Page 62 of Her Intense Protector

“Well, say what you have to say, and then start the car.” She nuzzled into his left hand with her cheek. That was one of the things he’d noticed in the last four days; Samantha was a very tactile person.

“I’m so sorry that I made you feel bad. That was never my intention. I was really trying to show you the respect you deserve and not take advantage of an uneven situation. Can you understand that?”

Sam nodded, but her eyes were suspiciously bright. “I get it. It’s because you’re Ezio, part Navy, part Italian, part oldest child. You just can’t help being honorable, can you?”

“Hey honey, don’t make a big deal out of this. I promise to take you home and ravish you, as long as you cancel that appointment to see that apartment tomorrow.”

She leaned forward and gave him the softest, most loving kiss of his entire life.

“It’s a deal, Mr. Stark.”

18

Ah heck.

What had she done? She had practically demanded that they have sex, and here she was with cold feet. She was the most contrary woman on the face of God’s green earth. Sam had insisted on a shower after playing with all the dogs. But now she didn’t want to leave the bathroom. She’d only ever made love with Kevin. And here she was trying to take the lead with the sexiest man she’d ever come into contact with. Was she out of her mind?

Yes. Yes, I am.

She took a deep breath as she unbraided her hair. She’d noticed that Ezio liked her hair loose. So that was being seductive, right? Why couldn’t he just come into the bathroom and start kissing her? That would be so much easier than her having to come out and go hunt for him throughout the house.

The only smart thing she’d done was snagging one of his T-shirts to wear. Might as well end as they’d started. He sure seemed to be turned on when she’d worn it before. Sam looked at herself in the bathroom mirror.

Hair? As good as it’s going to get.

Boobs? She had on the padded bra from poker night.

Legs? Shaved.

Make-up? Mascara and peach lip gloss.

Confidence? Nope, not there.

And I’m not going to ask for help from Granddad for this one.

Samantha let out a laugh.

When she saw the smile in the mirror, she felt better. Okay, she could do this. Who the hell was she kidding? She was halfway into love with the guy, could it get any better than that? Yeah, he could have just come into the bathroom and kissed her. But that so wasn’t his style. He wouldn’t want to intrude on her. Honorable, the man was so danged honorable.

She opened the bathroom door, peeked across the hall to her bedroom, and didn’t see any sign of him. Then she felt a tingle at the back of her neck so she turned her head and looked down the hall toward his bedroom.

There he was, leaning against the doorjamb of his room, arms crossed against the most mouthwatering bare chest she had ever seen, well, since last Sunday. He was wearing low-slung jeans. Oh God, the top button wasn’t buttoned!

Holy heck.

Samantha swallowed, her throat was suddenly dry. The man wasn’t honorable, he was intense. And she was going to go up in flames.

“Come here, Samantha.” His smoky voice reverberated through every nerve-ending in her body, and they all sparked to life. She was not going to be tentative.

She was not.

She walked down the hall and saw the way his eyes widened and then narrowed. Yeah, Ezio was as turned-on as she was.

Wasn’t that a turn-on?

“You’re beautiful, you know that, right?” His voice curled around her like a tendril of fire.

“Maybe in a red dress and garters.”