Kiss Me If You Can Read online

  “Of course not, but why?”

  Lexie sat down on the couch and popped open the top. “Because I want to make sure nobody installed a Trojan horse or hidden spyware of any kind while it was out of your possession.”

  He cocked an eyebrow, impressed with her way of thinking. “Never thought of that.”

  She grinned. “That’s what you have me for.”

  The impact of her words and her genuine sunny smile kicked him in the gut. She was so easy to be around, so happy and adorable, he couldn’t believe how fast he was falling. Deadly for him in the long run, but he couldn’t bring himself to worry beyond now if it meant giving her up before he had to.

  “You do your thing and I’ll put the food out for us. I hope you like Chinese.”

  “Love it,” she said without looking up from the computer. Already engrossed in her task.

  As he set the table with the plates he’d put together from his father’s bar, he realized this was the first time he’d had any woman over for dinner—and he couldn’t even serve the meal on a matched set. Though the guest in question didn’t have an apartment of her own and he figured she wouldn’t mind, it bugged him anyway. Wait till she realized his sheets and pillowcases weren’t much better, he thought wryly, and decided the only solution was to keep her too busy in bed to care.

  “How’s it going over there?” he asked when he’d finished arranging the white boxes on the kitchen table.

  She muttered something he couldn’t hear.

  “Say that again?”

  “I said, why can’t the world all convert to using Macs? Everything takes longer and is harder on a PC.”

  “So I’m a PC and you’re a Mac. Is that a deal breaker for you?” he teased.

  She blew out a breath of air, lifting her hair, which had fallen over her face. “Nah. I think I can live with it. At a glance it looks like your computer is clean, but I’m letting it run a full check just to be sure, which will take a while.”

  “Thanks. I never remember to do that stuff on my own.”

  “I figured. I’m also updating your virus software and installing some other free programs to keep this thing running well.”

  Listening to her explain, he couldn’t control a laugh. “Did anyone ever tell you you’re cute when you talk geek?”

  She grinned. “Not in so many words, no.”

  He waved her away from the computer. “You can finish that later. Come eat. I’ve kept you waiting long enough.”

  She jumped up and joined him at the table. As it turned out, Lexie loved Chinese food. He’d clearly chosen well and her eyes danced with delight as she opened each white box and took a sampling of each. She even ate with the chopsticks provided, while he used a fork.

  She devoured the meal with a gusto that impressed him. She had quite an appetite and wasn’t embarrassed to show it. A refreshing change from the women around the office who picked at steamed vegetables for lunch or those he’d had relationships with who’d order an appetizer and call it dinner. Cheap dates, but annoying to be with.

  Lexie insisted on helping clean up and they continued the small talk that came so easily to them both. He’d already filled her in on his long three days and she’d done the same. Since she hadn’t mentioned the blog, he figured she hadn’t seen the photo of them kissing. No time like the present to break it to her, Coop thought.

  “So how’s your grandmother?” he asked, leading into the subject.

  She perched her hip against the counter near the sink. “Odd,” she said.

  “Odder than usual?”

  Her lips pursed in a wry smile. “Believe it or not, yes. She and Sylvia always seem to have their heads together over the computer. She barely knows how to use it when I’m around, yet she’s always on the thing. And they’re whispering. A lot more than usual.”

  She passed him the plates to rinse and put in the dishwasher.

  “I’m not surprised.”

  Lexie hesitated. “Why?” she asked, meeting his gaze.

  “Seems we’re making headlines again.” He described the picture of them in the blog and waited for her to draw her own conclusion.

  “Kissing,” she said, her cheeks taking on an adorable flush. “So that would be alone here or…at my grandmother’s. I’m going to throttle her!” Lexie said, her voice rising.

  He shouldn’t laugh, but couldn’t help it. “Come on, you have to admit it’s funny. Your grandmother’s got nerve.”

  Lexie shook her head. “She’s got me teaching her how to use the computer while she’s snapping cell phone pictures and e-mailing them like a pro!”

  He chuckled again. “At least she keeps herself busy.”

