Rhett held his hands up by his sides and motioned to the room. "This is the living room and the foyer."

"Lovely." Joseline put her hands in her pockets and wished she could melt into the floor. Her outfit was ridiculous. What had she been thinking? He hadn't wanted her. This was all a joke. He was being nice, but she could tell that she really wasn't his type. He hadn't made the first move, so she was breaking her rules. How humiliating. She hadn't even made it six months. She was such a fool.

He opened the closet to his left. "This is the coat closet. I assume you want to keep yours on for now."

She nodded and tried to pull the belt of her coat even tighter. When she chose this outfit, she'd thought she'd be taking it off for him. Instead, she wished she were wearing sweats. Next time, if she got the courage to do this again, she'd be wearing something much more low-key. No more going all out on the first hookup. Though the chances of her trying this again were very slim.

"If you'll follow me to the kitchen." He led her through the door at the back of the living room.

The style flowed well from the living room to the kitchen. She would call it shabby chic. There was a mix of DIY-looking pieces that he had probably painted himself and Pottery Barn stuff. Everything had classic charm. Worn in while still looking modern. The color scheme was mostly reds and neutrals. There was also a surprising amount of plaid. The pink blanket she had given him fit right in.

"Here's the kitchen." He opened the fridge. "Here's where most of the food is. Anything you want, you can have. And I can go out and buy stuff for you tomorrow, too. Do you have any allergies or anything?"

"Nope. I can eat whatever." She was going to make a self-deprecating remark along the lines of, "With this figure obviously I like to eat," but she didn't need to make fun of herself. She'd already done enough.

He opened up a few cabinets. "Here are the cups and plates. Down here are the pots and pans. And that's pretty much the downstairs. I know it's not much, but I hope you feel comfortable. I'll show you to the bedrooms."

They went back to the living room, and he pointed to the hall. "There's the bathroom for downstairs too."

She followed him up the carpeted stairs to the second floor. It was big for an older home. The landing had enough space to fit a couch and a second TV.

"You must really like TVs," she said appreciatively.

He shook his head. "I don't. But when I have guests, I like to be able to accommodate everyone comfortably. Having more than one seating area helps when I have my big yearly gatherings. I don't watch much TV, though."

"Oh, I love TV and movies. I can't get enough."

"I'm more of a book man, myself."

She frowned. She wasn't a big reader. Not that she hated reading; it just wasn't her favorite. But she knew that wasn't something to say to a man who liked to read. It would only give him the wrong impression of her, and he probably already thought little of her. She didn't want to make an even worse impression. He would probably think she was stupid.

"You have a lot of parties?" she asked.

"No. I try to have two each year, one in the warm months and one in the cold. I'm close with a lot of people in town, and I like to show my appreciation by having them over twice a year and going all out. It's a lot of fun, but not my usual thing."

"Cool." She meant it. He didn't seem like a party guy, and it was nice that he would do that. She didn't have any parties at her apartment.

"This is my room." He closed the door before she could look in. "I don't want you to go in there. It's too messy."

She laughed. So, he did have flaws. "Where will I be staying?"

Obviously, she would be staying with him. That was the whole reason she was even out tonight, but the only person who was trying to get to her body was a scorpion.

He pointed to the room across the hall. "This one right here."

She watched his butt as he walked into the room. He really was built beautifully. That made it even worse that she wouldn't get to be with him. At least his home was nice. The bed looked so comfy, even if she would be sleeping alone.

"This will be fine," she said.

"There's fresh sheets and pillowcases on the bed. The bathroom is right next door, and there are fresh towels in the linen closet in there. There's soap and shampoo, but I assume you'll want me to get you something different tomorrow. I know everyone has their own tastes."

"No need. I can use anything for the short time I'm here." She was picky about her shampoo, but she didn't want to put him out.

"I know, but if it goes on longer than we expect, I want you to be comfortable here. Seriously, I don't mind going out to get you whatever you need."

Just how long would she be staying? She didn't have any jobs she had to get back for just yet, but he hadn't even mentioned how long he thought it would be. If he kept being vague, she would just tell him she had work to do. It wasn't like he was kidnapping her. He'd told her she could leave at any time. Still, he was stressing that she should stay for a while. This was starting to get confusing for her, but maybe she was just too tired to understand it all.

"I'm going to sleep downstairs tonight," he told her. "Not that I think anything is going to happen, but just in case."

