by Malone, M.
She ignored the voice in the back of her head. You know who might.
No. That was her old life. Things were different now. Are you sure? Because maybe the fire wasn’t an accident.
She couldn’t go down that spiral again. She had a brand new life now.
They pulled into the underground garage in the Blake Security building. JJ had been so deep in her thoughts that she hadn’t even realized they were home. Home. The place you were supposed to feel safe. JJ hadn’t felt like that about any place in a long time. But she could honestly acknowledge that she’d felt like that the past few months living with Lucia and her crew. Her living arrangements had seemed like a gross overreaction to her friend’s security issues the prior year, but she’d soon come to love it. Surrounded by muscular, hot men all the time and living rent free. Not a bad deal at all.
But now she could see that she’d allowed it to lull her into a false sense of security. Sure she was safer living with the Blake Security team, but she must never let herself think she was truly safe. No matter where she went, she would never be safe.
“You know you can come to me with anything, right?”
JJ looked over to see that Jonas had cut the car off and turned in his seat so he could watch her. Suddenly self-conscious, she pushed her hair behind her ear.
“Sure. I mean, it’s your job.”
“No. Not just because it’s my job.”
Awareness blossomed and JJ flushed. His eyes didn’t leave hers. She fidgeted with the strap of her bag, unsure how to handle this side of him. It was weird to have him looking at her like this and being nice to her. Angry and argumentative Jonas? She could handle him with one hand tied behind her back. But tender, sex-on-a-stick Jonas? Well, she didn’t have the first clue as to how to act. What if she admitted that she’d wanted to call him earlier? What if she told him that she thought of him when she was alone in her bed at night and he laughed?
She’d die instantly.
“Well, I’m fine,” she protested weakly. “I don’t need anyone’s help.”
“Maybe not, but I do.”
“You need my help,” JJ replied, deliberately misunderstanding him.
She could tell by the flare of heat in his eyes that he was gearing up for one of their knock down, drag out wars of words. Her body responded in kind. For the first time, she catalogued the symptoms like an outsider. Increased heart rate and breathing. Flushed skin and a sense of anticipation.
God. It was so obvious looking back on it now. The whole time they’d been fighting they’d been engaging in foreplay. She could only wonder if it was as obvious to everyone else in the house. Probably. Which was just great. How was she supposed to look the others in the eye now?
“I need you to want my help. I need to help you. Because the idea of anyone fucking with you makes me crazy.”
The idea that Jonas would unleash his rage on someone just because they’d bothered her pleased her greatly. She clamped down on the response. It was far too close to a “girlfriend” type of thing, and way too possessive for her taste. She’d had more than enough of possessive men who thought they owned her.
“What did I just say? Something just made the light go out of your eyes.”
She shook her head. “Nothing. But I don’t want anyone getting hurt because of me. I just want to be left alone.”
“Who isn’t allowing you to be left alone?”
Damn him for being so smart. The only way to keep from giving him all the clues he needed was to distract him. Luckily, she knew the perfect way to do that.
“Right now the only one annoying me is you. So I guess I’ll say thanks for the ride and good night.”
Before he could react, she reached over the console and grabbed the front of his shirt. He let her tug him until he was close enough for her to smell the scent of his cologne. Their eyes met, and suddenly Jonas smiled. The impact of it, especially so close, made JJ feel like she was flying. And suddenly this wasn’t about distracting him anymore. It was about doing what she’d wanted to do for ages.
Kiss him.
His lips softened under hers and he let out a soft groan that ricocheted through the still interior of the car. It was incredibly intimate, secluded there with just the two of them and the rapidly increasing sound of their breathing. For those moments, they weren’t Jonas and JJ, mortal enemies.
They were two people who connected like lightning, taking each other in like they wanted to merge into one being.
She gasped and a moan slipped loose. Jonas took that opportunity to slip his hand into her hair, anchor her head, and deepen the kiss, his tongue sliding over hers expertly.
JJ hooked her arm around his neck, holding him still, and he opened his mouth wider like he was trying to swallow her whole. If the console hadn’t been between them, she likely would have climbed into his lap, but instead she just sucked on his lower lip until he moaned into her mouth, the sound finally bringing her back to reality.
They stayed for a beat staring at each other before she pulled back and opened the door. The rush of cool air coming in cleared her head, and JJ wondered if it had finally happened. After years of pretending to be okay, if maybe she’d finally had a mental breakdown.
“JJ, what just—”
“Good night, Jonas.” She closed the door and walked quickly to the elevator.
For the first time that day, luck was on her side, because after she leaned forward for the retinal scan, the doors opened immediately.
The doors closed just as Jonas rushed up. She heard his muffled curse get fainter as the elevator ascended.
“Good night, indeed.” JJ touched her mouth.
#
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about the authors
New York Times & USA TODAY Bestselling author M. MALONE lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with her three favorite guys: her husband and their two sons. She holds a Master's degree in Business from a prestigious college that would no doubt be scandalized at how she's using her expensive education.
Independently published, she has sold more than 1/2 million ebooks in her two series THE ALEXANDERS and BLUE-COLLAR BILLIONAIRES. Since starting her indie journey in 2011 with the runaway bestselling novella "Teasing Trent", her work has appeared on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists more than a dozen times.
She's now a full-time writer and spends 99.8% of her time in her pajamas.
minxmalone.com
USA Today Bestselling Author, NANA MALONE’s love of all things romance and adventure started with a tattered romantic suspense she borrowed from her cousin on a sultry summer afternoon in Ghana at a precocious thirteen. She’s been in love with kick butt heroines ever since.
With her overactive imagination, and channeling her inner Buffy, it was only a matter a time before she started creating her own characters. Waiting for her chance at a job as a ninja assassin, Nana, meantime works out her drama, passion and sass with fictional characters every bit as sassy and kick butt as she thinks she is.
nanamaloneromance.net
A Shameless Bonus © August 2017 M. Malone and Nana Malone
This bonus book contains samples of the following copyrighted materials
Shameless © May 2017 M. Malone and Nana Malone
Force © August 2017 M. Malone and Nana Malone
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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information address MALON
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