  Lexie rolled her eyes. “She’s still in for a lecture about minding her own business and respecting my personal life,” she muttered.

  “Go easy on her.” This time he held back the laugh.

  “Maybe I ought to call her now.” She glanced toward his telephone on the counter corner.

  “Or maybe you should wait until you’ve calmed down?”

  She moved her lips as if she were counting to ten. “You’ve got a point,” she said at last. “I’ll talk to her tomorrow. By the way, did you know your answering machine light is flashing?” she asked, tipping her head toward the phone and attached machine.

  He hadn’t noticed. He’d been too preoccupied with thoughts of finally seeing Lexie again. “I must have forgotten to check when I came in earlier. I guess I was too caught up looking for you,” he said, hoping to take her mind off her troublemaking grandmother and put it back on them.

  He stepped in front of her, reaching over and hitting the play button on the answering machine. His hand not-so-accidentally brushed her chest, grazing her breast through the light cotton shirt.

  She sucked in a surprised breath.

  Mission accomplished, he thought, pleased with how her eyes dilated, awareness and desire shimmering in their depths.

  He’d spent dinner trying not to think about sex with Lexie, focusing instead on learning more about her and just enjoying. But now the leashed desire had been brought to the surface and he could barely breathe from wanting her.

  Suddenly a male voice from the answering machine interrupted the sizzling moment.

  “This is Ricky Burnett calling again,” the gravelly voice said. “Did ya change your mind about returning my ring? I’ll give you a cash reward for saving my daughter instead. You can find me at the store most days so stop by any time. It’s got sentimental value and I want my ring back!”

  “Don’t hold your breath.” Coop frowned at the man’s words.

  “He asked if you changed your mind,” Lexie said, processing the message. “Has he bothered you about giving back the ring before?”

  “Just once. Obviously, I said no.”

  Lexie narrowed her gaze. She couldn’t think clearly with him standing so close, but with her back against the counter and his big body blocking hers, she couldn’t step away. Nor did she want to. Every nerve ending inside her thrummed in anticipation of the kiss she’d been sure he was about to give before Ricky Burnett’s message interrupted them.

  Still, she wasn’t about to let sexual desire fog her brain. “When was this?” she asked of Ricky’s request for the ring.

  “The day you and I met up at my father’s bar. And before you get all righteously angry, I wasn’t holding out on you. Back then I barely knew you. And I didn’t think about it until after the robbery and we were interrupted by hurricane Charlotte,” he said, rushing the words, clearly on the defensive.

  He’d anticipated her complaint and she relaxed a little more. He wasn’t deliberately trying to shut her out of things.

  “So it was before this place was broken into?”

  “Yeah, which makes him my number-one suspect, since he obviously couldn’t know I had the ring in my pocket the first time he called and asked for it back. Maybe when I said no he decided to try to retrieve it himself.”

  “And when he didn�
��t find the ring here, he took the laptop… Why?” she wondered aloud.

  “To make it look like a legit robbery is my best guess,” Coop said.

  “Then why return it?”

  He shrugged. “Beats me. That part makes no sense.”

  She pursed her lips, racking her brain for motive and finding none. Of course, with Coop’s hard thighs pressed against hers, pushing her into the counter and arousing her more, it was difficult to focus on the robbery.

  “What did the police say when you told them about Ricky and the ring?” Lexie managed to ask.

  “I didn’t tell them. At least not yet.” He shifted positions and she felt the swell of his erection against her stomach. His irises darkened, too, telling her he was every bit as aware of his actions as she was.

  Lexie swallowed hard. “Why not?”

  He braced one hand on the counter behind her. “Because I had the ring appraised and it is stolen property.”

  “Then why didn’t the appraiser jump to call the police?”

  “Let’s just say he owes me.”

  Lexie nodded slowly. “Okay, and if you tell the police?”

  “Then they’ll begin to look into the history of the ring, find out it’s stolen property and we’ll both lose it before we ever figure out the mystery,” he explained.

  “Aah. Makes sense.”

