Page 4 of Forbidden Confessions, Volume 2 (The Forbidden Volumes #1)

B efore she can ask more questions, I shove the blanket down to her waist, haul her against my chest, and slant my mouth over hers.

She stiffens and sucks in a shocked little gasp.

I keep at her, layering my lips over hers, coaxing, nudging…

and losing myself in her softness. Slowly, the starch leaves her.

She opens to me, one breath, one moment at a time.

Because she remembers our situation? Or because she likes the feel of my mouth on hers?

I can’t mind-fuck myself by answering that.

Right now, I have to focus on getting her to safety.

But goddamn…the temptation to violate her pillowy red lips is one I can’t resist. Jesus, they’re like a cushion for my questing mouth. This might be my one and only chance to really kiss Sophie.

Yeah, it’s overkill for the situation, but I shove her lips apart and sink inside. Then I step even farther over the line and plunge deep.

Holy shit .

Sophie is fucking sweet. Addicting. Perfect. I detect a hint of cherry flavor I can’t help but chase with my tongue. I can’t resist when she slants her head to welcome me deeper, pulls me closer, and clutches my shoulders with a breathy moan.

This kiss is getting hot and filthy—fast.

Dying to devour her, I shift her body onto mine, fitting her legs around my hips and notching her against the erection I shouldn’t have. I grip her ass and sink completely into her waiting mouth, desperate to be inside her in any way she’ll let me.

Then…oh, fuck, she arches against me, her soft curves pressing into my chest, and I forget for a heartbeat that we’re running for our lives.

All I’m aware of is the velvet heat of her mouth, her soft body against the hard angles of mine, and the way she’s kissing me back like she’s drowning and I’m her air.

“There a problem?” A deep, unfamiliar voice asks.

Panting, I jerk free of Sophie and tuck her face against me, both to protect her identity and to find my composure. Jesus, I can’t lose my head like that again. If we make it out of this alive, I’ll be lucky if she doesn’t hit me. Or sue me.

“Um…” Dustin croaks. “I was just giving a ride to these folks who, ah…”

“Want some privacy,” I say as I reluctantly twist myself from Sophie’s lush lips and bury her too-familiar face in my shoulder. “Can we get by? Please, man. Please.”

He sends me a disapproving stare. “Did you see the shooting? Or anyone suspicious?”

“No. I was, um…involved with my girlfriend.” I clutch Sophie tighter.

“You got any ID?”

I pretend to pat my pockets, then huff. “Son of a bitch. I left my wallet in my car.”

“What about your girlfriend? She got her driver’s license?”

Sophie wisely shakes her head but doesn’t lift it or say a word. Instead, she pretends interest in me, trailing her lips up my neck.

It’s all I can do to keep my head in the game and not shudder in pleasure. But I feel her touch all the way down my spine.

“She didn’t bring a purse.” I curl my arms around her again. “Dude, really. I just want to be alone with my girl. You know how it is. C’mon… If I knew anything, I’d tell you.”

The young cop takes in the fact I have a half-dressed blonde on my lap and sighs as he turns to his fellow officers. “Let ’em through.”

As the other cops move the barricades, I settle my cheek against Sophie’s. “We’re almost out of here.”

“Thank you.” Her voice shakes.

Her fear cools the boil from my blood. I feel like an asshole for aching to take Sophie to bed.

You can’t. Suck it up. Do your job. She’s a client .

Unfortunately, she feels like more than that.

It seems to take forever, but Dustin clicks at the horse and slaps the reins, finally hauling us from the scene. I keep Sophie curled against me until we’re past the cops and heading toward my truck.

The kid and I exchange a few more words, and I point toward the lot in question. It’s busy. Other people have managed to escape the parade route on foot and are rushing to their vehicles. There’s no way Dustin can maneuver the cart between all the drivers peeling out and skidding away.

He pulls onto an adjacent sidewalk instead and turns to face us. “Here you go.”

“You did great, Dustin. Can’t thank you enough.” I hand him a hundred bucks.

He pushes it back in my direction. “I don’t want any money, just…” Dustin looks at Sophie like he’s lovestruck. “Could I have your autograph?”

She smiles. “I owe you more than that. How about something better? Something for now…”

Sophie smiles and leans in, pressing a butterfly-soft kiss to his cheek. “Thank you for everything. Really.”

“Oh, my god.” He presses his fingers to his face.

“And I want to give you something for later. If you’ll write down your phone number, I’ll make sure you have the best backstage tickets to my concert the next time I’m in town.

Bring a few friends. I’ll send a limo for you, ensure you have one of the best meals of your life, and we’ll sit down to talk when I’m less of a mess so I can tell you how truly grateful I am. ”

“No shit?” Dustin’s eyes bug out.

“Absolutely.”

The kid scrambles to find a piece of paper and a pen, then jots his digits and thrusts them her way. “That would be amazing.”

She palms it. “My pleasure. You’ll hear from me soon, Dustin.”

