Free Always Loving You by Sydney Landon Page A

restlessly. He gathered himself and walked over to help her when she struggled to pull the shirt back over her head. Ava limped back out to his Tahoe, and all too soon, he was pulling in next to her car.
    Turning to him, she said, “Thanks for taking care of me today.”
    He grabbed her wrist before she could open the door, halting her exit. “No more crazy stuff, right? You’re not the type of person to risk your neck like that.”
    Ava put her hand over his, saying simply, “Maybe I’ve changed, Mac. I need to take more risks now—I have to.”
    Clearly irritated and even more confused, Mac asked, “What could you possibly hope to gain from all this?”
    Pulling her arm from his hold, she opened the door of his vehicle. Before slipping out, she turned back to him, finally answering his question with one simple word—“You.”
    With that, she slammed the door behind her and hobbled back to her car. Mac was still sitting there staring at her when she drove away. She didn’t think he understood fully what she was trying to say, butbetween the kiss that she had initiated and her answer to his question, he was surely starting to realize that something had changed. She only hoped that she didn’t break a bone before she gained his full attention. She would be a good girl and not do anything crazy today as he had asked, but she wasn’t finished yet by a long shot. She had gotten under Mac’s skin more in the last twenty-four hours than she had in months . . . since Gwen came along, and she intended to keep going. Just maybe with a helmet and pads the next time.
    *   *   *
    Mac scowled as he watched Ava limp to her car and drive away. She had him reeling and he didn’t know whether to kiss her or spank some sense into her. Both options held strong appeal. He and Ava seemed to be on the same page with the kiss today . . . oh, fuck, the kiss. Ava finally laying her lips on his, taking the initiative. His cock had already been straining the zipper of his jeans ever since she had removed her shirt. The plain white bra she wore had somehow seemed sexier than every piece of lingerie that Victoria’s Secret had in their whole damn store. It was Ava to a tee. Innocent white cotton, but add in her full breasts straining against the cups, and it was enough to bring him to his knees. Truthfully, he had been grateful that she refused to remove her shorts. He wasn’t sure he could have held out with Ava in front of him in nothing but her panties. As it was, he’d taken a few deep breaths when he went to the kitchen for some Advil for her. He’d also adjusted his throbbing cock, trying to make his state of arousal a little less noticeable.
    Now he felt something he didn’t often feel—complete and utter confusion. If asked, he would have said that he knew Ava better than anyone else, including her family. He knew her favorite color, how she liked her coffee, how she loved watching reruns of the
Golden Girls
and, when she was feeling particularly daring,
Sons of Anarchy
. She always cried at every remotely emotional scene in a movie, even an action film. She was addicted to green apple Chap Stick, had a serious hang-up on buying shoes that she rarely ever wore, and sometimes she snored, even if she’d never admit it. He knew that from the many nights he had fallen asleep on her couch after watching a movie.
    “Oh, fuck,” he muttered, thinking back to her interest in
Sons of Anarchy
. Maybe she really was attracted to Dominic. Hell, he was probably the closest thing to a biker that she’d ever come across. However, if that was true, why had she kissed him as if she was starving for his taste? How far would things have gone if Gwen hadn’t called when she did?
    Oh, great, Gwen . . . truthfully, he’d been so caught up in Ava and Dom being together the night before that he had given little thought to the woman he was supposed to be dating. Moving on had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now he had to