"Well, now I'm worried." Her palms were suddenly sweaty again, and she shook at the memory of the scorpion attacking her car.

"Are you okay?" He put a hand on her shoulder. "You're shaking. Are you cold or scared still?"

"Scared, but I'll be fine. I just need some sleep." She willed herself to stop. She was fine. She was in this nice shifter's house, and he was going to protect her. Even if he didn't want to sleep with her, he wouldn't let anything bad happen to her.

"Listen, would you like it more if I slept upstairs, closer to you?"

"Maybe." Downstairs was so far away. If she screamed, how quickly could he get upstairs? "Yes. You should stay up here."

He nodded. "If it'll make you feel better, I will. I'm going to get in the shower now. It's been such a long day, and I feel grimy. Please help yourself to anything you need. Would you like me to bring you water or a snack or anything before I turn in for the night?"

"I think I can use a shower, too. That's all I'll need. Thank you for being so nice to me today and for saving my life."

"It's my job. But you're welcome. I'm glad I was there to help."

He lingered for a second and took his hand off her shoulder. He stared at her for a second longer and then left.

She really did need to get to sleep. From the way he had lingered, she could have sworn he wanted to do something. Maybe not have sex, but it seemed like he had more to say to her.

Maybe he hadn't been lying when he'd said she was his type. He did have a very nice house. The decorating was definitely her style. It made her like him a little more. Though, of course, he was already her type.

She waited until she was sure he was in his room and then removed her coat and went to the shower. The warm water was luxurious, washing away the grime of the day. It had been such a long day and night. She was sure she would sleep like a rock.

Sure enough, when she was all clean, she could feel sleep taking her over. The only problem was that she had nothing to sleep in. She sat in the bathroom in her towel for a full ten minutes before gathering up the courage to go knock on Rhett's door.

"Yes?" he asked, opening the door a crack.

"I have nothing to sleep in."

He opened the door farther and she got a good look at his amazing body. He was wearing a pair of boxers. Somehow, that was even sexier than when he had been naked. It was like that little bit of clothes drew even more emphasis to his great body. "I'm so sorry. I can give you one of my shirts. Will that be okay?"

She nodded and yawned. "I'll take anything right now."

He threw a shirt and a pair of boxers at her. "In case you want something more."

"Thank you. Good night."

"Good night."

She went to her room and put on his clothes, then dragged herself back down the hall to put her wet towel in the bathroom. When she snuggled deep down in the bed, her eyes were closed almost before her head hit the pillow.

She didn't open her eyes again until a delicious smell made her ache between her legs. She thought she was dreaming, but it was very real. Her entire bed reeked of him. She wasn't sure if it was his cologne or just his natural scent, but she hadn't noticed it the night before. Now it was driving her wild. It was so manly.

She stretched and thought about what she would do next. First choice, jump in bed with him and find out if that smell was natural to him. Since that wasn't happening, she would settle for her second choice: breakfast. She was so hungry. She wondered if he cooked.

She padded downstairs and found him reading in a chair next to the front window. "Good morning," he said. "How did you sleep?"

"Great. Is there any food for breakfast?"

"I thought we could go to my favorite diner."

"That's fine by me. I still have nothing to wear, though."

"Good point. What about one of my T-shirts and a pair of sweats? You're not going to be the most fashionable woman there, but at least we won't make a scene. We can go and pick you up something later. Maybe from your place?"

"Really? I didn't think I'd be able to go back to my place so soon."

"Of course you can. As long as I'm with you, anyway."

There was a knock at the door. Rhett looked surprised. "I don't usually get visitors this early in the day."

He went and opened it. There were two familiar faces: Hayes and Knox. They looked even more handsome today. They were both wearing black suits and were even more menacing dressed up.

"What do you two want?" Rhett's tone was harsh and cold.

"How's that woman?" Hayes asked.

She was surprised he was the one to talk. She'd thought he was just the muscle and Knox was the mouthpiece.

"She's fine. Get off my doorstep."

Rhett slammed the door before they could say anything else.

"How did they know I was still here? You think they were just checking to make sure?" she asked.

"We'll wait until they leave, and then we'll go. Don't let those two worry you. Nothing is going to happen as long as I'm here."

From the intensity of his stare, she believed him. There was no way that those two dragons or anyone else was going to get close enough to hurt her as long as he was around.