With his sharp blue eyes and messy blond hair that always looked like he’d run his fingers through it, she couldn’t help the heat that claimed her.
“Where are we?” she asked as they entered an apartment.
“My place.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah.” He chuckled. “My dad ended up moving into the apartment above the café after my mom passed away. I moved here to give him some space.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said. “I didn’t know she passed away.”
He smiled and it changed the ruggedness of his face. It made him seem almost … softer. “It was a while ago. I’m fine, living my life and all that. So, want to tell me why you decided to try and kill yourself?” He gently set her onto a chair, crouching down to look into her eyes. She didn’t like how close he was because it affected her on a very pleasurable level.
“I wasn’t trying to kill myself.” She rolled her eyes.
He smirked. “Rebecca would probably have a fit knowing you were in my place … seeing as I’m the competition and all.”
She looked away. Rebecca hadn’t hid the fact she thought Hawk was attractive. And Felicity couldn’t deny he was a fine specimen.
She didn’t need that visual, not now.
“Thank you,” she said. “For … saving me. I clearly wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“You’re thanking me?”
“Yes. Of course.”
“Well, I like this. You saying thank you. I like it a whole lot.” His body pressed against her. “I have a feeling I’m going to need to hear this a whole lot more.” His hands touched her thighs, and she hated the sudden hit of arousal he’d inspired within her.
She didn’t want to like this man. She should hate him … right?
He was pompous.
Egotistical.
Mean.
Horrible.
And he turned her on.
Now, he’d saved her, and she wasn’t going to be able to live this one down.
2
Felicity had no idea why she was still in Hawk’s house. Yet here she sat and watched as he went into his kitchen, grabbed a first aid kit, then walked back to where she sat.
But she felt like there was no other place she wanted to be.
His arrogance infuriated her, but his sexiness aroused her. It was a secret of hers, one she had never admitted to Rebecca, hell, one she had never even said out loud.
A thrill of electricity moved through her as she stared at him. He was a hard worker, had this all-around masculine aura, and the fact he was rugged yet worked with his hands, baking, creating things that people enjoyed eating, had her feeling flushed in all the right ways.
“I’m fine, really. I should get back to Rebecca. She’s going to wonder where I’m at.” He didn’t speak as he grabbed her arm and turned it slightly inward, exposing her elbow and the scrape that lined the back of her bicep.
She’d been so stunned by how everything had transpired that she hadn’t even realized she’d gotten scraped up. But now, taking inventory of her body, she felt the sting on her elbow, the twitch of pain in her ankle, and even the burn in her palm. She looked down at her hand and saw a nasty gash lining the flesh.
“You’re more than welcome to call her and tell her where you’re at.”
Felicity snapped her head up and looked at Hawk, but he was busy tending to her cut. No way could she tell Rebecca where she was. That would open up a whole slew of questions, and they were ones Felicity didn’t want to answer right now. Because she knew if Rebecca started prodding on why she was here, Felicity wouldn’t be able to stop the truth from spilling.
She wouldn’t be able to lie. Felicity would admit that she actually wanted Hawk, that she’d desired him since the moment she saw him. It was easier just to keep up the façade that she hated him.
“No, I’ll just wait until you’re done and then go.” He glanced at her then, his blue eyes like an oven, deep and penetrating.
“The hostility that comes from you whenever you see me is pretty damn intense.” He smirked, although he wasn’t looking at her.
She didn’t say anything as she watched him clean her elbow with a piece of gauze that he soaked in peroxide. Then he applied some ointment to it and finally covered it with a bandage.
Before she could say anything, he was working on her hand, holding onto her wrist, his long, masculine fingers curled gently around the bone and making her feel very small and almost fragile.
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you hated me.”
She felt her cheeks heat.
“I don’t hate you.” The words came out before she could stop them. Although Felicity liked to pretend she did loathe him, the truth of the matter was, she didn’t.
Maybe it was just jealousy because it seemed like he ran his business so absolutely perfectly. People loved him. They fawned over him, and his café was always busy. It was like he didn’t even struggle.