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“But she shut down completely when I asked why she left in the first place,” I went on, only to bat my lashes playfully at him. “Youwouldn’t want to tell me what happened between you two, would you?”
When his eyes clouded with panic, I knew he wasn’t going to tell me shit.
So I lifted my hands. “Okay, okay. I get it. I won’t force you to spill. They must be her secrets, huh? But just so you know, I’m keeping one from her, too. She became very irritable when I mentioned how attractive I thought you were. You have one overprotective twin sister on your hands, bud. So I decided not to tell her that we hooked up. You okay with that?”
When I glanced toward Damien, he winced as if it hurt to swallow, even as he said, “I’ll support whatever you think best there. I’m fine with her knowing, but I definitely don’t want to cause any strife between you two if you think telling her will cause problems.”
I sighed, worried that might be too late, and I turned my gaze back to his shelves, only to furrow my brow over the type of reading material he collected. And…uh… I wondered if I should be concerned about the sheer volume of serial killer books he owned. There were stories about Jack the Ripper, Jeffrey Dahmer, the Green River Killer, John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy, Charles Manson, the Night Stalker, the Mad Butcher, the BTK Killer…
The list just kept going.
Jaylani’s voice suddenly whispered through my head:The dude gives off serial killer vibes.
A shiver skated over my skin until I reminded myself thatshehad the same macabre fascination, what with all those shows she’d been watching lately. So if anything, this only meant his tastes aligned with my best friend’s, and therefore I should be as compatible with him as I was with her.
So ha! Take that, Jay.
When the only thing left to check out in his room was the bed, I did so slowly, building up the anticipation. He had maroon and navy blue sheets and pillows with a plaid cover to match.
And hanging from the bedpost of the headboard was a familiar-looking slip of cloth that made me furrow my brow and point. “Is that my…?”
When I glanced toward him where he hadn’t moved from the doorway, he didn’t seem ashamed of putting my panties on display at all. In fact, his whiskey eyes glittered with pride.
“First thing I see every morning when I wake up,” he answered in a low voice that made shivers run through me.
God. This was becoming too much again. I was not well-versed intoo much. I was a fun-time girl. Party, hook up, move on. That had been my motto.
Completely out of my depth with this guy, I picked up one of the pillows from his bed and hugged it to my chest, trying to muffle the impact he was having on me. But his smell rippled up from the fabric, and my body went into a state of hypersensitivity.
“So…” I said, drawing in a deep breath and trying to sound casual, even though every part of me was trembling with arousal.
Damien left the doorway to take a single, cautious step in my direction. “Did I pass inspection?”
I shrugged, still trying to play it cool. “For the time being.” Then, I took a step forward as well, holding my breath the entire time in anticipation.
Shaking his head, he eased closer. “I still can’t believe you’re standing in my room right now.”
Taking my turn, I shifted an inch toward him. “Why not?”
“I don’t know.” His whiskey eyes searched mine as if reading all my secret desires. “I kind of thought I may never see you again.”
I paused and tipped my head curiously. “But you’re my landlord.”
Lifting one shoulder, he narrowed the gap until only about two feet separated us. “I’ve had lots of tenants that I only met once and never saw again. And I didn’t want you to be one of those. I picked up my phone half a dozen times to text, but I didn’t know if it was okay to do that after a casual hookup.”
When he lifted his eyebrows in question, silently asking if itwould’vebeen okay, I merely sent him a mysterious smile. “What would you have said if you’d texted?”
His lips twitched, finding amusement. “Probably only that I wanted to see you again.”
Catching my breath, I squeezed the pillow against me tighter. “Say it now,” I commanded.
Damien’s eyes turned predatory. Moving in until only the pillow separated us, he whispered, “I want to see you again.”
“Okay,” I whispered back, almost too afraid to breathe lest I ruin this perfect, intense moment.
Reaching out to grip the pillow I was still clutching to my chest, Damien tugged gently, and I gave up control of it without protest, letting him slip it from between our bodies.
My lips parted as soon as it was gone, and he blindly tossed it back onto the bed, not watching where it landed because his eyes were too busy studying mine.
