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I know I need an SUV or a truck for the climate here, but I like my little silver Mercedes. It’s one of the few luxuries I’ve allowed myself since graduating law school, but I still can’t help but stifle a laugh as I watch Wyatt unfold his large frame from my small car. I wonder if he’s ever been in a vehicle so small.
The scowl on his face tells me that even if he has, he hated every second of it. The petty woman inside of me smiles, knowing that his ride was just as uncomfortable as mine.
I watch as Chance says a few words to him. I can’t hear what they are, but I can tell by the look on Wyatt’s face he doesn’t like it. He spares me a strained look over Chance’s shoulder before stalking off to the side of the house. Chance’s shoulders slump before he turns back to me and opens the door.
There’s something about his movement that makes the anger rise within me. I don’t know if it’s the smirk that riddles his face as he stands in front of me, or the way he’s acting like a gentleman, opening my door when I know he’s not, but there’s something that’s setting me off.
Jumping down, I grind my fists into my hips and I glare up at him. “I don’t know what you’re planning, but I’m not going to be another one of your conquests. Thank you for saving me back there, but your services are no longer required. I’ll just take my keys and go.”
“No,” he says simply.
“What do you mean ‘no?’”
He takes a step toward me, crowding me against his truck. My heart rate kicks up. Not because I’m scared. For some reason, I know I’m physically safe with him, even though he’s a stranger to me. Even though I’m deserted behind the gates of his sprawling ranch, where no one but his lackey can hear me scream. No, my heart rate kicks up for the same reason my core is on fire. For the same reason my breath is getting shallow, my palms sweaty. I don’t know what it is about being close to this man that sets my body off, but it does. And right now, it’s on fire.
He leans in, his palms on either side of my head as he lowers his face, the stubble of his cheek rubbing against the sensitive skin of my neck. Cedar and cinnamon surround me. I have to force myself not to close my eyes and give in to the temptation of burying my nose into his shirt. My chest brushes against his with every breath, causing bittersweet friction against my now-hard nipples.
“I said—no,” he growls, brushing his lips against my cheek. “Now, follow me inside and we can talk about what happens from here.”
“What do you mean ‘what happens from here?’”
“It means—I have a proposition for you.”
Chapter Four
Chance
“What was that?” Dakota asks—or rather, demands.
I wonder if that’s how she sounds in court. Her almost sultry tone is low and forceful, commanding my attention. The thought of her challenging me like this turns me on. I haven’t had many women that have ever tried; they usually go along with whatever I say in the hopes of being the one to ‘change my ways.’
“What was what?” I ask, taking off my jacket and hanging it on the coat rack by the door. Kicking off my boots, I leave them haphazardly in the entryway as I brush past her. I don’t need to impress her. What I do need is a beer to get through the impending conversation.
“Don’t play dumb with me, Chance Declan. Why am I here and what is this ‘proposition’ you have for me?” She balls her hands into fists and shoves them tightly into her luscious hips.
Fuck, she looks sexy when she does that. Her step doesn’t even falter as she squares up against me, straightening her spine to trying to reach my height. She doesn’t, not even close, but it’s cute she tries.
I turn and walk away from her, knowing that she’ll follow. I fight a smile as I hear her soft, but sure, footsteps.
“Do you want a drink?” I don’t turn around as I enter the kitchen and open the fridge. “I think I have wine in the cellar somewhere, but it won’t be chilled. I can get you a beer or whiskey.” I grab the first bottle of beer I find, twisting the top and taking a sip, letting the cold liquid pour down my throat. It’s too early in the summer to be hitting the record heat we usually have in the Interior region of British Columbia, but my proximity to Dakota is making me hot like it’s the middle of August.
“Of course you have a wine cellar,” she huffs. “No, I don’t want a drink. I want you to tell me why you brought me here, why you had your lackey drive my car, and why you didn’t drop the act when I asked you to. Most importantly, I want you to tell me what your fucking proposition is!”
“Wyatt isn’t my lackey,” I reply calmly, turning to her and resting my hip against the countertop. “He’s my ranch manager and best friend, not some paid employee at my beck and call.” I take a breath, assessing the best way to answer her questions. She looks like an angry bull about to charge, and I don’t want to be the one waving the red flag.
Even if I am full of them.
“As for why I didn’t drop the act—as I said before, that was because Laughlin and our audience were watching through the window. You wanted him to believe I was your boyfriend. That’s what I was doing.”
“Are you this much of an asshole with your other girlfriends?” she asks, crossing her arms over her chest. My gaze flickers down to her full breasts, now pushed up and threatening to spill out the top of her shirt. I don’t dare linger on them too long, knowing it won’t help me get what I need from her.
“I wouldn’t know. I don’t do girlfriends.”
“So why pretend I’m yours?”
“Because there’s something about you I couldn’t say no to.” I halt, shocked at my own admission. I didn’t mean to say that. What the fuck am I doing even thinking about that? I clear my throat, needing to move on before she comments on it. “Plus, I loathe Laughlin.”
“Alright, I get that.”
