Bad Boy (Invertary 5)

“You paid her to go away.”

“Going away was the job.”

“You paid her one hundred pounds to go away.”

“Was worth twice the amount.” He eyed her speculatively. “How much will it take to make you go away?”

She made a little growling sound that went straight to his groin. Damn, but he wanted to hear her make that sound under very different circumstances.

“Get up and fix this.” Her words were clipped. Polite. Strained. She was cute.

“Nope. I’m busy. Got to keep up my tan.” He shut his eyes and blocked her out, almost sad he didn’t get to see the steam coming out of her ears. “The Ball Babes will be back from their shopping spree soon and there won’t be any peace to lie in the sun. Got to take advantage when I can.”

There was a strangled sound and ice-cold water hit his face. “What the hell?” He sputtered as he shot to sitting. He was now wearing the jug of water he’d left on the grass beside him.

“You are the most infuriating man on the planet.” She put her hands on the hips of her formfitting dress. It was perfectly respectable, knee length, capped sleeves and high neck, yet it hugged her curves as though it was silk lingerie. It was damn distracting. “You can’t bribe a five-year-old. What kind of example do you think this sets for her? You need to get your lazy bum off that chair and sort this out.”

“I don’t think so. It took a lot of effort to get my bum back in this chair.” He was exhausted after the energy it took to take a shower. Fear his foot would slip on the wet floor made his muscles lock. Muscles already screaming with pain. It had taken all the strength he had left to make it back to his seat. There was no way he was moving now.

“Will you please take this seriously?” Her exasperation worked like an aphrodisiac on his sluggish libido—probably not the effect she was aiming for.

Before he even knew what he was going to do, he reached out, grasped her wrist and yanked her into his lap—biting back a flinch when a stab of fresh pain hit as she landed on his knee. He shifted her into a more comfortable position. Well, more comfortable for him, anyway. She fit like she was custom made for him. And she smelled like summer. Delicious.

For a few seconds Abby was too stunned to move, but Flynn knew what was coming. He waited her out, and sure enough, she blew.

“What do you think you’re doing?” She struggled to free herself, and he clamped his arms around her to hold her tight.

“Got a crick in my neck from looking up at you.”

“Let me go this instant.” She wriggled in his hold.

“Sit still, sugar, you’re hurting my leg.” And damn if she

didn’t do as she was told.

She glared at him. “Let me up.”

He ignored her because even though she was angry, she couldn’t hide the spark of curiosity in her eyes.

“Okay,” he said. “I can see this is important to you, so how about I talk to the kid about the money”—he paused as he curved his hand over her hip and tugged her closer to him—“in return for a kiss.”

Abby’s eyes flew to his lips. A split second’s hesitation that betrayed her interest. It was gone in a flash. She glared up at him. All fury and defiance. “No. This isn’t something you can bargain your way out of. You need to do the decent thing here.”

Flynn chuckled. “Sugar, hasn’t anyone told you I’m far from decent?”

He nuzzled against the smooth column of her neck. Her scent was subtle and incredibly feminine. If he could bottle the fragrance, he’d make a mint. He heard her breath hitch and noticed she didn’t make any effort to get out of his lap.

“You aren’t taking this seriously,” she said. “I don’t know why I bothered coming over here.”

“Because you can’t keep away from me?” He had the same problem. Like a kid, he did things he knew would bring her over to complain, just so he could see her.

She gave an unladylike snort. “This conversation is over. Let me up.”

“Come on, Abby, one little kiss and I’ll do whatever you say. It’s the bargain of the century.” He nuzzled the sweet spot behind her ear as he poured promises of decadence into his words to tempt her. “Aren’t you even a little bit curious to see what it would be like? I sure as hell would love to know how you taste. I bet you’re delicious. Addictive.” He trailed his lips over her jaw and felt her pulse beat a staccato rhythm under his touch. “I know you’ve thought about it.”

“I have not.” He heard the lie for what it was, a defence against her own desire.

“One kiss,” he whispered against her lips. “One tiny kiss. What harm can it do?”