  “I thought so.” He wrapped the other hand around her waist.

  Her heartbeat picked up rhythm and her breasts grew heavy beneath her light halter. But somehow she retrieved the thought that had been niggling at the back of her mind.

  “You know, when Ricky was speaking, I thought it was odd that he didn’t mention that your apartment had been broken into. For all he knows, maybe the ring had been stolen, yet he didn’t say a word! It’s the first thing I asked about—after inquiring if you were okay, of course.”

  “Yes, I remember your worrying about my welfare.” He grinned. “As for Ricky, maybe he didn’t know about the robbery.”

  “It’s been all over the news. You’re the Bachelor!” she said, unable to control a laugh. “And his store has been mentioned in every recent article about you. I can’t imagine him missing the break-in.”

  “True.” Coop nodded slowly. “So if we play this out, if Ricky is the culprit, then he wouldn’t mention the robbery because he wouldn’t want to bring it up and have me link him with it in any way.”

  “That’s what I’m thinking. I’m also thinking we need to go talk to this guy in person,” Lexie said. She still held out hope that somehow the ring would end up in her possession as a gift for her grandmother. But she couldn’t think beyond the here and now.

  Her entire body tingled in anticipation of his first real touch.

  “How about we go check out the store first thing tomorrow when it opens?” Coop asked.

  She nodded. “I’m in.”

  “Yeah. I thought you would be.” He tipped his head until his forehead touched hers. Behind her, his thumb brushed lazy circles on her bare back. “The question is, What are we going to do with ourselves until tomorrow?”

  “Oh, I can think of plenty of things to keep us busy,” Lexie murmured.

  Because she was finished talking, thinking or doing anything except this. She cupped her hands around his face and sealed her lips against his, effectively ending all conversation, hopefully for a good, long time.

  COOP HADN’T MEANT for the answering machine message to be foreplay, but that’s exactly what happened. While he and Lexie bounced ideas off each other as if they’d worked together before, he’d driven himself into a heated frenzy. And judging by the way she’d beaten him to the first kiss, he’d done the same to her.

  She threaded her fingers into his hair and pulled him against her, nibbling at him with her delicate mouth and tongue, urgent and insistent yet utterly feminine.

  He groaned, unable to hold back the sound, then slid his hands around her waist, picked her up and settled her onto the clean countertop.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, her cheeks flushed and her lips damp.

  “Giving myself easier access,” he said in a gruff voice he barely recognized.

  “To what?”

  “You. This.” He thanked the good Lord for the easy tops women wore in the summertime as he pulled the sides of her halter toward the center, revealing her bare, braless breasts for view.

  His entire body shuddered at the unexpected sight. She was bigger than he’d imagined, her breasts full and white, her nipples rosy tight buds that had his mouth watering for a taste.

  She leaned her head back against the cabinets and watched him with eager eyes. Unable to wait, he stepped into the vee of her legs and lowered his lips to one waiting breast. He cupped his hand beneath the heavy mound and began a leisurely exploration. Starting outward, he laved her creamy soft skin, inhaling her fragrant scent as he worked his tongue over her flesh, inching his way toward the center. He finally closed his mouth around her tight nipple, drawing the bud into his mouth and tugging insistently.

  Lexie let out a low moan. She locked her legs around his waist, pulling him tight between her legs. She obviously liked it and he wanted to give her more, make her shudder, shake and beg for him to enter her. He quickly learned what she enjoyed, and he palmed her breast in his hand, while nipping at her bud first with his teeth, then with his tongue.

  She bucked against him, arching her back, thrusting her core upwards, seeking relief he wasn’t ready to give.

  Not.

  Just.

  Yet.

  He transferred his attention to her other breast, giving it the same lavish treatment, tormenting her—and himself—for a long while. When her breasts were finally so sensitive she was whimpering and begging him to stop, he listened, undoing the button on her shorts and pulling down hard and fast on the zipper.

  “Lift up,” he instructed.

  She braced her hands on the counter and levered herself up so he could yank her shorts down over her thighs, making sure he took her barely-there panties along with him.

