Page 19

“I can’t decideif I’m irritated or impressed.”
After stripping off my vest, I looked up at Maximus, my heart hammering from the intensity of the laser tag course. The golden strands of his hair were messy enough to make me wonder how he would look after I fisted my hands in them as I kissed him. Despite his comment, he had an amused—and hot—gleam in his eyes as he returned his laser tag gear to one of the waiting staff members.
The team we’d just trounced—thoroughly—walked by us, the girl clutching her boyfriend’s arm and patting it soothingly.
“It’s just a game, baby….”
I refrained from laughing as I accepted Maximus’s hand, and we fell in step behind them. He kept our pace deliberately slow, and once they were farther down the corridor, I looked over at him.
“Irritated or impressed by…?”
“You.” He looked at me the statement blunt and direct. “That guy up there…he’s….”
“A dick?” I offered.
“That fits. The minute the staff grouped us with the other couple, I knew the guy would be a jackass. I wanted to get a couple of shots in on him, but every time you already had him in your sights.” Maximus stroked his thumb along the back of my hand. “So…it could irritate me. But watching you win is…sexy as fuck.”
The low, smoky tone of his voice sent my blood pumping, and I couldn’t stop the shiver that broke out, wracking me from head to toe.
Maximus tugged me to the side of the darkened corridor, his eyes searching my face. “You’re shivering. Are you okay?”
That would depend on his definition. Somebody passed through the corridor behind us, and I managed a smile. “I’m fine.”
Brows coming together over his eyes, he studied my face. The dim lighting made it harder for us to see each other clearly, but not impossible. “Then why are you shivering?”
Blood rushed to my cheeks, making me glad for the low lights. I did not want him to see me blushing. “Ask me later.”
He narrowed his eyes speculatively, but after a few seconds, he backed up. “Are you ready to see what sort of murderous mayhem waits for us in the escape room?”
“Oh yes.” Tugging on his hand, I smiled. “Murder and mayhem are my middle names.”
He laughed. “Well, I can see one of those fitting.”
“Which one?” I asked tartly.
“Mayhem.” He squeezed my fingers. “Although I feel you wouldn’t be above other things if someone had backed you or your family into a corner.”
“Aren’t you the insightful one?” I glanced at him.
“Not so much.” He shrugged. “I just saw how you were with your sister last week. I, too, have a few people in my life that I would do almost anything to protect. So, I get it.” He glanced over, then away, almost as if the vulnerability he’d just shared unnerved him.
It had done something to me, too.
I just wasn’t sure what.
Not yet, at least.
Nine
Maximus
“I toldyou it was the sister,” Tina said.
The smug satisfaction in her voice had me smiling.
“Yes, you did.” We’d reached my car, but instead of opening the door for her, I leaned against it and tugged her against me, pleased when she came closer and tipped her head back to grin up at me. “But let me be honest. You had me at a disadvantage, so I don’t think it’s fair for you to keep rubbing it in.”
“Oh?” She arched her eyebrows, a smile dancing on her pretty mouth. “And why is that?”