Flirting with Forever: A Hot Romantic Comedy(10)

Damn, that woman was dangerous. And I had a feeling she knew it.





5





NORA





Dex’s strong hands roamed over my body, teasing and tempting me. I tipped my legs open, inviting him in. I wanted those thick fingers stroking me, plunging inside me. His mouth left hot brands on my skin, his teeth grazing as he worked his way lower. My nipples tightened and my body tensed. I wanted to cry out for more, but I couldn’t seem to speak.

What was taking him so long?

My breath came in quick gasps as the heat built inside me. Dex, please. Why couldn’t I get the words out? I needed to tell him what I wanted, guide him. Demand more. He was here, why wasn’t he giving me what I needed? Why couldn’t I feel his—

A loud bang jerked me awake and I sat up in bed, gasping for breath.

I was covered in a light sheen of sweat and unreleased tension pulsed between my legs. Dreaming. I’d been having a sex dream.

Well that was disappointing.

And what had made that noise? Had it been part of the dream?

Another loud bang rang out from somewhere outside. My sexual frustration disappeared and my heart started racing. Who was out there? Was someone trying to break in?

For a moment, I debated what to do. Stay in bed and hope nothing bad happened? Or get up and check things out?

This was my house. My responsibility.

My heart pounded harder. I slipped out of bed, grabbed my phone, and tiptoed to the door. Why I was trying to be silent, I had no idea. It was my first burglar, I didn’t know what I was doing. If only Phil across the street had lectured me about home security instead of lawn care, I might have been better prepared.

Weapon. I needed something to defend myself or maybe scare off an intruder. Half my house was still in boxes, and it wasn’t as if I had a baseball bat lying around. I went for the next best thing—a broom I had tucked away in the closet near the kitchen.

The house was dark and quiet. The front door was closed. I crept closer and checked to make sure it was locked. The deadbolt was in place.

With my heart still racing, I clutched the broom handle and moved toward the kitchen. There was a sliding glass door that led to the back yard—also closed and locked. I let out a breath. It didn’t seem like anyone had come inside.

Another bang. I jumped, dropping my phone, and grabbed the broom with both hands. Something, or someone, was definitely outside.

I took careful steps to the glass door and peered into the night, half-convinced someone was going to jump out at me. But I didn’t see anything. Just the dark backyard.

Maybe it was nothing.

But I needed to be sure.

I flipped the lock on the glass door and slowly slid it open.

Cool air rushed into the house, chilling me thoroughly. I was wearing nothing but a silky camisole and shorts, but I didn’t want to go back inside and grab a sweater. I’d only be outside for a minute, just to make sure nothing was out there.

I stepped out the door and down the two steps to the patio. The concrete was freezing on my bare feet and I kept hold of the broom handle, just in case. It was eerily quiet, just the rustle of the breeze through the trees and the faint hum of a far off car.

My gaze swept from side to side in an arc, but I didn’t see anything. The back yard was only fenced at the back—open to my neighbors on both sides—and mostly empty. Just tall grass and a gravel path that led between my house and Dex’s.

There could be anything in that grass. I stopped at the edge of the patio, reluctant to step into what looked like a rat-infested jungle in the dark.

A noise behind me made my blood freeze in my veins. My eyes widened and my breath caught in my throat. It sounded like scratching and on the heels of my thought about rats, I turned slowly, expecting to see a giant colony of rodents with beady red eyes, staring at me.

The scratching continued, but I didn’t see anything. No otherworldly eyes shining in the darkness. But something was definitely near the house.

Great, whatever it was, it was between me and the back door. Now what was I going to do?

Maybe I could make a run for it. I’d stupidly left the glass door open, which meant either a burglar or a rat colony could easily slip inside. Now I was going to have to turn on all the lights and search the house from top to bottom before I could go back to sleep.

Something near the corner of the house moved, making a loud enough sound that I did what any self-respecting woman who was in her backyard in the middle of the night with a broom in her hands for self-defense.

I screamed.

My scream made everything worse. Something clattered against the concrete patio and I screamed again, my fear addled brain convinced I was about to be attacked.

Out of nowhere, light flooded Dex’s yard as his porch light came on and he flew out his back door. I caught a glimpse of all that tattooed muscle hurling through the night toward me.

“What happened?”

My mind chose that moment to remember that I’d been having a sex dream. About him.

A rush of warmth flooded my face it took me a second to answer. What was wrong with me? I never got flustered. Especially around men.

Even men who were walls of muscle wearing nothing but boxer briefs.

“Sorry.” I took a quick breath. “I heard a noise and I thought maybe someone was trying to break in.”

“And you were going to fight them off with a broom?”