  She settled back against the counter, with a squeal. “It’s cold!”

  “Not for long,” he promised, and without waiting another second, took his fingers, parted her feminine lips and knelt so he could warm her with his mouth.

  At his first touch, she leaned back, thrusting her pelvis up and he heard her head hit the cabinets.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  “Fine as long as you don’t stop,” she said in a breathless voice.

  “Not a chance.” He lifted her legs and placed them on his shoulders, giving himself complete access.

  A part of him wondered if she’d pull away, but she hadn’t been shy with him so far and she didn’t start now. She relaxed her legs and didn’t put up a fight.

  She certainly trusted him and he intended to make it worth her while. With his tongue, he stroked her center. She moaned, writhing against him. He thrust inside her, she pulled him in deeper.

  God, she was hot and sweet and so damn sensual, he thought, his lips finding the hidden bud that would, he hoped, show her heaven. He alternated long slick laps of his tongue with shorter licks. Her breathing came in uneven gasps and moans and he knew she was close.

  Unfortunately, dammit, so was he.

  He decided to move things along. Lifting his mouth, he pressed his palm against her damp, wet sheath, sliding one finger deep inside her. He kept the pressure strong, inside and out until she broke, convulsing around him in a hot, steamy orgasm that nearly stole his breath.

  He let her ride out the storm, then slowly lowered her legs and made certain she was steady.

  Lexie forced her heavy eyelids open and found herself face-to-face with the man who’d just given her extraordinary pleasure in a most intimate way. “Wow.”

  “You’re amazing.”

  Lexie’s cheeks burned. She wasn’t inexperienced, but she’d never…in the kitchen…and been so uninhibited about it.

  She wo
ndered if she ought to be embarrassed, but when he cupped her face in his hands and pulled her into a deep kiss, she forgot to worry. His mouth told her exactly how much he’d enjoyed it, too. But as good as her body felt now, she was still achingly empty and she couldn’t imagine he was feeling any better.

  “I think we ought to move this to the bedroom,” he said, as if reading her mind.

  She nodded.

  He caught her off guard by scooping her into his arms.

  “I can walk,” she felt obligated to point out.

  He kissed her on the forehead. “But this way is faster.”

  She figured, why not enjoy the ride? She looped her arms around his neck and proceeded to nibble his earlobe, inhaling his masculine scent and arousing herself all over again.

  He eased her onto the bed and she pushed herself against the pillows while he proceeded to strip off his clothes, his hurry to feel skin against skin matching hers. Lexie pulled her gaze off him only long enough to rid herself of whatever clothing remained.

  When he slid onto the mattress, Lexie was naked and ready, and she propped herself onto her elbow to take her first look at him in all his glory. She wasn’t disappointed. For a reporter who spent his days behind a desk or investigating stories, he was a finely built specimen. Tanned with a liberal sprinkling of dark hair on his chest, and muscles he’d hidden beneath his shirts, Lexie was beyond impressed and compelled to touch.

  Reaching out, she drew a finger down the center of his chest, grazing lightly with her fingernail as she made her way lower, marking her territory as she looked him over. When her gaze and ultimately her finger finally hit the mark, she watched in admiration as he twitched and hardened beneath her hungry stare.

  He studied her intently, but didn’t say a word, letting her touch and learn his rigid yet smooth shape and feel. As she curled her fingers around his velvety hard erection, he stiffened in her hand and released a low, raw groan of pleasure.

  Lexie smiled and continued her exploration, stroking him in her hand. Something about Coop made her feel comfortable enough to act first and worry later. Something about him emboldened her, allowing her to be very unLexie-like.

  She realized now that, in the past, she’d gauged her actions in bed according to whether she felt she measured up to the current man in her life. Drew, being the longest relationship, had been the yardstick by which she’d reacted to the men who’d come after. Not that there’d been all that many. But those who’d passed through hadn’t truly known who she was deep inside and Lexie had held back, afraid that, like Drew, they ultimately wouldn’t even like—forget love—who she really was. So she’d always moderated her actions.