“Hold still,” his gravelly voice instructed.
Done. ‘Hold still’, she could totally do. Speak, not so much. Move, mmm didn’t look real good for that happening either, but hold still she seemed to have mastered in the last few minutes.
Jessie could hear her heart pounding in her head as her eyes stayed glued to her hand. Not because she wanted to watch as he pulled out the splinter but because she still couldn’t seem to force herself to look at this creature that had managed to make her feel more in mere seconds than any other man had ever incited in her…ever.
In one try he was able to remove the offending slice of wood from beneath her skin. The moment that he did bright red blood appeared where the splinter had just been. Jessie’s head began spinning and her face felt as if it had gone numb. Blood had always had that effect on her. Since she was little the mere sight of it caused her to black out.
She watched as if she was floating outside of herself as thick fingers quickly covered the wound with a white alcohol wipe. Super-sexy-guy’s thumb covered the white square applying pressure as he held it in place firmly over the wound. For a moment she felt herself coming back, the room ceased to spin and she was fairly certain she was not going to pass out. Then bright red seeped out beneath his finger as she bled onto the surface of the wipe and the spinning was back in full force.
“You need to sit down,” the forceful words barely made it into Jessie’s clouded consciousness before she felt an arm wrap around her and guide her down to a seated position.
As her backside hit the floor she felt the solidness of the wall behind her and she closed her eyes as her head fall back to rest against it.
“Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Deep breaths,” his deep voice instructed.
Damn. Jessie didn’t think she would ever get tired of listening to that voice. It held a quality that somehow simultaneously calmed and soothed her while sending her hormones into overdrive. It was intoxicating and, she feared, addictive.
Following his instructions she breathed evenly and deeply and began to start feeling her faculties return to her. Her first clear thought was that she needed to thank super-sexy-man for his assistance.
Jessie did not like receiving help from people. At all. She was as independent as they came. As glad as she was that he’d sat her down and talked her through the worst of her woozy spell, she needed to return to equal footing as fast as possible. That meant opening her eyes.
Lowering her chin so that her head lifted from the support of the wall her heavy eyelids parted and her mouth went dry.
Holy mother of pearl.
Jessie’s gaze froze, totally mesmerized by the perfection that was staring back at her. Her mind felt like it was short-circuiting from the information her eyes were sending to her brain. She drank in his deep green eyes that were as seductive as they were welcoming, full lips, chiseled jaw line with just enough stubble to send a quake of awareness erupting in between her legs.
“Are you feeling better,” concern filled super-sexy-guy’s green seductive-slash-welcoming eyes.
“Yes,” Jessie spoke in a whisper.
“Good,” he nodded a ghost of a smile appearing on his face, “do you want to stand up?”
“Yes,” Jessie’s voice was not any stronger than the first time. Actually she didn’t think her legs were all that steady either which begged the question why-had-she-agreed-to-stand? It seemed that the word yes just kept spilling out of her mouth.
Strong arms was once again surrounded her, supporting her. She felt the heat of super-sexy-guy’s large palm through the soft cotton of her shirt at the dip of her waist as his fingers gripped her hip. Jessie instantly melted into his strength. As she stood she heard herself take in a shuttering breath as her body surged to life under his touch.
This was not good. Not. Good. At. All.
* * *
Zach was doing everything in his power to stifle his body’s response to this girl. He was actively throwing a mental wet rag on the flames of desire spreading through him. Thinking about his mom’s deteriorating conditions, the mounting medical bills, his upcoming fight, anything and everything he could to stop the blood from rushing to his dick, sending this already intimate feeling moment into dangerously inappropriate territory.
Sadly, none of it seemed to be working.
In his twenty-six years he’d seen his fair share of gorgeous women. Sexy women. Women whose body’s made men drool. Just last month he’d hooked up with a Playmate of the month. He’d dated women on a regular basis that other men only fantasized about.
