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“You look beautiful,” I said, not able to help myself.

Abigailflushed slightly, shaking her head to dismiss the compliment.

“You don’t agree?”

“There’s no one here, Rex. We don’t have to pretend.”

“You weren’t pretending last night.”

Her flush deepened as her tongue slid out to moisten her lips. “No,” she admitted. “I wasn’t.”

“You look like you want to ask me something. If you’re going to question whether or not I was faking it, I’m going to stop you right there.”

She huffed. “It’s not that.”

“So what is it?”

“Well, last night, I could brush off as us getting carried away. But then breakfast this morning, and now you’re here… What’s going on, Rex?”

That was the question, wasn’t it? But answering it was harder than it seemed. What was going on was that I was attracted to Abigail in a way that had caught me completely by surprise. It was like an unquenchable thirst. Every little taste of her only made me want more. And every time I thought of all the reasons we shouldn’t, she’d show me another side of her that made all my hesitations disappear.

I wanted Abigail because she was smart and funny and sexy. But she also scratched something inside me, an itch that begged me to take care of someone else just because I could. Abigail was unbelievably independent. She lived alone, worked alone, and made sure that everyone knew she wouldn’t take shit from anyone. She’d spend a night in jail to defend her friends when she thought they’d been slighted.

But beneath the tough-girl facade was a woman whowiggled happily in her seat when someone cooked for her. A woman who fought to let go until she had no choice but to scream her pleasure. A woman who appreciated the little things instead of expecting them.

It would be a joy to spoil her for the rest of my days.

I reached for her arm and slid my hand along the soft fabric of her blouse, all the way down to the pearl button holding the cuff closed. I thumbed the button, wrapping my fingers around the fine bones of her wrist, wondering how it was possible for someone to get under my skin as quickly as Abigail had.

“What’s going on is that I’ve been running on the fumes of that goodbye kiss for eight hours,” I said, tugging her closer. “Need something to keep me going.”

She laughed, eyes sparkling, and hooked her free arm around my neck. “Is that right? And the fact that I’m at work doesn’t bother you?”

I nudged her nose with mine. “Not even a little bit.”

“Anyone could walk in.”

“We’d hear them.”

“I could lose my license.”

I tilted my head back as my hands found their way to her waist. She fit against me like we were made for each other. “Have I finally found a challenge that Abigail Stone won’t face?”

“You’re some kind of arrogant if you think fooling around with you in one of my clients’ houses is a line I’ll cross for you.”

Delighted, I laughed. “I’m discovering all kinds of fascinating things about you, Abigail.” My hands slid down to her ass, squeezing gently.

Slightly breathless, she asked, “Like what?”

“Like the fact that you enjoy following rules, after all.” I nudged her nose again, brushing my lips against the corner of her mouth before pulling away.

Her eyes turned flinty. “You’re a tease, Rex Montgomery. I think you came all the way here just to rile me up.”

“Among other things,” I said, and I crushed my lips to hers. I hadn’t made up how good she tasted this morning; her kiss really was the sustenance I needed to keep going. My lips found her jaw, then I had to trace the line of her pulse down her neck.

I loved the way Abigail softened against me. Loved the breathless little moans that slipped through her lips like she couldn’t help herself.

“Rex,” she said, fingernails digging into my shoulders. “I can’t have sex with you here. The owners moved out so we could stage it, but I just can’t do it.”