“Burly bicep? And you claim not to be a male chauvinist?” She forced herself to uncurl her fingers from his arm so she wouldn’t keep touching him… and enjoying it far too much.
He grinned. Whew. He had a nice grin. “Sorry. I couldn’t resist.”
“I guess you work out, huh?” She fluttered her eyelashes. She always did that when she was trying to mock somebody.
Braden’s gaze got smoky, and he eased closer. Oh, shoot. What had she started now? “I enjoy the occasional bench press,” he said.
“Yeah right. You’re lifting at least an hour a day, six days a week, to look this impressive.”
She bit at her lip.Stop talking, she begged herself. She didn’t know how he’d done it, but the tears in the shower were forgotten. Did he not think she was cold and unfeeling? She was, but she wished he hadn’t seen that. Though she shouldn’t have indulged like this as it was playing with an inferno, she was having more fun flirting with him than any man in recent memory.
He was so close she could see the pulse point in his neck thrumming steadily, see flecks of green in his blue eyes, and smell an appetizing scent of lime, salt, musk, and man.
“Or two hours.” He smiled. “What about you? What do you do to be so fit?”
“Weightlifting, running, swimming, Pilates, and fighting.”
“Fighting?” His eyebrows raised. “I guess you’d have to train for hours to be as good as you are.”
“Yep.” She lifted her arm and flexed. “Fighting does a body good.”
He wrapped his palm around her bicep muscle and all teasing fled. She was right back to wondering how to get oxygen to her lungs.
“Nice,” he said. “Actually, much more than nice.” His eyes were intense and mind-numbing. He softened his hold on her arm and trailed his hand up to her shoulder, and then he gently cupped the back of her neck, threading his fingers into her damp hair and making her scalp tingle. He didn’t yank her in tight or anything, but she was completely captivated by his touch and his gaze.
“I’ve never met anyone who compares to you,” he said in a husky tone that took the tingles in her scalp and pulsed them throughout her body.
Maddie yearned to go on tiptoes, lean in, and kiss him for a good, long time.
Good criminy. She could not be this weak.
Yanking away from his delicious touch and scent, she backed into the wall behind her. “Original,” she said drily, drumming up all the sarcasm she’d used to defend herself throughout her life. “I’ve never heard that touching line before.”
Braden didn’t even have the grace to look upset. He studied her as if looking for the chink in her armor. She folded her arms across her chest. She wished she was brave enough to dare him to find her weakness, but she was smarter than that. This man was not someone to tango with. A true warrior who would fight for his lady. Even if he had to emotionally engage the lady herself in a battle to win her heart. She’d never let herself be someone’s lady.
But with the man in front of her, it sounded … tantalizing.
Tantalizing? Maddie Delta did not need that word in her vocabulary. She’d never used it before regarding a handsome man. She was obviously exhausted and overwrought.
“Night,” she said crisply, walking a wide circle around him.
She hoped he wouldn’t keep coming at her, not now. Her defenses were far too weak. Thankfully, he walked into the bathroom and seconds later she heard the shower running. She let out a breath of relief. The battle was at a temporary ceasefire.
She didn’t even turn down the covers before she sank onto the far side of the bed. The pillow was soft but still supported her head. The mattress was firm, but not too hard. She remembered from staying here before that the sheets were high quality, but she refused to climb in them. If Braden slid in the sheets as well, it would be far, far too intimate.
If only she could simply fall asleep. There were huge issues to deal with between the Delta secret weapon being sought after by King Frederick and her needing to somehow get information on Admiral Seamons and see if he was loyal or not. She needed to stop second-guessing her inability to turn to heaven and stop getting lost in Braden’s eyes and touch and smell and … whew.
She shook her head. He was a fine-looking male. That’s all it was. She could flirt, tease, and torment him like all the others. It didn’t matter. He didn’t matter. Protecting the Delta weapon and someday soon dismantling King Frederick and his evil regime, saving American lives and the lives of innocent people in Banida, Poland, Germany, and wherever else Frederick tried to attack… that was what mattered. Not some attraction to Braden Moyle.
There you go. Attraction. That’s all it was. A female attracted to a handsome male. Simple explanation. She could feel attraction to Ryan Gosling or Chris Hemsworth or any number of men she’d never even talk to. Attraction was shallow and meaningless and couldn’t hurt her or touch her heart.
Pushing off the bed, she paced to wear off some nervous energy. She might have to take a sleeping pill. But sometimes those made the nightmares worse. What if she cried out in the night? That would not be good. She could usually sleep alone, but even when she couldn’t, she had never had anyone tell her she cried out. A few times sleeping close to her sisters, they’d said she had repeated “no” and “stop” in her sleep in an anguished voice and they’d tried to wake her up and couldn’t. They’d been concerned, but she’d just played it off as a random nightmare. She’d have to stay awake until Braden was asleep and hope she didn’t wake him if she did verbally resist her awful dreams.
She bit at her thumbnail and realized the shower had stopped. Shoot. Her stomach twisted in anticipation.
The door opened, and out walked the most beautiful man in existence. And all he had on was a towel secured around his waist. Luckily, it was a large towel and covered everything it should. But still …
Maddie gaped. Like an innocent teenager who’d never kissed a boy or seen a guy without his shirt on. She stared and stared, but she’d never get her fill of a picture that perfect.