Cassidy had a point. Usually, if I saw something I wanted, I went for it. “Maybe I’ve been playing the long game with him.”
She feigned seriousness. “Uh-huh, sure.”
It reinforced my plan for this evening, and once my shift was over and I was seated in my car, I thumbed out a text message to Clay.
Me: Hey! Is it cool if I stop by for a visit?
Clay: Yeah. I won’t be home until later.
I frowned. That wasn’t part of the plan.
Me: Hot date?
As soon as I sent it, my frown deepened, because now I was terrified I’d just made it weird, or worse—he’d tell me the answer was yes.
Clay: Ha ha. I’m in Smyrna, picking up cabinets.
I brightened with relief. Smyrna was only thirty minutes away. I could make that work.
Me: Okay. I might still be there when you get home.
He sent me a thumbs-up emoji, and I grinned wickedly to myself.
It was June, and already one of the hottest summers on record for Nashville, and yet I shivered.
I was sitting on the leather wingback chair in Clay’s study, the one that had wooden armrests, and it was directly under an air conditioning vent, so the frigid air was blasting me. Also not helping my situation . . . I was naked except for my favorite pair of high-heeled sandals. The sexy black straps crisscrossed over my feet and all the way up to my ankles.
I’d been seated like this for a while, sitting in the chair with my legs crossed and my dark brown hair loose around my shoulders as I waited for Clay to return home. Noir had come to say hello to me, but once the air kicked on, she slinked away in search of a less drafty place.
This was risky plan, and I’d been shivering long enough in my spot to begin to second-guess myself. It could backfire and embarrass me, but at the same time, I thought it was unlikely. Clay was attracted to me. He’d said I was one of the most beautiful women he’d ever seen, and his desire had been unmistakable the night I’d talked him into adopting Noir.
He wanted me. He just needed a little push.
And I’d make it as easy and clear as possible I wanted him, too.
I had confidence, but it threatened to run away from me the moment I heard the mechanical hum of the garage door. The sound came from all the way across the house, which meant I had time. I could grab my stack of clothes and dart into the hall bathroom, then emerge once I was dressed. Clay would never know I’d been naked in his study, my bare skin pressed to his leather chair.
A door opened, and the alarm system chirped.
Footsteps crossed the tile floor of his kitchen, followed by a clatter as keys were dropped on a counter. Then, silence . . . as if he had paused.
“Lilith?”
No turning back now. I straightened my posture, lifted my chin, and spoke like my heart wasn’t threatening to beat out of my chest. “I’m in here.”
Clay followed my voice, his feet carrying him down the hall toward the study. I sucked in a preparing breath, leaned an elbow casually on an armrest, and curled my lips into a provocative smile.
When he stepped into view, every muscle in my body tightened. He wore a simple gray t-shirt, jeans, and his sexy black-rimmed glasses. Shit, he looked good. But he pulled up short at the sight of me.
His eyes went wide, and his mouth dropped open, but he didn’t produce a single sound. It was like everything in him had shut down and quit working, including his brain.
“Hey, neighbor.” My tone was sultry. “Welcome home.”
He didn’t blink, and his chest wasn’t moving. Had he forgotten how to breathe? Everything inside me buzzed, thrilled at how I’d stunned him speechless.
I’d hoped to surprise him, and I certainly had, but . . .
It had been cold under the vent, and the longer he stood there and stared at me without moving or saying a word, the worse the chill on my skin became. Time dragged, and dragged, and I swallowed thickly.
“Clay,” I whispered, “are you okay?”
Behind his glasses, his eyes clouded over before his gaze dropped to the floor. “What happened to your clothes?”
I wasn’t prepared for his harsh tone, and it cut through me like a knife. Of all the different emotions I’d anticipated, anger hadn’t been one of them.
“I . . .” My confidence tumbled off a cliff, and I shot to my feet, blood rushing hotly to my face. “I thought you’d like this, but I must have misread the situation. I’m sorry.”
I reached for my clothes on the desk, but his sharp command froze me into place. “Stop.”
The stillness of the room was oppressive, and I was sure if he didn’t say anything else, I’d be frozen like this forever with breath halted in my lungs.