Page 23 of Protected By the Sinner

Going by the way she’s giving herself to me right now, I’d bet the fear isn’t even about me. Or maybe notonlyabout me.

I step back and remove my blazer, watching her on the bed. Her dress has ridden up, baring those golden thighs.

I’ve never been in a situation where the desire to touch a woman overrode reason.

She doesn’t say a word, just watches me with those gorgeous eyes as I approach again. I can see the outline of her hardened nipple through the fabric of her dress. Her chest is rising and falling in shallow breaths.

If I had to guess, I’d say she’s forcing herself to stay still. Fighting the same wild hunger that’s ripping through me.

I take another step closer, but as if the universe is conspiring to stop me from losing control, my phone rings.

I reach into my blazer pocket. It’s Roman.

“What is it?”

“We need to go.”

I hang up. Roman wouldn’t interrupt me unless it was serious.

“I want you to come with me,” I repeat to her.

I don’t remember ever taking this kind of approach before, but Amber is unlike anyone I’ve dealt with. Nothing about her makes me act the way I usually do.

“Why do you want me to come with you? You don’t even know me.”

Funny how she doesn’t sayI don’t know you either, which just confirms what I suspected. This wasn’t fate. Someone put her in my path.

I shove my hands into my pants pockets to stop myself from reaching for her. “I’m leaving, Amber. This is your last chance.”

“I can’t leave Texas,” she says, and this time, I don’t think she’s lying.

“Why not?”

“I just can’t.”

Being told no doesn’t sit well with me—but I need to get her out of here. Everything else can be figured out later. I don’t even know if I’ll keep her for a day or a week.

“Just those bags?”

She still looks dazed and glances at the phone on the nightstand, like she’s weighing options.

Finally, she makes a decision.

“Yes.” Then she adds something that completely throws me off: “I don’t sleep with men for money, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

Where the hell did that come from?

“I’ve never paid for sex, and I don’t plan to start, Amber.”

She shrugs, completely unbothered by the implication. “I never said you did. I’m just making it clear that if you think putting me up in a better hotel means I’ll fall at your feet, you’re mistaken,” she says, almost like she wants me to reconsider. “You said you had a proposal. If it includes sex as a requirement, I’m not interested.”

Normally, her attitude would turn me off. I don’t like aggressive women. But I’ve already gone too far to care about her flaws.

Besides, I want her close. I want to watch her.

“What would make you fall at my feet?”

She doesn’t hesitate. “Nothing. But if you want to get to know me, I’ll go with you.”