked to hers, heavy surrender tightening in his gut.
“You choose.”
* * *
She lay on her side, on the sofa, full and strangely relaxed. Noah Storm sat in the armchair opposite, watching her, and just the way his eyes caressed her body made her pulse feel half-electric. “So why private security?” Her fingers fluffed an imaginary piece of lint on the cushion in front of her. “Is it what you always wanted to do? Or was it being in the army that pushed you in this direction?”
“A bit of both,” he responded cryptically.
“Come on, Noah. I’ve given you the keys to my life, can’t you answer some simple questions about yours?”
