Page 4 of Misadventures And Ms. Demeanor

"Oh shit," he mumbled. Rubbing the back of his neck, he looked a little contrite. A little, which was not enough. I wanted him licking my boots, if I had them on, for making me miss my flight.

"You!" I pointed at him. "You stun gunned me!"

His dark eyebrows went up, and I could clearly see the scar that bisected the left one. "You punched me in the nose."

Yeah, his nose did look a little swollen, but it did nothing to diminish his hotness, especially now that I could see his eyes. And I'd been wrong. His eyes weren't blue, they were dark, so dark they'd be considered black. With his dark hair, holy cow. His picture was next to tall, dark and handsome in the dictionary.

Carl stepped between us, held his hands up, probably not wanting an incident in the lobby. "Everything balances out and we're going to forget this incident ever happened. Right, McCade?"

He gave a small nod, but his jaw was clenched so tight I was surprised his teeth didn't shatter.

"How can I forget?" I tossed my hands up. "I missed my flight to Thailand."

"Thailand?" McCade rolled his eyes in that way men do when they want to piss a woman off. "You're still on that? Seriously? You're off the hook, so let it go. It's a good thing you don't talk much in those movies of yours." He cracked his knuckles.

I narrowed my eyes at him and I swear my blood pressure went to stroke point. "Off the hook? Youstun gunnedme. I woke up in a jail cell."

His gaze raked over me. My nipples tightened and the way his jaw clamped tight, he'd definitely noticed. "At least you didn't pee yourself. There's something to be said in that."

I chose to let the peeing remark go. I figured I'd covered that one by now. "What's the deal with this movie stuff? You act as if I'm some movie star or something."

He held up his hands in surrender. "If you want to keep it a secret, that's fine, but you might want to consider wearing a different shirt."

I glanced down. Yeah, my nipples were showing through the old college t-shirt. I crossed my arms over my chest with a huff. "What the hell are you talking about?" I hissed.

He leaned in and I could smell him. Soap, Montana sky and pheromones. As he got closer, I shifted back, but he was taller and I wasn't a gymnast, no matter how flexible he thought I was, so he was able to whisper in my ear. His warm breath tickled on my neck and that sent goose bumps skittering...everywhere. "Your secret's safe with me. If you don't want anyone to know where you go when you leave town, that's fine. But I know, and let me tell you, Silky Tangles is the center of my every fantasy, especially that thing she does when she's cuffed. I've got my handcuffs if you ever want to practice for the sequel."

My brain was completely repulsed by the jackass, but my body didn't care. He was hot. He made my nipples tighten by just being in the same room. I wasn't going to consider what happened to my lady parts when he'd all but licked my ear.

He pulled back a little and we just stared at each other, the corner of his mouth ticking up. His eyes were so dang dark, yet so clear. Smug.

"JT McCade, as I live and breathe. You've sure grown up.He'sthe guy you punched?" Goldie asked, which had me practically jumping back, realizing how close he'd been. Her mouth hung open in awe. Aunt Velma wasn't immune either, but Carl was right there, so she hid it pretty well. It appeared any woman in the room was affected by the man's looks. If I didn't want to taser him, I'd want to climb him like a monkey.

I whipped my head toward Goldie. "This is the guy whostun gunnedme." I pointed my thumb over my shoulder. "How many times do I have to say it? Besides, he thinks I'm...um…well. Never mind." I didn't need to mention that he thought I was some kind of porn star who had a penchant for handcuffs. I just wanted to get out of here.

He raised his hand to his mouth and mimicked zipping it shut and throwing away the key.

"What are you, in first grade?" I wondered, shaking my head. He actually thought that I really hadn't been going to Thailand, but was leaving town in secret to star in porn flicks? I took a step toward him and clenched my fist, ready to slug the jerk, but, of course, Aunt Velma interceded.

"Young man, you don't want to mess with a woman who is clearly in the throes of PMS."

"Aunt Velma!" I screeched. I felt my cheeks heat from embarrassment along with anger. Every man in the room cringed and every woman nodded in solidarity.

"So true," Goldie added.

"I do not have PMS!" My adamant protest didn't matter; the visual had been made.

McCade held up a hand and fixed his dark gaze on me. "Look, I don't care if you were possessed by demons from hell, which I guess is the same as PMS. All I know is that I'm now on vacation for a week. Have fun inThailand." He tapped his brow in a little salute and walked out the door, Aunt Velma, Goldie and I allogling his tight butt as he did so. If he was being such an ass, I might as well enjoy the view.

"Well, he can pull me over and frisk me anytime he wants," Goldie said, fanning herself.

"No kidding. I might want to get a hold of his service weapon," Aunt Velma added. "Sorry, Carl. I like your piece, too." She waggled her eyebrows.

Okay, it was now officially a little creepy lusting after the same man as Aunt Velma. "Miss Goldie, that man is a complete?—"

"Now, now, it's all over," Carl cut in, obviously trying to smooth things over. "Go see if you can make another flight." He winked at Aunt Velma.

I took a deep breath. "There aren't any more flights to get there in time. The Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival is only for two days, and it'll be almost finished before I even land."