Page 234 of Off Limits: The Firsts

“Just trying to make sure you’re holding up your end of the bargain,” he says and wipes a thumb over his lip in case any of my lipstick transferred.

“My end of the bargain?”

“Mm-hmm.” His eyes say he wants to devour me. “My LumberJacks gear?”

I laugh and take a step back. “Perhaps.” I’m acting coy on purpose, because playful Hunter is always so much fun.

“Perhaps?” he asks.

“Maybe you’ll just have to wait and see when I get home tonight if I have my Jacks panties on.”

“Is that so?”

“It is.”

“What if I have a way to let you out of your end of the promise.” He angles his head to the side and studies me, humor mixed with mischief on his expression.

“I’m thinking I’ll wear the panties.” I sit on the top of the desk behind me. “I never trust someone who changes a deal midway through.”

“Says who?”

“Says me.” What in the world is he getting at?

There’s that slow smile again that tugs on every part of me. “You’re an agent. You know full well that negotiations shift. Change. Realign.”

“Should I worry about what exactly it is you want to realign?”

“More like I want the terms to change.”

“You’re talking in circles, Hunter,” I tease, and his grin widens.

“Good thing you’re familiar with how to follow circles.”

“True.”

But he is talking in circles and it’s making zero sense.

“What is it you want now?”

“You.”

Thud. My heart on the floor.

“Oh.” I don’t hide the shock or the stupid grin on my face from his unexpected comment. “In that case . . .” I grab the sides of his shirt as he takes a step toward me before framing my face and dipping down so he can meet my eyes. His are intense and alive with emotion.

“In that case?” He brushes his lips over mine.

“New terms accepted. Negotiation successful.”

He laughs as I pull him against me, wrapping my arms around his waist. He rests his chin on top of my head and I revel in the feel of him and the knowledge that he’s all mine.

Who would have ever thought I’d say that about the only man who ever truly broke my heart?

“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, Dekk,” he murmurs, his chin moving on the crown of my head. “Scary, I know.”

“About?”

“Things.”