Page 69 of Chilled
“Yes, sir.” She smiled, and a lingering shiver chased down her spine. Brenna couldn’t determine whether the shiver was from seeing Nick’s naked torso or from the chill she couldn’t shake since being in water cold enough to have ice floating on the top. “Hop in while I see if I can scare up a cup of hot cocoa.”
“Sounds wonderful.” He passed close by her on his way to the bathroom.
Brenna squeezed her eyes shut to keep from turning to watch him all the way.
When she opened her eyes, Nick’s face was in hers, a smile quirking the corners of his lips. “Something bothering you, Jensen?”
“You!” Her face burning, Brenna whipped the towel off her head and snapped it at his retreating figure. The guy had nerve. To think he was in her thoughts when they had a murderer still on the loose was positively ridiculous.
But when the door closed behind Nick, Brenna let the image of his naked torso hover in her mind, and her body heated, her panties suddenly damp. And not from the shower.
Would he sleep with her tonight?
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
Did she want him to?
Yes, oh yes,her wanton inner self screamed.
After they solved the case, he’d be gone. The thought pulled Brenna back to the ground with a thump. She drifted into her room and rifled through her suitcase for her stash of hot cocoa packets. The drink reminded her of the times she’d sat beside her father on the couch in their living room sipping cocoa and talking about fishing. Did Nick like to fish?
Good, thinking about her father, fish and cocoa would definitely calm her libido and shake a little reality into her system. She shouldn’t be thinking about going to bed with Nick when she didn’t even like to get naked in front of men.
But oh, she wanted to get naked with him.
The man foremost in her thoughts emerged from the bathroom in sweatpants and nothing else. His skin glistened where he’d missed a spot drying.
Fathers, fish and cocoa flew from her thoughts, and all she could think about now was licking that drop of water from his chest. A shiver shook her body from her shoulders to her toenails.
Nick’s eyes narrowed. “Are you still cold?” Before she could answer, he was striding across the room toward her, his long legs eating the short distance at an alarming pace.
What should she do? Run screaming or fall into his arms and let nature take its course? Brenna stood rooted to the spot, her options quickly running out.
When Nick stopped in front of her, she swayed forward, metal to his magnet. Who was she kidding? She couldn’t resist Nick Tarver to save her life. And after the frightening night they’d endured, all she wanted was to be held. Okay, maybe not all.
Brenna stared up into Nick's deep green eyes. "No, I'm not cold."
His hands remained at his sides. Why wasn’t he making a move? Didn’t he want her like she wanted him?
She wished he'd reach out and take her in his arms.
Nick shook his head. "That's too bad, because I'm still chilled."
So, he wanted her to make the first move? A thrill of anticipation shot through her. "I know a sure-fire cure for hypothermia."
His deep chuckle reverberated in her ears. "In this climate, I bet you do. Okay, I'll bite, what's your cure?"
Throwing inhibitions to the wind, she went after what she wanted. "First," she said as she lifted the corner of her tank top and slid it up her ribs and over her head, "you both have to get naked." She tossed her shirt onto a nearby chair and stood there, her breasts bare and ready for the next step in her lesson.
Nick's eyes narrowed, and he backed a step.
Oh no! Brenna's face burned. Had she read him wrong? Had he only wanted a blanket and a warm, but solitary bed? Shame made her shoulders droop. Maybe he didn't want to see her naked. The shock of the scars on her back might be too much. Her gaze darted to the shirt she'd so carelessly discarded. "I'm sorry, I didn't... I thought... Just let me get my shirt..."
When she tried to step around him, his hand shot out and captured her wrist.
"No, I don't want you to stop."
What had seemed like a good idea a moment ago, now loomed like the giant hand of doom. What had she been thinking? "This is a mistake. You could have any woman you want."
