Page 18 of Wild Rivals

We stare at each other in the dimly lit corridor, neither of us willing to back down from the silent war we’re waging. I’m so consumed by my frustration that I almost forget where I am.

The sound of a door opening and closing behind me barely registers, until suddenly I’m jolted forward, my hands coming up to rest on Wyatt’s warm, solid chest as his heat and scent wrap around me.

Instinctively, I’m sure, he lifts his hands to rest on my waist and keep me from fully falling into him. The heat of his touch is scorching. I’ll probably still feel it tomorrow and I hate that the thought sends a zap of something to my sex.

Wyatt’s calloused fingers flex on the exposed skin of my waist, as if he’s trying to hold himself back.

More like he’s disgusted. There’s no way he’s feeling anything but disgust at touching me. It’s been abundantly clear in all our interactions that whatever I feel whenever he’s near is down to my own lack of sexual activity.

Perhaps that’s why I don’t dare look up. He might see how being this close to him affects me, and I don’t think I could cope with giving Wyatt even more ammunition to use against me—and, boy, would he.

Instead, I keep my focus on the material of his black T-shirt—the same one that is sculpted to the hard planes of his chest—ignoring the way my breasts ache and zaps of energy spark in my gut with every squeeze of his hands on my waist.

When my body is finally under control, I look up at Wyatt from under my lashes, watching his Adam’s apple bob on his swallow. There’s an almost pained look on his face as I take in his features. Did I read him wrong? Is he feeling the same things I am?

There’s no way he’s turned on right now. Not Wyatt and certainly not because of me.

His blue eyes—stormy like the darkest depths of the ocean—meet mine, and he drops his arms before taking a noticeable step back. A muscle in his jaw ticks as he refocuses his attention on the wall behind me.

Sucking in a shallow breath, I will my body to calm down as I all but collapse against the cool wall. With the faint noise of the bar somewhere in the distance, the room feels almost charged and like it might implode if I so much as breathe wrong.

Clearing his throat, Wyatt grits out, “Well, as nice as this was, darlin’…”

He doesn’t finish his sentence, leaving the quiet of the corridor hanging heavy in the air between us. I turn away from him, desperate for this moment to be over.

The amplified sound of the bar behind me as he opens the door signals his exit. It’s only when it falls back into the frame that my body relaxes a fraction, the skin at my waist haunted by the ghost of his touch and leaving me with a craving for more.

My night was going so much better before he showed up and made me feel things I have no business feeling for a man like him. One who has too much hate in his heart for anything good to ever take up residence. God, if this week wasn’t already bad enough, now I’m going to have to deal with what just happened.

13

WYATT

The bell above the door at Chapters and Crumbs chimes as I step inside, closing the door behind me. At the counter, Autumn, with one hand on her growing baby bump, has a smile on her face as she animatedly chats with Maddie. If at all possible, her smile widens when she spots me. It’s been a little over a week since I’ve had some one-on-one time with Autumn and with her having a baby on the way, I should be making the most of that time.

“If it isn’t my favorite cousin,” she teases, rounding the counter and holding her arms out to me.

“Hey, Autumn,” I greet, meeting her in the middle of the room.

Leaning in for a hug, I keep my eyes fixed on Maddie, watching how her body seems to tense with every second that passes. I wonder if she’s still thinking about last night. Or Monday for that matter. Hell, it was all I could think about as I lay in bed alone.

I had every intention of taking someone home last night, but the second I saw Maddie in her cowboy-cut jeans and the crop top that revealed her flat stomach and belly button ring, I felt myself harden behind the zipper of my jeans. Then I caught her alone in the back corridor and I couldn’t help teasing her. I knew I was screwed the second my hands landed on her waist and it felt hard to breathe. All I could do was walk away; if I stayed, I might have leaned in a little closer and really tested how far this rivalry runs between us.

Touching her exposed skin and being close enough that I could have kissed her was enough to set me off, but nothing is ever going to happen between us. Even if my body doesn’t seem to have got the memo. And yet here she is again, taunting me with her presence.

Fuck, I need to get laid.

And stop thinking about Maddie Hart. It’s only bound to end one way and that will not be in my favor.

“Be nice,” Autumn warns before stepping back.

She knows me so damn well. Even if she didn’t, when you live in a town as small as Coldwater, everyone knows everyone’s goings-on.

“You want the usual?” Autumn asks me, returning to her side of the counter.

I follow her, pushing past the arousal swirling in my body as I come to a stop beside Maddie, making sure to keep as much distance between us as I can without raising Autumn’s suspicion. “Yeah, and I’ll take one of the savory croissants too.”

Autumn nods, turning away and getting to work on making my drink.