“Wow. Amazing.” A loopy grin covers his face. “No one will believe me.”

I have an idea how to solve that problem. “Sophie, are you attached to your shoes?”

She scowls. “They’re actually worse than the dress.”

“Why don’t you let Dustin keep them?” I look his way. “Social media can verify she was wearing these shoes when the performance started. Just…wait a few days, huh? So the danger dies down.”

Sophie slips off her shoes and hands them to Dustin. He’s barely paying attention to me as he takes them from her. “Yeah. Sure. Oh, my sister is going to flip shit when she sees these.”

I jump to the sidewalk with a chuckle. Still in the buggy, Sophie frowns. “Um, Rand. The pavement is too hot for my feet.”

Does she think I haven’t realized that? “I got you. Come here.”

When I hold out my hand, she only hesitates a second before she takes it.

Sophie trusts me—mostly. I’ve gotten her this far. If I had more time with her, if she were mine, it would be heady to win her trust, nudge her comfort zone, then push her boundaries slowly, one seductive inch at a time.

But she’s not yours and she’s probably not that sort of woman. Get your brains out of your dick .

While she’s perched at the edge of the buggy, I settle an arm around her waist, then wedge the other under her knees and haul her against my chest.

She grabs my neck and squeaks in protest. “You can’t carry me.”

“News flash: I’m doing it,” I point out. “Thanks again, Dustin.”

“Thank you!”

Satisfied we made the cleanest getaway possible, I carry her to my truck, ignoring the curious stares of other drivers passing by.

When I reach my black Chevy, I slide Sophie down my body. “Stand on my feet.”

She does. Every inch of her is pressed against every inch of me. It’s impossible to ignore our closeness as I fish for my keys in my pocket and press the fob to unlock the door. Then I sweep her back into my arms.

“What are you doing now?” she squeaks.

“Open the door.”

She does, and a blast of unbearable heat rolls from the cab of the truck. I love the sleekness of black vehicles…but they make summer in Texas a real bitch.

“I’ll get the air going in a minute.” I slide her into the driver’s seat. “Scoot to the passenger’s side and we’ll be out of here.”

“Going where?” she asks as she shimmies over, doing her best to pull my big shirt down so she doesn’t expose her thighs and everything in between.

Too late. I’ve seen it all—and it’s indelibly burned into my brain.

Not because she’s a celebrity. I’ve protected lots of famous folks; I’m past that BS.

But if my fantasy was real, she’d look like Sophie Larsen, and all I can think about is kissing her again, getting her underneath me, and giving her every inch I’ve got.

I clear my throat and start the truck. “I’m figuring that out.”

We can’t go to my place. Too many people know she was with me before the shit hit the fan, and if the killer is connected to her, that’s the first place they’ll look.

Before I pull out of my parking spot, I yank my phone free and quickly disable location services.

If someone captured me on video at the parade—and they probably did—it won’t take long for them to figure out who I am.

The last thing I need is for someone to track my phone and lead them straight to Sophie.

“Can I borrow your phone to call David and?—”

“Tell him where to find you? He knew where you were thirty minutes ago. How did that work out?”

“That’s not fair. He couldn’t possibly have known some crackpot would shoot at me.”

“Are you willing to risk your life on that?”

She scowls. “Why should I trust you over him? We just met.”

It’s entirely possible Sophie will slap me for what I’m about to do, but I have to make her understand.

I wrap my fingers around her nape, pull her face inches from mine—and fight not to kiss her again.

For a split second, fear flickers in her eyes—not of the situation, but of me.

She’s smart enough to recognize that the man sitting beside her has killed before and would do it again without hesitation.

Good. She should understand exactly what kind of protection she’s getting… but I don’t want her afraid of me.

“Honey, if I wanted you dead, you’d already be dead.” The words come out rougher than I intended. “And I wouldn’t have wasted my time and risked my skin to get you away from that parade safely.”

She blinks at me, her pupils slightly dilated, as if she’s realizing she’s completely at my mercy—that if I wanted to hurt her, no one would ever find her body.

But it’s difficult as fuck not to be hypnotized by those eyes that celebrity gossip rags have gushed about since she first hit the scene.

I always thought she was hot, but pictures don’t do Sophie justice.

“I see your point,” she murmurs.

Reluctantly, I release her and ease away. “The way I look at it, someone who knew when and where you’d be took shots at you.”

“But I doubt David wants to hurt me. He hired you.”

“Not exactly. When Rob got sick, he called me and asked me to step in. He didn’t like this whole parade setup. He told David that. Your agent said he was overreacting. Clearly not.”

“Still, that doesn’t mean…” She sighs. “But I get what you’re saying. As long as no one knows where to find me, it buys us time to figure out what’s going on.”

“Yeah. I have an idea where we can lie low. Sit back. We’ll be in the car for a while.”

“Anything I can do to help?”

“Think hard and honestly about who might want you dead.”