She was quiet the whole journey, quiet and reserved, different than what I’d seen of her.

I arranged for Aaron to get her car back to the house so she could ride with me. When we got to her place, I went inside with her because her mood had worsened.

“If I asked you what was wrong, would you tell me?” Something was clearly wrong, something that had sent her to the bar by herself.

She shook her head then gasped when she turned to face me. “Oh my gosh your eye.”

I knew it was swollen. I could barely see out of it and knew I’d have a shiner in the morning.

“I’m good—I’ve had worse happen to me.”

“It’s my fault.” She brought her hands up to her cheeks. “I’ll get you some ice.”

She dashed into the kitchen and returned moments later with an ice pack. Since I felt I needed it, I took it from her and placed it over my eye. The coldness instantly soothed the stinging sensation.

“At least sit down.”

“Honestly, you don’t need to fuss over me.”

“If not for you, I could have been that asshole’s love slave.” Her voice slurred a little and she swallowed hard then blinked several times. “He looks like the kind of man who would kidnap a person.”

She wasn’t wrong about that. Jackson had been in a few times for attempted rape. When I’d seen him with her at the bar, I’d already been moving to the rescue before she’d seen me. I’d made up my mind that even if she protested, I was stepping in, because she didn’t know what Jackson was capable of.

“You just need to be careful.”

“Ryan, please sit.” She tugged on my hand and pulled me over to the sofa.

I sat down and she went back into the kitchen to grab a bowl of water and a cloth.

“Do I look so bad I need a sponge bath?” I tried to joke, but she shook her head at me.

She wet the cloth and dabbed at the corner of my mouth.

“There’s dried blood there. God, what a day.” She huffed.

I caught her hand before she could continue. “How drunk are you?” I knew she’d had enough alcohol to fail a breathalyzer, but that didn’t mean she was wasted. She didn’t look wasted.

“Not drunk enough,” she replied sadly.

“Do I have to tell you getting drunk by yourself in a town you barely know is dangerous?”

She sighed and tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear. “Could you just be normal for five minutes and not in cop mode or dad mode? You’re so much sexier when you aren’t like that.”

Maybe I was wrong. She was probably wasted and just doing a good job of hiding it, or it could be her trying to shock me.

Whatever it was, it was her calling me sexy.

“You think I’m sexy?”

“How do you know what’s in my brain? Did I say that out loud?” Her eyes narrowed in confusion.

“Brooke, you should probably go to bed. Go sleep it off, and I’ll come by to check on you tomorrow.”

“No, I can’t sleep with you tonight. My panties don’t match my bra. One’s Victoria Secret and the other is from Neiman’s—a definite no-no. I can’t let you see me in mismatched underwear. I didn’t want to be late this morning so I just jumped into the first things I could find. Also, I don’t think I took my birth control this morning…I don’t remember.”

I looked at her and blinked several times. Wasted, totally wasted, and she couldn’t have known what the hell she was saying to me.

I just wished I wasn’t so turned on by her. Maybe it was best for me to leave.

I put the ice pack down and took both her hands into mine. She smiled when I did that.

“Brooke, I think you’re kind of drunk. I’m going to go home and you can sleep it off.” I spoke slowly so she could understand me.

The hopeful expression on her face fell as she nodded.

“Is there something I can get you before I go?” I added.

“No. I’ll be okay…I think.”

“Cool. Good night Brooke.” I stood up to go but she caught my hand.

“Ryan?”

“Yeah?”

“Could you kiss me good night?”

My lips parted.

This was one of those times where I should have left well enough alone and gone home while my brain still worked. I’d known this woman was trouble the minute I saw her bumbling down the hill in that damn car.

Now there she was with her gorgeous self asking me to kiss her.

It was so much harder, too, since I wanted to do it. My eyes dropped to her mouth, that sensual, curvy mouth, and I could almost taste her.

“It wouldn’t be good for me to kiss you while you’re drunk. You won’t remember that you asked and you’ll chew me out in the morning.”

“I’ll remember. That’s all I want to remember from today… nothing else. Please.”

Damn it. Fuck.

Although I knew, knew, I shouldn’t, looking at her weakend me.

The enchantment captured me, the enchantment of her. It robbed my mind of reasoning and logic, robbed me of common sense, and all I could think of was kissing her.

When I sat back down and she shuffled, I took in her gorgeous breasts.

She leaned closer and pressed her dainty hand to my chest. I reached out and ran my hand along the edge of her jaw, and damn her skin was just as smooth as it looked, smooth and soft like butter cream.

I moved closer and brushed my lips over hers. It was a taste, the taste of temptation, the temptation that was her.

I took the plunge and pressed my lips to hers, and all my reservations faded away, everything.

We kissed slowly at first then it intensified when I lost control and swept my tongue into her hot, wet mouth. God, she tasted so good, like honey, and passion, and the fiery woman she was.

She moaned into the kiss and kissed me harder. Needing more, more of her, I slid my hand from her cheek to the back of her head, weaving through that gorgeous mass of silky hair.

I pressed her harder to me. With my other hand I pulled her closer so she was flush against me, and that was when we really got going. Stopping was the last thing on my mind, the very last thing, but it was the kind of kiss that would lead to the bedroom—or right here on that sofa would be fine too.

My cock was aching to break free and be inside her, but it would be wrong. I couldn’t take advantage of her in her drunken state. I’d already crossed the line with this kiss.

She moaned again when I pulled away and pouted with that pretty mouth.

“No, don’t stop. That was a good kiss.”

“Yeah, it was a good kiss.”

She moved in and kissed me quickly then pulled back. “Why’d you stop?”

“Brooke, if you aren’t careful, we’ll both end up naked right here.”

“Could we do that? I promise next time I’ll get good lingerie for you.”

Jesus. “How about we do this again when you aren’t drunk?”

She thought for a moment then nodded. “Okay, okay.”

With reluctance I stood up, leaving her on the sofa. “See you tomorrow?”

“Mmhmmm.” She cooed.

“Ryan.” She called out to me just before I reached the door. “You impressed me tonight.”

I looked back to her. Like the other day, the little straps of her top drifted down her shoulder.

“You impressed me too, Brooke.”

She slowly ran her tongue over her lips as she continued to stare at me.

Leaving her was the hardest thing I’d ever had to do.