Page 19 of All's Fair in Love and Pizza
I made sure no one was looking before flashing them the bird.
Truthfully, I might have been more jazzed about Amber’s idea if Rob wasn’t involved. Now he was a baffling loose end, and I didn’t know what to do about him.
Okay, not true. I wanted to fuck him. Or he could fuck me. I wasn’t picky. And that alone was alarming. Not to mention a classic conflict of interests. I was a pro at those. It was always a case of one thing being good for me and the other, my ruin. Or just a really stupid risk.
Business 101: Don’t fuck where you eat…or with the guy next door.
But I wanted him. Badly.
So, I wandered into his shop after hours with a veiled complaint I hoped would lead to some clarity.
“Your delivery guy blocked my truck in the alley this morning.”
Rob’s sharp gaze raked me over from head to toe then darted to the windows just as Amber opened her car door. Yes, I’d timed my visit well ’cause I sure as hell didn’t want an audience.
“My delivery guy? Which one? Amazon, FedEx, UPS, the mailman?”
His words dripped with sarcasm that contrasted with the heat in his eyes.
“I don’t remember. Probably Amazon.”
Rob pressed a button on the remote sitting on the counter. The shades on the front windows lowered with a soft hum as he stepped around me to lock up. At four o’clock in the afternoon. Bagel hours were sweet, I mused. Normally I’d have said it aloud too, making sure to add a derisive snort as if I weren’t lowkey jealous of having more than just an occasional evening to myself.
But Rob was in my space—close enough that I could smell cinnamon and garlic and chocolate.
“What do you want me to do about it?” His voice was honey and whiskey—smooth and sexy, and pitched so low it vibrated and hung in the air.Holy shit.
I licked my lips, aware that I’d already lost the thread of the conversation. “Uh…”
“Want me to call customer service and report a loitering vehicle?”
Rob set a forefinger under my chin. I should have swatted him away, shoved his chest, and unleashed some Cavaretti-style wrath. But I couldn’t move. Like…at all.
“What are you doing?” I rasped.
“You tell me.”
Heat clawed under my collar. I couldn’t breathe, and I just?—
Oh, fuck it.
I growled and lunged for Rob, crashing our mouths in a mashed-up facsimile of a kiss. So much want and need. I slid my finger through the hair at his nape and deepened the connection, sucking his tongue, nipping his lips, and ravaging him senseless.
Don’t worry. Rob gave as good as he got. He guided us toward the register, our mouths fused, and stopped when my ass hit the edge of the counter. Then somehow, I wasonthe counter, and I couldn’t remember if he’d lifted me or if I’d hopped up myself so I could pull him between my legs and feel his bulge against mine. And fuck me…there it was.
The tease of friction. A sample, a taste.
There and gone.
“Hold up.” Rob broke the kiss, clasping my face. His nose brushed mine, and I could feel his breath on my swollen lips.
I panted, too dazed to push away immediately. “You started it.”
“I know, but…”
Uh-oh.Rejection. I wasn’t sure, but I wasn’t hanging around to find out.
“Hey.” I shoved him off with both hands raised like dual stop signs. “Just…don’t…don’t block my truck. Go…call Amazon or something.”
