I smiled down at the leg that was thrown across my waist.

We ended up waking up in the middle of the night for round two. When I saw the look in her eyes, there was no way I was telling her no. It didn’t take long for me to get hard again.

Last night had been great, but now that the sun was rising with a promise of a new day, I wondered how this would work.

“Good morning,” her sleepy voice whispered as she curled against my chest.

I brushed a piece of hair off her face. “How did you sleep?” The thought of leaving her and going back to New York weighed heavily on my mind.

She looked up at me, a smile played at the corner of her mouth. “Better than I have in a long time.”

“Must be the comfortable bed,” I teased, curling her body

closer to mine.

Her eyes widened. “Oh my God.” She tried to pull away, but my arms only held her tighter. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to take up so much space.” She seemed embarrassed when she noticed me on the edge of the mattress. “I’m a restless sleeper.”

I laughed. “Yeah, I kinda got that. I’m one centimeter away from rolling off the bed and landing on the floor.”

She turned onto her back and brought the sheet up to her chest. “I’m not used to sharing the bed with anyone. You must be so uncomfortable.”

Actually, I wasn’t. My arm was a little sore, but my body felt rested. I lifted my weight on my elbows and looked down at her, and my mouth practically watered. “I’m not complaining,” I said, tracing my fingertips up and down her inner thigh. Her muscles tensed. I had her exactly where I wanted her.

“Is this the part where we have morning sex before you send me out the door?”

I gave her a cocky grin. “Only if you’re lucky.”

She snorted and ran her fingers over the lines of my face. “So that’s how it’s going to be?”

I looked down at her. “I’m ready to go again if you are.” I nipped behind her ear and felt my cock throb against my cotton sleep pants.

“I don’t know.” She sighed, seeming disinterested in my plan. “I’m getting kinda bored. Maybe some other time,” she teased and tried to squirm away from me.

I couldn’t help but laugh. She was awfully playful this morning, and I loved seeing her like this. She was beautiful with the way she looked up at me with those green eyes that drove me crazy. There was no way I was going to be able to keep my hands off of her.

“I think I need to do a better job of fulfilling your needs if you’re feeling bored,” I said, circling her nipple with my tongue before giving it a swipe. “And then when I’m done,” I whispered with my hand traveling south, “you can tell me how much better it was for the third time around.”

That was how I ended up taking her under my sheets for the third time in less than twelve hours. Last night was all about connecting, exploring, and searching. Now, I wanted to leave no part of her untouched by me. I knew she needed commitment and emotions, but pleasure was all I was capable of giving. It was all I knew. I just hoped it would be enough.

I stroked her cheek, feeling completely sated, but I knew I couldn’t stay in bed all day. “I’m going to take a quick shower. I pressed a kiss to her lips. “I won’t be long.”

My body practically protested as I climbed out of bed and dragged my ass across the room. I needed to get in the shower and start my day. I walked into the bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror, barely recognizing myself. I thought about last night, how it felt having her in my arms. I’d never felt such calm and contentment before. And that was a problem, because she was either going to be worth it all, or she was going to be my biggest mistake. There was no in-between with this woman.

I stepped inside the steaming shower and hoped that my gut instincts were right about her. They had to be, or I was screwed.

Chloe’s head was tucked down as she glanced at her phone while nibbling on a piece of toast. She looked adorable sitting at my kitchen table wearing my T-shirt. She lifted her head when she sensed me staring at her and slowly dragged her eyes to the gray towel resting low on my hips.

I’ve never given much thought to what people thought of me. But knowing she appreciated all the hard work I put into keeping fit made me want to thank that personal trainer I paid a fortune for.

“Sorry,” I said, running my hand through my short hair and ruffling it slightly at the ends. “I wish I had more to offer you than rye toast.”

“It’s fine.” She smiled and picked up her coffee mug. “I don’t usually eat breakfast anyways.”

I eyed her plate. “Did you work up an appetite last night then?”

She tried to hide her blush over her mug of coffee, but I still caught it. “Are you going to get dressed anytime soon?”

I watched her follow the dripping water down my chest. “Why?” I smirked. “Does seeing me without clothes on make you uncomfortable?”

She dragged her hand through her hair and shrugged. “No, not at all. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”

I laughed. I seemed to be doing a lot of that in the past twenty-four hours. “You’re so full of shit.”

She stood up and walked over to the sink to rinse her plate off. I strolled over and stopped when I reached her back. She took in a ragged breath. I could see her chest rising and falling at a steady rhythm.

I leaned in and whispered in her ear. “I’m not even touching you, and you’re already turned on.”

She closed her eyes and bit down on her bottom lip. Her hands gripped the edge of the countertop. “You’re not playing fair.”

I stepped in closer and braced my hands on either side of her. There was nowhere for her to go. She darted her tongue out and licked her lower lip. I loved knowing I could get her so worked up without having to lay a finger on her. My chest heaved and whatever plans I thought I had for the rest of the day flew out my kitchen window.

