I inch toward the bed, trying not to make any sudden movements. “It’s the book I started writing.” I take another step forward. “It’s just a bunch of ideas and random scenes right now.”
“So, if you were working on your book when I walked in, why wouldn’t you just say that?”
I fiddle with the hem of my T-shirt. “I don’t know.”
He cocks his head to the side, his eyes bouncing from the notebook to me. “Are you sure everything’s okay?”
I nod vigorously as I continue creeping toward the notebook. “Just tired I guess.”
Almost there. One more step and I’ll be able to—
James lunges forward and snatches the book off my bed before I can. “What’s in here that has you acting like this?”
My eyes go wide. “Give that back.”
He holds it above my head, wearing a playful smile. I jump and try to grab the book out of his grasp, but he’s too damn tall. He holds it open above his head while he cranes his neck to read it.
I watch helplessly as his eyes move from left to right over the page, heat burning my cheeks. “It’s just some ideas I’ve been working on. It’s nothing.” I jump again, but he swats me like a tiny gnat.
The smile drops from his face.
I swallow hard.
He continues reading, and his eyebrows jump. “This definitely isn’t nothing.”
I drop my head, too embarrassed to look him in the eyes.
His finger touches my chin, tipping my head up until I meet his gaze. “You’re writing about me?”
I nod.
“Do you want this? What you wrote about? Is this what you like?”
I chew my bottom lip and give him another nod.
God, do I want this.
His eyes darken, no longer the light-honey color I’ve become accustomed to. “Will you read it to me?”
“What?” My voice is a whisper.
He hands me the notebook. “I’d like for you to read it to me, if you’re comfortable.”
My hands shake, and my breaths quicken.
“I want to know what you like.” He walks me backward. “I want to know what turns you on.” My calves hit the bed, and he stops, skimming his thumb over my lips. “I want to hear it from this sweet mouth of yours.”
I shiver as a wave of heat rolls over my skin.
“Will you do that for me?”
“Yes.”
James removes his belt, setting it on my nightstand along with his gun. He lowers himself onto the bed and props himself up against the headboard. Then he pats the space between his legs. “Come here.”
I oblige and lean back against his chest. My heart pounds so loud in my ears, I can barely make out the sound of my own voice when I begin reading. “A movie plays on the screen in front of us, but I’m not paying attention to it at all. The only thing I can focus on is James’s hand on my leg. He draws idle circles across my skin. I squirm because it tickles, but he grips me tighter so I can’t move away.”
James trails his hand along my skin, stroking my bare thigh and mimicking the words I just read.