Page 34 of Cruel Kiss

I look up. It's dark in the hallway, but there's enough moonlight coming through the window to see him. Ronan. Standing there in nothing but a pair of gray sweatpants slung low on his hips.

I look down at my hand. Then I yank it back like I touched a hot stove.

"Oh my God," I whisper. "This is the worst nightmare I've ever had."

"Good morning to you, too,kotyonok."

"I was looking for a weapon."

"Is that what you'd call this?"

"The door alarm went off. I thought— I didn't— I don't know what I thought."

"It was me. I got up to check the perimeter." He rubs a hand over his face. "The alarm arms when I open the vault door. The crew must have misprogrammed it during the midnight shift change.”

I'm still standing too close to him. I can feel the heat coming off his bare chest. Not that I need any additional heat right now—my cheeks are on fire, and I'm grateful the dark hides most of it.

I tuck my hand behind my back like that might undo the damage that's already been done. "This wasn't on purpose, you know."

"How can I be sure?"

"Shut up. You're not helping. In fact, I'm starting to think this whole thing was a ploy just to get?—"

"Shh."

With absolutely no warning, Ronan suddenly pins me against the wall.

He's flush against me, head to toe. His chest presses my chest. His hips press my hips. One of his hands is flat on the wall beside my head, and the other holds a gun down low against his thigh.

A gun.

He's got a gun in his hand and he's shirtless and he's pinning me to the wall and I can feel every hard line of him through the thin cotton of my sleep shirt.

Every hard line.

Including one very specific hard line that has not gone away since I grabbed it by accident thirty seconds ago.

"Ronan," I whisper. "Can you please?—"

"Quiet." His mouth is right by my ear. His breath is warm and minty. "I heard something."

I feel the gun against my leg and I feel the other thing against my hip and I don't know which one I'm more afraid of.

That's a lie. I know exactly which one.

But he doesn't take mercy on me quite yet. His body stays pressed to mine, warm and solid and unmoving, while he listens for a threat in the dark.

I have never been so confused in my entire life.

Another thirty seconds drag past. It feels like an hour.

Then his other pocket buzzes, once. He lifts the phone, thumb over the screen, and I see his face lit up blue for a second. His eyes move. Reading something.

"Clear," Ronan murmurs. "Sensor on the back door. A branch."

"A branch," I repeat. "Remind me to burn it first thing in the morning."

"Funny. I was thinking of giving it some water and fertilizer as a thank you for bringing us together."