Page 106 of Falling for the Enemy

Her eyes met Jocelyn’s, and she smiled. “Try to let yourself enjoy this, Joce. It’s a good thing.”

She sighed. “Goodbye.”

Once alone in the kitchen, Jocelyn dropped her head to the counter and groaned. She didn’t lift her head when she heard him hover by the kitchen door.

“You good?” He softly massaged her shoulder.

“Fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Mm-hm.”

“Because…it sounded like…” His voice shifted into a sing-song pitch. “You think I’m sexy.” She swung a hand at him, and he jumped back with a laugh, continuing to sing. “You really like me.”

She groaned. “I knew you were listening.”

He cautiously approached and pressed a kiss to her lips. “Of course, I was. How else am I supposed to know what you’re feeling? You have the communication skills of a locked door and the emotional availability of a witness in protective custody.”

She flung the other half of her whoopie pie at him, and he ducked. “Now you’ll have to clean that up.”

“I’m gonna leave it. Just to make you twitch.”

“Fine, but it’s chocolate and Cordelia’s probably going to eat it.”

“Oh, I’m Soren. I’ve got an answer for everything.” She pushed him out of her way and grabbed a paper towel.

When she threw the smashed whoopie pie in the trash, he stepped behind her, wrapping his arms around her and pressing his lips to the back of her head. “You know I really like you, too.”

Pushing her hair out of her eyes, she turned and looked at him. This man had breached her inner sanctum, planted his flag in her heart, pillaged her insides, and shifted something inside of her she couldn’t seem to put back. She used to be hard and tough. Now, she was a fluttering pile of mush.

“You’re a real problem, you know that?”

He laughed. “Well, I’m your problem. And you’re mine. Get dressed. I’m taking you to dinner.”

“Dinner? In the public? With the people?”

“Yes, dinner.”

Were they actually doing this? Her heart pinched in a not-so-unpleasant way. She couldn’t remember the last time a man had taken her on a real date. “Dressy or casual?”

“Whatever you wear will be fine.”

He really needed to stop saying things like that. Her wardrobe wasn’t refined like his, and if he didn’t give her some sort of guidance, she’d wind up embarrassing him.

“I need a shower.”

“Take as much time as you need.”

There he went again, with more of that niceness.

She left him downstairs with Cordelia while she took a quick rinse. The two of them were working on their trust issues. Cordelia preferred to sit on Soren’s lap, which he thought was a show of trust, but really it was stage one in chihuahua domination.

Wedging her head under his hand was stage two—grooming a human servant. If he stopped petting her, she’d growl, and if he stood, she’d bark. Soren was quickly learning to keep a hand on Cordelia at all times, and Cordelia was learning he wasn’t so bad to have around after all.

Dressed in a simple black dress, a burnt orange pashmina, and her favorite black boots, she returned downstairs to find the two cozied up on the couch. Soren’s stare dragged slowly from the heels of her boots to her eyes, his gaze caressing every inch in between.

“Wow. You look great.” He nudged Cordelia off his lap and stood. She immediately barked.