Page 118 of Lead Me On
Her head popped up. She met his eyes and raised a hand to slide it over the side of his head. Shivers tingled down his neck and Jane’s eyes dilated. “No. Leave it. For me? For a little while?”
He felt more than a hint of wickedness in his smile. “I don’t know. It’s a lot of work. I have to buzz it every other day.”
“Really?” She sighed. “Can I watch?”
Oh, yeah. His grin was full-on predator now. “You want to watch?”
She licked her lips. “Yes, please.”
“You have any ideas for making it worth my while?”
She leaned close, then closer. Her mouth touched his ear and Chase closed his eyes at the small pleasure.
He’d met potty-mouthed Jane only once, but he had no trouble recognizing her reappearance when she whispered in his ear. No trouble at all. His face heated. So did other parts of his body.
Her teeth closed over his earlobe, and Chase drew a sharp breath. “How do you feel about paying in advance?”
“I’ll do whatever it takes,” she whispered.
Chase meant to slide her gently off the hood of the truck, but it veered toward a push. Jane landed with a grin.
“Meet you at my place?” he asked, jumping to the ground.
“My place is a few seconds closer.” Jane tore out of there so fast that dust rose from her tires, forming an orange cloud in the last rays of the sun.
Jumping into his own truck, he swung it around, braking when he was lined up well enough to see through his dad’s storm door. His dad still had a beer in his hand, but he was hunched over a brochure, reading. Chase honked and waited for a wave, then tore out of there just as quickly as Jane had.
His future was waiting for him, and this time he wasn’t going to let it go, not even for his father.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
THEFRIDAY-NIGHT DRIVEto Tumble Creek was beautiful and quiet. They rolled the windows down and turned the music off and just enjoyed the green scent of spring. Chase’s hand cradled hers. She leaned over to press an occasional kiss to his shoulder.
But when they pulled up to Lori’s place, Jane sat straight up with a gasp.
“What’s wrong?” Chase asked.
“Nothing! I just can’t believe how pretty it looks.”
Lori’s house was attached to an empty auto mechanic’s shop, and beyond that was a private dump filled with rusting parts. But in the dark, all that was visible was the big white tent that filled the lot. It was lit from within with thousands of tiny lights. Music drifted through the air.
Jane had helped Mr. Jennings set up the rental and the catering, but she hadn’t quite expected such a complete transformation.
“You sure you want to introduce me to all your friends?”
She shot a look at him, remembering the way she’d clutched his tattooed head an hour earlier. “I’m sure. Plus, I only know about four people here, so it’s no big deal.”
“Well, thanks.”
Laughing, she got out of the truck. She wasn’t the least bit nervous, despite this being their first public appearance together as a couple. Oh, he’d talked big about taking her out on the town this week, but in the end they’d stayed behind closed doors, making up for the nights they’d spent apart. And last night Chase had been busy helping his father narrow down the brochures to the three he was most open to. His dad had never taken that step before, and Chase had hope in his eyes when he talked about it.
Jane took his hand and they walked toward the music. She spotted Mr. Jennings right away and pulled Chase in that direction.
“Jane, you look great! Hey, Chase.” He slapped Chase on the back. “Congratulations on getting back in Jane’s good graces.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re a lucky man. And by ‘lucky’ I mean don’t eventhinkabout screwing her over. Got it?”
