Chapter 6

Danielle

I frowned and rose to my feet, making my way to the door, and peeking through the peephole. I hung up with a sigh and opened the door. "What are you doing here?"

Austin's eyes did a full sweep of my body, and then he smiled and slid his hand to my neck. Pushing me further into the room, he kicked the door shut and leaned down to cover my mouth with his. He stroked my pulse as his other arm wrapped tightly around my waist and pulled me tight against him. His tongue pressed against my lips and I opened for him, my heart racing, my knees weak, and all I could do was grip his jacket and hold on for the ride.

It took a minute for me to come back to reality, and to my utter horror I remembered what I was wearing. Dark blue camisole with a shelf bra that did nothing to support my overly large breasts, a pair of ratty plaid pajama pants, my hair pulled into a messy bun on top of my head and not a stitch of makeup. I hadn't brushed my teeth, probably had nasty wine breath, and here I was kissing the hottest guy on the planet who I'd just met less than three hours ago.

I pushed at his chest. You know, the one that felt like granite under my fingertips? He didn't budge, so I pushed again.

"Not done, baby," he said, smiling against my lips.

"But you need to be," I whispered, admittedly, somewhat half-heartedly.

His hand slipped to my cheek as he leaned back and frowned. "Didn't feel like I needed to stop, darlin'."

I licked my lips and nodded. "But you do all the same."

Austin stepped back with a smile.

I crossed my arms over my chest in an effort to hide the effect he had on my body. "What are you doing here?"

He shrugged as his eyes swept my apartment. "Nice place."

"Thank you."

"You live here when the asshole stole your money?"

I shook my head. "No. I had to move out of my other place. This place is way cheaper."

"And you don't want to live at home?"

"No," I said. "I'm not running to my parents because I made an error in judgment. They raised me to be independent and being an adult means life sucks sometimes. They do what they can, which I'm very grateful for, but I need to work this out on my own."

"How did you manage to get this place?"

"I know the owner."

His eyes came back to me. "Meaning?"

I sighed. "Meaning, he knows I'm good for the rent, so he waived the credit check."

Austin scowled. "Tell me his name."

"The manager?"

He stepped toward me. "No."

I rolled my eyes and tried to put distance between us. My back hit the wall of my tiny foyer. "I'm not telling you Steven's last name, Austin."

He gently grabbed my arm and pulled me back toward him. "I'm not leaving here until you do."

I smirked. "Hope you like sleeping on a couch, then."

Austin gave me his panty-dropping grin again. "Your bed'll do just fine."

"You are not sleeping in my bed, Austin."

He chuckled. "We'll see."

"What are you doing here?" I asked again, trying to ignore his thumb stroking the pulse on my wrist.

"No fuckin' clue."

"We're back to rude, I see."

He laughed. "Shit, you're funny."

"I wasn't trying to be funny."

"I know, baby."

I couldn't stop a shiver. "Don't call me 'baby.'"

"You like it."

"Doesn't mean you should do it," I challenged. "You're gorgeous, you know you're gorgeous, but the fact remains, I don't know you and I don't really know why you're here."

His smile grew. "I'm gorgeous, huh?"

"Poor choice of words, apparently."

"Let's stop talkin', then." He leaned down and kissed me again, and I couldn't do anything about it. Don't get me wrong, I could if I'd wanted to, but let's be honest, I had never been kissed like this, let alone looked at the way he looked at me. He wasn't anyone I would have thought would find me attractive. I was far more school librarian than biker chick and typically only received interest from nerds.

"What's his last name?" he asked when he broke the kiss.

"Mills," I answered, my eyes still closed, my breath still labored. "Crap!" I snapped when I came to my senses and looked up at him. He was once again grinning. "I mean, Millson," I improvised.

"Nice try." He stroked my cheek. "I'll see you soon."

"You will?"

He nodded. "'Night, baby."

He kissed me one more time and then walked out the door, leaving me standing next to the door in shock. I closed the door, locked it, and grabbed my wine on my way to the kitchen. After dumping the glass, I dialed Kim.

"Hey, lady."

"Ohmigod."

"What?" she asked.

"You're never going to guess what just happened." I filled her in on my entire night, including details about Austin "Booker" Carver.

"He just showed up and then gave you a mind-blowing kiss?"

I nodded and realized she couldn't see me. "Yes. Two," I said... well, whispered with breathy desire is probably a better description. "Maybe three."

"And he's like a biker dude?"

"Yes." God, again, breathy desire. I was losing it.

"Oh, honey, you're screwed."

"Crap? Am I?" I asked.

"Why did he want Steve's name?"

"No clue, Kimmie. But he seemed pissed. Which is weird because he doesn't know Steve... or me."

Kim hummed, but didn't say anything further.

"What?" I demanded.

"I think you've got a man who has decided to claim you."

"What?" I asked. "What does that mean?"

"I think you should have Elliot check this guy out."

"Kim! Stop speaking in riddles." I shoved my wine glass in the dishwasher and slammed the door a little harder than I should have. "You know I'm not good at this kind of stuff."

"Just have your brother do a background check on him, Dani. Then go from there."

"Why do I need to get Elliot involved in this?"

"Will you just listen to your best friend and know that she is looking out for you?" Kim asked. "You've only ever been with one guy and he kind of ripped you off, so you're both naïve and gun-shy in the face of hot guys."

"I'm not a child, Kim," I pointed out.

"I'm not saying you are, Dani. But you're sweet and you see the good in everyone. You even give Steve somewhat of the benefit of the doubt most of the time."

"I do not."

"You do too," she argued. "It's your only vice."

I snorted. "Suck it, Kimmie."

"Oooh, if only I could."

"You and your oral sex fixation."

"Hey, I enjoy fellatio," she said.

I groaned. "Kim—"

"Well, you seem to object to me saying I love giving head—"

"Oh, gross. Kimmie, please!"

"Just talk to your brother."

"No." I made my way into my bedroom and set my alarm. "This man isn't interested in me. He's probably just trying to see if he can trick me into sleeping with him. But I'm too smart for him. I'll talk to my dad about the repair costs, then go from there. I'll probably never see him again."

"Okay, Ms. Oblivious. We'll see."

"Yes, we will. I love you, but I have to go to bed. I have a million things to do tomorrow and it's way past my bedtime."

Kim laughed. "Okay dear, sweet, innocent friend. Love you too."

"'Night."

"'Night," Kim said, and hung up.

I brushed my teeth, climbed into bed, and closed my eyes, but all I could see was Austin's face in front of me, smiling and leaning forward for a kiss. I rolled over and tried again, but this time, Austin's head was on the pillow next to me.

"Crap." I flopped onto my back and dragged my hands down my face. Glancing at the clock, it said eleven-thirty and I groaned. Six hours. If I can fall asleep right now, I'll get six hours of sleep.

I glanced back at the clock at midnight and this continued until I finally fell asleep around two. By the time the alarm sounded, I was sure I'd only managed a twenty minute power nap, so I snoozed. The problem was I snoozed until six a.m., which meant I was still rushing around my apartment when my brother arrived to pick me up. Lucky for me, he didn't grill me about why I was so tired. After I told him what time to pick me up, he dropped me off at school and went on his merry way. Thank God for small favors.