Her eyes fluttered closed, and she sighed. “You’re distracting me.”

I brushed my thumbs along her arm, her body practically arched into my erection. “That sounds serious.”

She spun around, and tried to push against me, but her strength was no match for mine. “You’re hopeless,” she sighed, looping her hands around my neck and capturing my mouth in one swift move. My chest was still damp from the shower, but she didn’t seem to mind. I tightened my fingers around her hip and pulled her against my cock. Her tongue swirled with a force that had me aching to be inside of her.

The ringing of her cell phone had us pulling apart. I ran my hands through my hair in frustration. What the fuck was wrong with me? I was insatiable. I could not get enough of this woman. It was like she had some magical pussy or something.

I needed to get a grip and put some distance between us. Otherwise, I was going to be late for lunch with my mother, and most likely miss my flight back to New York.

I dropped my hands from her shoulder. “You should probably get that.” I slanted my head to the side. “I’m going to get dressed.”

I spun around and walked into my bedroom to grab my clothes, taking a couple of minutes to clear my head. This woman was killing me, and it was safe to say that she was under my skin.

“What’s going on in that pretty little heads of yours?” I asked, letting my hand slide down to grip the steering wheel as we reached a stop sign. She’d been quiet since we pulled out of my driveway. I could practically feel the wheels turning in her head.

She shifted her weight and threw her hair over her shoulder and started to wrap it into a thick braid. “I was just wondering when I was going to see you again.”

I let my foot off the break then placed it on the gas. My eyes went back to the road as we picked up speed.

I turned and reached for her hand. It was so small, yet it fit perfectly inside mine. Like it belonged there. “I want to make you promises, but I’m not even sure of that answer myself.” I hated having this conversation, especially after last night. “All I can do is try my best, and see you as often as my schedule allows.

I should have been focusing on running the business and helping my mother sort through my father’s finances. Instead, I was here, in a small little beach town in South Carolina, questioning all the decisions I had made up to this point in my life. Wondering how I was going to walk away from this woman when all I wanted to do was beg her to come with me. I knew it was a ridiculous thought given how anchored her life was here. It wasn’t like I could ask her to quit her job, pack shit up, stick Tanner in the back seat and move almost a thousand miles away with someone she had only known for a few weeks. I was losing my mind trying to figure out how I was going to make this work.

I slid my sunglasses over my eyes and glanced in her direction.

She fiddled with the ends of her hair like she was nervous. “You don’t need to make me any promises right now. Things are already complicated as it is. We can just keep things light.” She said it so casually, I thought I misheard her.

I swerved the car off the side of the road and slammed it in park. Her comment pissed me off.

“Let’s you and I get a few things straight.”

It was obvious that we needed to get on the same page. I wasn’t a relationship expert, but even I knew that miscommunication could end things quicker than they started. “I’m not going to make you any promises that I can’t keep. I won’t lie to you either. I really don’t know how we are going to make this work, but we will find a way. I told you I would try my best and that’s all I can do.”

She sighed and looked down at her lap. “I appreciate you saying that. I just don’t want you to feel pressured.”

I shook my head and gripped the back of my neck. “I’m with you because I like being with you. If I call you, it’s because I want to hear your voice. If I decide to fly to South Carolina every weekend, it’s because I have the time and want to see you.”

I grabbed her chin in my hand, forcing her to hear my last words. “People do long-distance relationships all the time. There is no right or wrong. There are no rules. There are probably a million reasons why this won’t work, but I don’t care about a single one.”

She smiled, leaned in, and pressed her lips to mine. I kissed her like I didn’t want to leave her. Our tongues pushed and pulled against each other. It was as if we were chasing something and desperately trying to hold onto what it was. Never in my life had I ever felt such a pull to another human being. Sure, I’ve had chemistry with other women before, but never to this level.

The sound of her phone ringing had us pulling apart for the second time this morning. She dug it out of her purse, looking flustered when she looked at the screen. I couldn’t help but laugh even though I was feeling the same way.

I pulled back out into the intersection as she answered her call. “Hey, Phil.”

Phil. Who the fuck was Phil?

She turned her head away from me as she talked into the phone. “Thank you so much. I’ll be home in just a few minutes. You’re a lifesaver. I don’t know what I would do without you.” She laughed. “Yes, there will be a plate of chocolate chip cookies waiting for you tonight.”

Cookies? What the fuck? I just banged the shit out of this girl, and she didn’t offer me cookies.

“Okay, see you in a few.” She hung up and then slid her phone back into her purse.

“Who was that?” I snapped, feeling every muscle in my body tense.

“Oh,” she shrugged, brushing her hair off her shoulder like she didn’t just tell some guy she was baking him cookies tonight. “That was Phil. He lives next door.”

