Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.
Oh, hell! Her heart pounding, Eleanor desperately dug in her purse for her cell phone, which was obviously still on vibration only. In the silence of the room the buzz sounded as if it should register on the Richter scale. She almost clicked the phone silent, then realized that the only calls she ever got in the early-morning hours were emergency calls. Her heart pounded all the harder.
“No need to leave the room,” a sleepy-sounding Ty drawled from behind her, causing her to freeze halfway to the door. “I’m awake.”
Eleanor’s pulse thrummed in her ears as she answered and listened to the caller. “I’ll be right there.”
She clicked her cell phone off. Taking a deep breath, she slowly turned to face him, dreading whatever she might see on his face in the early-morning light.
“Mornin’, darlin’,” he surprised her by drawling, his gaze taking her in as he scooted up in the bed. The bedsheet rode even lower on his hips, barely covering his impressive bottom half. His very impressive upper half shamed the six-pack fantasy she’d had of him. He patted the bed, motioning for her to climb in next to him. “From your end of the conversation, I figure that was the hospital. Before you go, give me a proper good-morning kiss.”
A proper good-morning kiss? As if she even knew what that was.
In her mind, she tossed everything she held on the floor and dived back into bed with him, smashed her lips to his, rubbed her body all over his until he gave her a proper good-morning everything.
But, um, she couldn’t do that.
So she cleared her throat and wished like crazy that she’d not lingered quite so long taking in how beautiful he was. Whereas he was gorgeous in the early-morning light, she imagined her hair was wild, her eyes puffy from lack of sleep, makeup smudged from not having been removed, and how sexy could she possibly be standing there in his too-big clothes?
She was just plain, ordinary Eleanor Aston, nothing like the glamorous women he was used to who probably gave him glorious mornings-after.
Breathing got more and more difficult. Her palms grew more and more clammy.
Oh, yeah, she really just wanted to click her heels together and be far, far away from Ty Donaldson and all memories of the night they’d shared.
Ty stretched his arms over his head, enjoying the light ache in his muscles from the night’s activities.
The night’s very enjoyable, rather vigorous activities with the siren standing in his bedroom.
Wearing his gym shorts and T-shirt.
Holding her dress, shoes, purse and phone.
Looking like a deer caught in headlights.
The happiness within him dwindled.
“You were leaving, weren’t you?”
Her wide eyes and guilty face answered before her stuttering lips did. “I—I need to go to the hospital.”
He shook his head, anger replacing every good feeling he’d awakened with. “Really? You were just going to sneak out without so much as ‘Thank you, Ty’?”
“I …” She glanced down, took a deep breath. “Thank you, Ty.”
His jaw clenched. “For?”
She shrugged. “What is it you want me to say?”
That she’d enjoyed last night as much as he had. That she hadn’t been going to creep out of his apartment without waking him. That what she’d really like was a repetition of how they’d spent the night, that she’d felt all the things he had.
Because even as angry as he was, just looking at her, at seeing how his T-shirt stretched over those amazing breasts of hers, at seeing the long span of her legs beneath his running shorts, he wanted her. Wanted to pull her back into the bed beside him and kiss her until she was breathless, make love to her until she cried out his name and begged him for more.
Until sneaking out of his house while he slept off the effects of their night together would be the last thing she’d ever consider doing.
He ran his hands through his hair, took a deep breath. “Ellie.”
Her weight shifted, drawing his attention to her bare feet. He’d kissed those feet, massaged them and worked his way up her calves and …