Page 32 of Keeping Laryn
Laryn let out an annoyed breath. “Tate, I’m wearing coveralls.”
“So? I’m wearing my flight suit. As are the rest of the guys. No one is going to look twice at you.”
That was the problem. Just once, shewantedto be the woman people stared at when she entered a room. Well…stared at for a reason other than wondering what the hell she was doing there because she looked completely out of place. That had happened to her more than once, and she wasn’t looking forward to it happening againhere, in front of Tate.
“Maybe I should just grab a taxi and go home,” she hedged.
Once more, Tate stepped into her personal space. This time, the door behind her was shut. And he didn’t simply crowd her; he put his hands on her shoulders and leaned in close.
When he’d caressed her face earlier on the base, it was all Laryn could do not to lean into his touch. For years, she’d dreamed of having Tate Davis look at her the way he had back there in the parking lot of the hangar. And now, here he was again…leaning into her, touching her. His thumbs caressed her collarbones gently, and even though she couldn’t feel it through the material of the coveralls she was wearing, it still sent waves of electricity down to her toes.
“Are you naked under this?” he asked.
Laryn blinked in shock at his question. “What? No!”
“So take it off.”
“Huh?”
“You aren’t naked. Take it off if you’re uncomfortable wearing it inside.”
“But I’m wearing shorts and a tank top,” she protested.
“And?” Tate asked with a small shrug. “Trust me, whatever you’re wearing probably covers a hell of a lot more than what a lot of women will be wearing inside.”
And that was a whole other problem. Laryn was curvy. She liked the coveralls because they hid a lot of the weight she’d managed to gain over the years. True, her shorts weren’t exactly Daisy Dukes, but she still wasn’t sure she was confident enough to wear them in public.
And the tank top was black, thank goodness, since it was more slimming than the white ones she sometimes wore at home, but again…it was a tank. And her boobs weren’t exactly tiny.
As she silently went over her options, which weren’t many, she stared at Tate. He was watching her patiently. It seemed as if he’d stand there for as long as it took for her to decide what shewanted to do. He wasn’t glancing over at the door, as if he was annoyed at having to wait to join his friends. All his attention was on her…and all the while, his thumbs continued their gentle stroking.
Hoping she wasn’t going to regret her decision, she said, “Okay.”
“Okay?” he asked.
“Yeah. I’ll take off the coveralls. But you need to step back.”
He moved without hesitation, but his gaze didn’t leave hers. Not until she reached for the zipper at her upper chest. As she lowered it, his eyes followed the movement. The moment was charged, and for the first time in her life, Laryn felt…sexy. The zipper went from her throat down to her crotch, and Tate watched as she inched it down as far as it could go.
Feeling nervous, as if she was undressing in front of a potential sexual partner for the first time, Laryn shrugged a shoulder and the material fell over her arm. She did the same on the other side, holding the material at her waist so it didn’t fall to the ground.
Tate’s gaze flew upward, and she saw him swallow as her tank top was exposed. Glancing down, she saw her girls were thankfully fully covered by the cotton material, but she could see quite a bit of cleavage from her vantage point.
Suddenly feeling more self-conscious than sexy, she wiggled her hips, wanting this over with. But typical of her often-clumsy self, she misjudged where the material was as she tried to get out of it. At home, she always just let the coveralls fall to the floor and she stepped out of them. But since she didn’t want them to land on the dirty ground—they could definitely be worn a second time before she had to wash them—Laryn pulled her foot up before the material had cleared it.
She would’ve fallen onto her ass and completely embarrassed herself if Tate hadn’t reached out and wrapped his hands around her waist to steady her.
The coveralls fell to the ground anyway, but Laryn couldn’t seem to make herself care. Not when Tate’s hands were on her and she was practically in his arms.
He stared into her eyes for a split second before his gaze dropped. Remembering the view of her cleavage she’d had a split second earlier, she knew he was getting an eyeful fromhisvantage point.
To her surprise and amazement, she felt his hard cock against her for a moment before he eased his hips back.
She, Laryn Hardy, had given Tate Davis an erection? She couldn’t have been more shocked.
“Damn,” he said, sounding awed. Then he cleared his throat and asked, “You good?”
Laryn nodded.