“Why is he at your house?” I asked, studying her before glancing out back to the road.

“He took care of the dog last night.”

I glanced into the review mirror. “He has a key?” I didn’t want to look at her, because I was afraid she would see the jealousy burning in my eyes.

I never got jealous. Ever.

“Yes, he watches the dog sometimes. He also does a lot of odds and ends around the house for me. He works in construction, so he knows how to do those things. The only problem is that he never lets me pay him, so I end up cooking dinner or baking him cookies as a thank you.”

I flicked the turn signal as we pulled onto her street. “Doesn’t his wife cook?”

“He’s divorced.”

Just then we pulled into her driveway. Phil, the fucking construction worker slash dog sitter, came sauntering out of her house as if he owned the joint with Smuckers happily trailing behind him.

“That’s Phil,” she said, stating the obvious. He looked exactly like I had hoped he wouldn’t. He was tall, tan, and built with tattoos sleeves covering both arms. “And that’s his house right there.” She pointed to the little brick ranch-styled home with a white Ford F-150 and a vintage Harley Davidson sitting in the driveway.

This was bad. Very bad.

His smile faded as he reached the car and his eyes cut to mine.

Chloe jumped out of my jeep with good old Phil catching her the second she landed on her feet. She had to place her hand on his forearm as Smuckers barreled toward her, almost knocking her to the ground. She knelt down to greet her furry little friend who continued to lick her face. The lucky bastard. “Did somebody miss me?”

I walked around with my hands on my hips as Phil sized me up. Smuckers came running over, tail wagging and ears flopping. “Good to see you again too,” I whispered and scratched his head in greeting.

Phil’s eyebrows raised and lowered in surprise. He extended his grease smudged hand out for me to shake. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Phil.”

I grabbed his hand. His grip was tight, but I wasn’t backing down. I returned the grip with equal force. “I’m Jack. Thanks for taking care of the dog last night.”

The smile on his face frizzled. The smirk on mine grew.

“Yes, I owe you,” Chloe said as I slung my arm over her shoulders, silently protecting my property. I didn’t want good old Phil to get any ideas because the thought of him making a move on her drove me crazy. “And thanks for fixing the bolt on the swing set. I’ll make sure to send Tanner over when he gets home to take out your trash.”

He laced his fingers around the belt loops of his faded, worn blue jeans. “You’re welcome, Chloe. I also fixed the leak under your sink. Just needed a new seal.”

Well, wasn’t he just super fucking thoughtful?

“I think that calls for two batches of cookies and a twelve pack of beer.” She grinned at him. I hated the familiarity and friendly banter between them; not to mention, the way he stared at her.

I pressed a kiss to her temple, intentionally pulling her attention away from him. “Sweetheart, I gotta get going soon. We should probably head inside.”

She looked up and watched me for a moment. Her eyes searched mine; for what, I wasn’t sure. “Right. Thanks again, Phil,” she called over her shoulder as I lead her inside.

Her eyes narrowed slightly as soon as the door closed behind us. “What was that?”

Apparently, I was more obvious than I had thought.

“What?” I asked, feeling this crazy swirl of irritation rush through me. Knowing that I wasn’t going to be around to keep my eyes on Phil the fixer drove me crazy.

She slanted her head to the side. “Phil is just a neighbor who helps me out a lot around the house. There is nothing going on between us. You didn’t need to piss all over my yard to mark your territory.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, feigning innocence.

She smacked my chest. “Why were you out there acting like a jealous boyfriend?”

I reached out and grabbed her wrist, feeling my patience snap. “If you are going to be sleeping in my bed, you won’t be sleeping with anyone else.”

Her mouth fell open, and then she blinked her eyes trying to register what I just said. I was trying to find the words but came up short. It was probably a dumb thing to say, and I probably sounded like an asshole, but I didn’t care. She could be pissed all she wanted.

She cleared her throat and looked me dead in the eye. “You must suffer from memory loss, because I told you less than twenty-four hours ago that you are the first man I’ve been with in over seven years.”

God, I was going about this all wrong. This is why I didn’t do relationships because I suck at them. I needed to tamp down the foreign feeling of jealously and turn this around. I didn’t want to leave like this. Resting my forehead against hers, I softened my tone. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap at you. I just didn’t like the way he was looking at you.”

“Jack, he’s just a friendly neighbor. I have no romantic interest in him at all.”

I reached out to run my thumb along her jaw, loving the way she leaned into my touch. “That’s good to hear because I want to be your only romantic interest.”

She looked guarded and unsure, and I didn’t like that one bit. “Does that go both ways?”

My thumb found her cheek as I looked into her eyes. She made me nervous, which was ironic because I was usually the one to make a woman nervous. Not the other way around. “Damn straight, it does.”

I pulled her in tight and made a promise to myself at that moment that I would do everything in my power to not fuck this up.