Page 76

“You made the choice to stay there.” His tone was maddeningly calm, as if his actions were perfectly reasonable.
“I rent, Killian. You’re going to make me lose my deposit. What if the landlord tells me I have to move out for destruction of property?” I was going to murder him. How dare he make such drastic changes without my permission.
“He won’t.” His certainty only fueled my anger.
“You don’tknowthat.” I practically screeched through the phone, beyond caring how desperate I sounded.
“Yes I do, Tink.” His words echoed in the phone as though …
I looked up and there he was, standing a mere few feet away down the hall, his imposing figure blocking the dim overhead light and filling the space. The muscles he often hid under a leather jacket or a hoodie were on full display in the tight black t-shirt he wore. My newfound attraction to him surged and Iwanted to run my fingers up and over each tattoo, memorizing each line, curve, and design.
The locksmiths doing their thing forced me deeper into the hallway and the clinking of metal at the door began to override whatever insane attraction I was feeling.
I ended the call and marched over to Killian, grabbed his arm, and dragged him through the men working and into my apartment. For the second time today, I was manhandling a guy who could easily overpower me, but I was beyond caring.
I didn’t stop until we reached my bedroom, slamming the door shut behind us.
“Tink, if you wanted me in your bedroom, all you had to do was ask.” He smirked, his eyes twinkling with mischief and something darker, more intense.
“Oh, shut up.” I ran a hand through my hair, trying to ignore the way my attraction was affecting me physically. This confined space hadn’t seemed this small earlier. “You can’t replace my locks. I signed a contract that specifically stated I would not make any changes without permission.”
I paced, needing to put some distance between us before I did something stupid, like kiss that infuriating smirk off his face. And having that unexpected thought alone was enough to send me in a tizzy.
“I think he’ll make an exception for you.” The tone of his voice had me stop in my tracks, a suspicion forming in my mind.
Hold up.“Killian, why did you say it like that?”
“Like what?” He relaxed against the door, his arms loosely crossed over his abdomen.
“What did you do? Did you bribe my landlord?” I asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.
He shrugged, the casual demeanor at odds with the intensity in his eyes. “No need. I decided to diversify.”
“Diversify?” I rolled my lips into my mouth as I considered his choice of words. “You didn’t … ” I stopped mid-sentence, my words rising an octave. Why in all of this madness would he buy this property? It didn’t make sense.“You wouldn’t.”
He grinned, looking entirely too pleased with himself. “I did.”
“You can’t just buy a building because you want to make changes tooneapartment.” The sentence came out in a rush.
“I don’t see why not.” His nonchalance was tempting my temper.
“Oh, my God. I don’t even know what to do with you right now.” My pulse pounded in my ears as I stared at him in disbelief, torn between outrage at his high-handedness and a traitorous flutter of warmth at the lengths he was willing to go to protect me.
Killian backed me up to the door. My heart pounded wildly as he pressed into me. His hand cupped my neck as his thumb traced a lazy pattern over my throat. The gentle yet dominant touch sent sparks through me making it impossible to think straight.
“If you weren’t going to take your safety seriously, someone had to.” His voice was low, harsh, and he stared into my eyes with an intensity that teased a shiver down my spine.
“Killian.You bought a building.”I struggled to sound coherent as his touch drove me to distraction. Part of me was flattered that he’d go to this extreme to keep me safe, but another part rebelled against the implication that I couldn’t take care of myself.
“I did.” His simple confirmation hung in the air between us, charged with unspoken tension.
I sighed, unable to resist leaning into his touch. My hands lifted of their own accord to rest on his pecs, hard beneath his shirt. The fast but steady beat of his heart beneath my palmsrevealed he was as much affected as I was. We were so close, that when he exhaled, his warm minty breath feathered across my lips. I drew in a deep gulp of his subtle scent. Sandalwood and something uniquely him engulfed me and made me want to bury my face in his shirt to see if the scent was stronger there.
“If it’s going to appear that we’re dating, no one would believe I’d let you stay here with your apartment the way it is.” The statement was slightly insulting, but held an undercurrent of possessiveness that both thrilled and unsettled me.
It took more than a second for me to register what he’d said, my brain still foggy by his nearness. “Oh. Right. Of course.” I managed. So this was about our image as a couple, not his attraction to me? I couldn’t deny how disappointed that made me feel.
Was that all this was? Keeping up appearances? And why did I care? This was all fake anyway.