Page 40 of A Heart of Little Faith

Lily stared at his profile for a minute. The tendons in his neck pulsed and she traced them from his jawbone to his collarbone. The texture of his skin was different from hers— thick and stubbly. His pulse beat beneath her finger and his Adam’s apple rose and fell as he swallowed. She faced him and caressed his jaw. “Have a little faith,” she whispered.

With an almost imperceptible nod, he reached for her hand and tucked it under his arm. Moving in tandem, they watched the game.

At the car, he paused before he unlocked the door. The beep of the car locking system almost drowned out his words. “That kiss back there…”

“I’ve been thinking about kissing you since you kissed me after your business dinner,” she said.

He let out a breath. “Me too. I just never knew how you’d react.”

Lily leaned against the van, the door handle pressed into the small of her back. He wanted to kiss her too? She felt desired, for the first time in a long time. The warmth of the metal penetrated through her thin T-shirt. “And now?”

He pulled her into his lap and stroked her face. His brown eyes dilated behind the lenses. “Now I want to kiss you again.”

He leaned in to kiss her. He slipped his palm to the side of her neck and stroked her skin. Sliding around to the nape of her neck, he played with the cap’s adjustment strap. He flicked his finger from the strap to her skin, until Lily thought she’d go mad. She bent her head back and he pressed her in closer to him. His iron-hard arms encased her body, drawing her in until she couldn’t tell where she ended and he began. His kiss was demanding, yet gentle. He roved his lips from her mouth to her jawbone to her neck and back again.

“I’ve wanted to kiss you since I first saw you,” he murmured as he buried his nose in her shoulder and breathed in her scent.

Her chest lightened. “Me too. You’re very sexy, you know that?” She whorled her fingers through his hair and massaged the nape of his neck.

“Definitely.” He raised his head and winked. “It’s the chair, you know.”

“Absolutely.” She grinned and kissed him again. She nibbled his bottom lip then traced the divot in his chin with her thumb.

“We’d better stop now,” he said. She cocked her head to one side as she gripped his shoulders to keep her balance. He squeezed her waist. “Oh, we’ll go further,” he said with a wink, “just not here.”

She licked her top lip, still able to taste where he kissed her. Her stomach fluttered in anticipation. “I’ll hold you to that.” Euphoria at finally knocking down his walls flooded through her.

“Good.”

Chapter 14

The phone rang next to Lily’s bed on Sunday morning; a progressive ring that first invaded her dream and then carried her to the brink of consciousness and forced her over the edge into wakefulness. Eyes still closed, she reached for it, put it to her ear and mumbled, “Hello?”

“Did I wake you?”

The deep voice reverberated through her mind, filled the empty places recently vacated by the ringing phone, and she winced. One eye opened and read her clock: nine forty-five.

“What, um, no. I’m awake.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, right, Lil.”

Lily ran a hand through her hair. “Really Gideon, I’m awake.” She worked her lips in an effort to get rid of their stickiness.

“Well, at least you recognize my voice.” His dry tone made her envision the expression that accompanied it—flared nostrils, a raised eyebrow and a parted mouth. A delicious mouth she had kissed yesterday. The thought of his mouth was enough to make her forget he’d woken her on her one and only day to sleep late.

Almost.

“Is there a purpose to this call, or are you doing your good deed for the day and serving as my personal alarm clock?”

“So you admit I woke you.”

“Gideon!” She smiled through her growl.

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry I woke you. Funny, but I never pictured you as being cranky in the morning.”

Lily snorted and he continued. “Anyway, thanks for going to the game yesterday.”

She pulled the phone away from her ear. The silence on the other end was louder than the earsplitting ring of the phone. The hitch of his voice and his ragged intake of breath betrayed his nerves. It had been a while since anyone cared about her feelings. Under different circumstances, she might have pushed him to admit his own. Playing games left an acrid taste in her mouth, similar to the sharp taste she fought whenever he mentioned their bargain. And, after they’d teased each other yesterday, she debated her approach to his question—flirty or straightforward? Her flirty side was rusty, geriatric even, and she remembered Tony’s warning. She brought the phone to her ear and decided to go easy on him. “I had a great time. I’m really glad you invited me.” Would he mention their kisses?