All of them paled in comparison to the breathtakingly stunning girl standing in front of him. Actually she was a woman. Her body was definitely all woman. She wore black slacks and a button up white shirt tailored to fit every sinfully sensual curve of her body that screamed professional as well as sexy. Zach realized he’d categorized her as a girl not from any of her outward appearances—which was one hundred percent woman—but rather the look in her eyes, the way her body trembled beneath his touch, her unguarded response that made every one of his protective instincts kick into high gear.
Which was ridiculous. The moment he’d seen her at the bottom of the steps, the sun highlighting her huge coffee-colored brown eyes, angel face, and blonde hair that fell loosely around her shoulder with not a strand out of place Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl” song had popped into his head. Which was exactly the stereotype woman that he wanted absolutely nothing to do with.
Except she didn’t look at him like he was a bad boy that she wanted to get her kicks with before she settled down and married a white-collared douche-bag. She looked at him with sincere vulnerability that was as disarming as it was endearing. That put him in unfamiliar territory. Zach operated his life trusting his instincts, especially his instincts about women, but this one was causing him to feel things that he shouldn’t be feeling. If he trusted his instincts right now he’d have her pressed up against the wall, claiming her in a kiss that branded her for life.
The only sound he heard was his own heart beating furiously and their mingled breaths which were both growing increasingly labored as they stared into one another’s eyes.
“Thanks,” a soft voice that didn’t matched the all-business persona this girl was obviously trying to put forth, but was totally in sync with her large doe eyes, came from her perfect, pink lips. “I don’t like blood.”
Just the sound of her voice stringing several words together caused Zach’s overwhelming urge to lean down, close the small gap between them, and kiss her, to intensify catastrophically. Which was completely insane considering she hadn’t said anything even remotely seductive. His hand tightened in need and he realized he still held her in his arms. At the flinch of his fingers her lips parted and her chest rose as she sucked in an audible breath.
His gaze—that had been trained on her mouth—darted up to meet hers. Damn, he could lose himself in those deep brown eyes. His heart slammed in his chest at that realization.
The energy between them so electric he was surprised that sparks weren’t spontaneously erupting as they stared at each other.
“Yoo-hoo! Are you two lovebirds okay down there?” a high-pitched voice rang out.
Other titles by Melanie Shawn
THE HOPE FALLS SERIES
Sweet Reunion
#1
Sweet Harmonies
#2
Sweet Victory
#3
Home Sweet Home
#4
Snow Angel
#5
Snow Days
#6
Snowed In
#7
Let It Snow
#8
THE CROSSROADS SERIES
My First
Book 1
My Last
Book 2
My Only
Book 3
My Everything
Book 4
Tempting Love
Book 5
&
nbsp; THE RED HOT PRIVATE EYE SERIES
NOVELLA
Scandalous
Vol. 1
Friction
Vol. 2
THE HAPPILY EVER AFTER SERIES
NOVELLA
One Sweet Day
A Hope Falls Edition
About the Author
Melanie Shawn is the writing team of sister duo Melanie and Shawna. Originally from Northern California, they both migrated south and now call So Cal their home.
Growing up, Melanie constantly had her head in a book and was always working on short stories, manuscripts, plays and poetry. After graduating magna cum laude from Pepperdine University, she went on to teach grades 2nd through 8th for five years. She now spends her days writing and taking care of her furry baby, a Lhasa Apso named Hercules. In her free time, her favorite activity is to curl up on the couch with that stubborn, funny mutt and binge-watch cable TV shows on DVD (preferably of at least eight seasons in length – a girl’s gotta have her standards!).
Shawna always loved romance in any form – movie, song or literary. If it was a love story with a happy ending, Shawna was all about it! She proudly acknowledges that she is a romanceaholic. Her days are jam-packed with writing, being a wife, mom aka referee of two teens, and indulging in her second passion (dance!) as a Zumba instructor. In the little free time she has, she joins Melanie in marathon-watching DVDs of their favorite TV programs.
They have joined forces to create a world where True Love and Happily Ever After always has a Sexy Twist!
You can keep up with all the latest Melanie Shawn news, including new releases and contests, at:
http://melanieshawn.com
and
http://facebook.com/melanieshawnbooks
Crazy Love - Krista & Chase Page 26