If she were honest, she’d tell him she was exhausted and didn’t have the energy to deal with cabs or Uber or even getting from point A to point B.
But she didn’t.
“I shouldn’t, Dylan. I think tonight has been weird for us both. And besides, the thought of sleeping in this ridiculous dress is enough to make me want to cry.” That part was the truth. She was so Spanx-ed into the ridiculous thing that breathing hadn’t been easy all night.
He stood and walked into the bedroom. Two minutes later he came back. “There’s a shirt and a robe on the bed, and I pulled the comforter down for you. Go and get comfortable and I’ll refresh this ice pack for you.”
“Dylan…”
“Don’t argue. For once. Please.”
A small nod was her only response. Dylan helped her to her feet and to the bedroom. He left her sitting at the foot of the bed and then closed the door behind him to give her some privacy.
She hated how much of a gentleman he could be at times.
Peeling the dress off was a combination of pain and pleasure. It felt good to breathe again, but she had to wrestle her way out of it more than she cared to admit. And knowing she’d have to put it on tomorrow to get home was already making her want to scream. Once it was off, she tossed it onto a chair and reached for the shirt Dylan had taken out for her—it was a simple black T-shirt. She smiled because it was almost exactly like what she wore at home. Slipping it over her head, she smiled at how it smelled like him.
It was like winning a sad second place prize in a competition she didn’t realize she wanted to participate in.
It took her a few minutes to wash all the makeup off and try to do something with her hair. She finger-combed it and shook it out and she looked like an ’80s video-vixen reject.
Ugh.
Stupid mirrors.
Limping over to the bed, she climbed in and sighed at how glorious it felt. The sheets were incredibly soft, and the mattress was the perfect level of firmness, and there were enough pillows to make her feel right at home.
If she’d been at home, she would have showered to wash the night off her, but her foot would have protested like it was now. Which was a shame since that was one of the most decadent bathrooms she had ever seen. Maybe if she was feeling better in the morning…
Dylan knocked and she called out for him to come in.
“I wasn’t sure how long—” he stopped when he looked at her and Paige figured he was trying to hide how horrified he was by her makeup-free appearance.
Might as well finish the night with a bang, she thought.
She arched a brow at him and waited for whatever it was he had to say.
Clearing his throat, Dylan walked over to the bed. He didn’t make eye contact with her but went about his task of propping her foot up and putting the ice pack on it. “I don’t think you should sleep with this on it all night, but you should let it stay on for as long as you can.” He straightened and walked into the bathroom. Two towels in hand, he came out. He placed one on the pillow under her foot and the other on the floor beside the bed. “You can…um…you can just drop that when you’re done.”
She figured he meant the ice pack, but it was humorous watching him.
Then he left the room and came back with a fresh bottle of water and the bottle of ibuprofen. “You know, in case you wake up and need some more in the middle of the night.” He turned his back to her and looked around the room. “There’s a remote for the TV on the table next to the bed, and if you’re hungry or need anything, you can holler for me or call room service or whatever and—”
“Dylan?”
“Hmm?”
She rolled her eyes because he didn’t turn around. “You know you’re proving my point, right?”
Now he turned. “What point?”
“That I’m not attractive,” she said and hated how it was clearly her who couldn’t let this go. “I took off my makeup, and you can’t even look at me.”
In a million years, she never could have predicted Dylan’s reaction to her words.
He moved like a ninja and had his hands braced on the mattress on either side of her as he was nose-to-nose with her. “I have been trying my hardest to be a good guy here, Paige. I am many things, but I’m not a liar.” He reached up with one hand and cupped her jaw—and he wasn’t exactly gentle. “Whether you want to believe it or not is on you, but I think you’re beautiful. When I walked in here, all I could think was how you take my breath away. Most women need all that…crap on their face to make them look good, but to me, you look so much better without it.”
She swallowed hard, unable to believe what she was hearing.
Dylan’s thumb caressed her cheek. “You don’t need all that because you, Paige, are naturally beautiful.”
She swallowed hard again. “Then why…?”
“Why wouldn’t I kiss you?” he whispered.
