Free Justice Inked (Cowboy Justice Association 7) by Olivia Jaymes Page B

actually turned up a little. It wasn’t a full smile but it was close.
    And it was glorious. He’d been handsome before but now he was downright sexy. Completely gorgeous. If he ever truly smiled at her she’d probably slide down the wall in a dead faint, overcome with the beauty that was Dare Turner.
    Well, crap.
    “Breathless, huh? I think I kind of like that.” He leaned forward, his lips next to her ear. “I was breathless too. For a little thing, you pack a wallop. You ought to come with a warning label or something.”
    “You’re smiling.”
    Rayne groaned inwardly, her brain still not firing on all cylinders since the kiss. She sounded like an idiot and he already didn’t have the best opinion of her.
    “You asked what made me smile,” he reminded her, his expression going back to its usual neutral position. “But this doesn’t solve our problem. I’m still pissed off, Rayne. I wish you hadn’t done it.”
    Dare’s hands were gentle so he wasn’t as angry as before. Now he seemed to be more disappointed than anything else, which did nothing to soothe all the emotions churning in her gut. She’d done nothing wrong.
    “I didn’t–”
    “I know,” he interrupted. “And I get it. Sophie’s eighteen and she has a legal right to get a tattoo. I just wish you hadn’t done it. My sister is still naive and rather impetuous. She doesn’t think about the long term consequences of her actions. She’s been rather sheltered most of her life and this Tim guy is her first real boyfriend. Ever since she started dating him she’s acted different. I think he’s a bad influence on her. I’ve tried to be a role model but obviously I’ve failed.”
    Rayne sighed as she placed her hands on his wide chest, his heart beating under her palm.
    “I have no idea what kind of role model you’ve been, but knowing how stiff and uptight you are I’m sure you’ve been a good one. But I need you to listen to me, Dare. Just for one minute. Can you do that? You keep interrupting me.”
    “I’m not uptight,” Dare muttered but nodded his head in agreement, staying silent. Rayne took it as a good sign.
    “Now listen to me very carefully.” She spoke slowly and clearly so there would be no misunderstanding. “I didn’t give Sophie a tat.”
    Dare took a step back and Rayne immediately missed the heat of his body under her fingers. “But she has a tattoo. Did she go somewhere else?”
    Dropping her arms to her side, Rayne sat back down on the couch. “She has a temporary tattoo. It should last a few weeks or so. I wanted her to get used to the idea before she did something permanent. So yes, she has a tattoo and I did it. No, it won’t last a lifetime.”
    “Shit, I just assumed…”
    She could imagine what he’d assumed. “The worst. Not sure what I did for you to think so little of me but thanks for that.”
    His cheeks were stained red but she didn’t feel a bit sorry for him. His highhanded behavior and ingrained stubbornness had brought all of this on. He wasn’t in charge of everything and everyone.
    He needed to get over himself.
    The kiss had been amazing but already she could see he regretted it. Their attraction to one another was tempered with mistrust and disrespect. There didn’t appear to be any future pursuing it unless they both wanted to do something about it.
    “I’m sorry. For everything. Are you sure you don’t want to punch me?”
    “I don’t think violence is the answer.” She heaved a sigh and stood, walking to the front door. She opened it wide and stepped back so he could exit. “I think it’s time you took your leave, Sheriff.”
    Dare shifted uncomfortably while staring at his boots. “I really am sorry, Rayne.”
    “I know you are and I’m not mad. I just think that you and I probably shouldn’t spend much time together. One of us is going to haul off and smack the other or we’re going to end up taking that kiss a whole lot further. I don’t think I’m ready for