Free Sleight Of Hand by Kate Kelly

between
them?
    "You'll tell me when you've had enough time,
right?" He looked at the goosebumps on her arm where he trailed his
other hand from her wrist up to her elbow.
    "Enough time." Her voice sounded thin to her,
squeezed out. It was a wonder she got anything past the lump in her
throat.
    Chance's eyes darkened into a turbulent blue.
He wrapped his fingers around her wrist and pressed her hand harder
against his mouth. The tip of his tongue flicked against her
palm.
    Startled by the electricity that jolted her,
she pulled her hand back, but his grasp held firm. He pressed his
lips where his tongue had touched her.
    "Last night. On the couch." His breathe
seared her palm, sent flares of heat up her arm. "You said you
needed more time."
    "Right." She felt herself falling in to the
intensity of Chance's stare and yanked her hand away. She may be
running hot and cold, but from the determined look in his eye,
Chance knew exactly what he wanted.
    "No." Her back against the wall, she slid
past him. "I mean...you and me...." She backed up to the door of
her room. Why was it so hard to say the words? "It's not a good
idea. There's too much--"
    "I get the idea. You should get dressed.
We'll go to the diner for breakfast."
    "Good. I was just...." She felt a blush start
at her neck and slowly inch up her throat as she held her towel in
place with one hand and pointed awkwardly into her room with the
other. "I'll get dressed."
    "That would be a good idea."
    That was her cue to run to safety. If the way
he edged those words out through his teeth didn't scare her, the
heat that glinted through his narrowed eyes certainly did. She
hated for him to see how much he affected her.
    "How's your foot?" She tried for casual, but
uncertainty resonated in her voice.
    "Agitated." He folded his arms across his
chest. His shirt stretched and molded across his shoulders and
around his solid biceps. "Thanks for putting that ice bag on it
last night. And for the blanket."
    She looked at his naked feet again and felt a
tug down low in her belly. No way was she going to start talking
about last night.
    "I don't want to push it today." He leaned a
shoulder against the kitchen doorway. "I don't do agitation
well."
    He wouldn't. Her eyes skimmed over the
strained muscles in his bare arms. Her guess would be if something
bothered him, he'd take direct action to remedy the situation.
    "That's why it's a good idea for you to get
dressed. Right now," he added in a tight voice.
    Okay. Cue number two. Take it and run. "Five
minutes." She backed into her bedroom, as if watching him kept him
in place. "Maybe ten."
    Yeah, that went well. She slammed her door
shut, raced over to the dresser and pulled out her red bra and her
black panties. No, she stuffed her panties back in the drawer and
shoved everything around looking for the red ones.
    Come on. Don't take too long. She
raised her head and caught a glimpse of her reflection in the
mirror. What is wrong with you? She pressed her hands against both
sides of her head and scrunched her eyes shut.
    She hated feeling if she said the wrong word
or moved an inch in the wrong direction, the damage would be
irreparable. She had to get things back into perspective.
    Okay. She opened her eyes and calmly sorted
through her underwear until she found the matching red panties. Red
was good. The color gave her confidence, even if no one else saw
it.
    She would get dressed and go with Chance to
the diner, and they would do something as ordinary and normal as
have breakfast. That's what she needed. Ordinary. She snorted as
she pulled a dark green turtle shirt over her head. As long as she
was with Chance, she didn't think that was possible.
    "Sarah?"
    She pulled her leggings up over her hips
before answering. "Give me a few more minutes, okay?"
    "Where are your car keys? I thought I'd warm
up the Blazer."
    Behind the closed door, she raised her
eyebrows. Chance assuming he would drive was probably typical
behavior for him. She