She nodded, unable to look away from his heated gaze.
“Because for the first time in my life I’m trying to get my shit together. And kissing you would be reverting to who I used to be. I was the guy who slept with PR people and assistants and women I shouldn’t.” He paused and rested his forehead against hers. “I know if I give in and kiss you, it won’t stop there. And I’ll pursue you until you agree to sleep with me. And then when it all falls apart—like it always does—everyone will look at me and see that I’m the same screwup I always was.”
“Dylan…” He placed a finger over her lips, and she almost groaned.
“So it’s not that I don’t find you attractive,” he said, his voice low and possessive and a little bit thrilling. He straightened and took one of her hands in his and placed it over the front of his pants, over his very impressive erection. “I do. And the last thing I want to do is drag you into the mess that my life is.”
“But…your life’s not like that anymore,” she argued softly.
He inhaled deeply, and Paige realized she was still touching him. “Trust me,” he said sadly. “It is.”
Unable to help herself, she gently rubbed him and let out a breathy sigh.
Dylan squeezed her hand ever-so-slightly before taking a step back. “You’re already stuck working with me. And even though I know we’ve come to be friends, the truth of the matter is I’m not someone you’d normally spend time with.”
“That’s not…”
“It is true, Paige. You know it and I know it.” There was no condemnation in his tone. Just a sad disappointment. “It’s one thing for me to have to deal with people passing judgment or reminding me of the mistakes I made. I’m sure there are even some women out there who wouldn’t mind dealing with it for the sake of using me for their own gain. But that’s not you.”
Now he was starting to piss her off. She knew she was uptight about a lot of things and her recent behavior certainly didn’t help her case, but it didn’t mean she was so rigid or such a snob that she’d…she’d… What? What was it that she was even thinking? At first, it was a kiss to prove a point, but now it was more.
A lot more.
Like, Why can’t I be someone Dylan Anders can sleep with and then walk away?
Wait…was that something she wanted?
Looking up at him—the vulnerability in his eyes, the sexy way his dress shirt was opened at the collar and the sleeves were rolled up…and that wasn’t even considering the whole erection thing. Right. Who was she kidding? That was like the giant, shiny, red bow on the whole package.
All her life, Paige played things by the rules, always wanting to be safe, and where had it gotten her? She was a nobody at work, no one took her seriously as a leader and dammit, she was tired of being forced to follow. Right now she wanted to take the lead and be brave and break the rules.
All of them.
With Dylan.
“What if I said I wou
ldn’t mind dealing with all of it?” she asked, praying she sounded confident and not at all nervous.
The intense look on his face told her she’d struck a nerve and it made her bold.
“What if I said that I want you to kiss me and…you wouldn’t even have to pursue me to convince me to sleep with you?” She let out a nervous laugh. “I’m already in your bed.”
He stood as still as stone.
“Dylan, I…”
But she never got to finish because he turned and walked out the door, quietly closing it behind him.
For more Samantha Chase check out the
Shaughnessy Brothers: Band on the Run series
One More Promise
On sale February 2018
About the Author
Samantha Chase is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller of contemporary romance. She released her debut novel in 2011 and currently has more than forty titles under her belt! When she’s not working on a new story, she spends her time reading romances, playing way too many games of Scrabble or Solitaire on Facebook, wearing a tiara while playing with her sassy pug, Maylene…oh, and spending time with her husband of twenty-five years and their two sons in North Carolina.
THE WINDHAMS
Award-winning historical romance by New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Grace Burrowes
Lady Jenny’s Christmas Portrait
Lady Jenny Windham pursues her artistic ambition only to find she must choose between true love and fulfilling a lifelong dream.
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No one would guess that Lady Louisa Windham hides a scandalous secret—except perhaps family friend Sir Joseph Carrington, a man with secrets of his own.
Lady Sophie’s Christmas Wish
Trapped by a London snowstorm, Lady Sophie Windham finds herself with an abandoned baby and only the assistance of a kind, handsome stranger standing between her and complete disaster.
RITA nominated and winner of RT Book Reviews 2011 Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Historical Romance
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