Dangerous Kiss (Dangerous Noise 1)

I wink back.

Ethan laughs. The way his laugh lights up his face makes me warm and gooey.

He leans down to plant another kiss on my lips.

That, too, makes me warm and gooey.

"I'll make sure everyone else lets you work too," he whispers.

"Thank you." I bite my lip so I won't add how about I answer Joel's question about whether or not I suck you off right now, in that bunk over there? Who cares about the audience?

Ethan smiles that same megawatt smile then he turns, pours himself a cup of coffee, and joins the video game action on the couch.

Ethan, Kit, and Joel shift into senseless teasing and smack talk. Mal hangs out in his bunk on his laptop. I'm not sure if he's working or playing. Either way, he manages to shoot me I really hope you know what you're doing looks every twenty minutes.

I keep my headphones on and my eyes on my textbook. At this point, I'm too far ahead of the lesson plan. I don't have much left to study in here.

That's no good. I need something concrete and easy to understand. I need numbers.

There's only one thing in the world I'm really good at and it's numbers. Beautiful, tangible, concrete numbers.

If I really want to excel, I need to get serious about what field I want to specialize in. I start looking at genetics jobs in New York City.

Just for the hell of it, I start looking at jobs in Orange County too.

It's not for Ethan.

It's for me.

In case I want to be near home.

I'm not going to be around Ethan unless he's willing to meet me halfway.

If he is…

It's always good to have options.

Chapter 23

Ethan

Violet works all morning and afternoon. She only gets up to make tea, grab a snack from the fridge, or to use the bathroom.

Long days on the bus always make me stir crazy. They always make my body crave motion.

Today is worse. I want to be the fuck away from everything else with her. I want to take some long walk on the beach, or swim after her in the pool, or throw her against my bed and fuck her until she's screaming my name.

I settle for stretching on the couch with my eyes on Violet.

It's not that I'm watching her. It's more that she's ten feet away. She's close enough I can see her brow furrow with concentration. I can see her chewing the cap off one of her pens. I can see her eyes light up when she works something out.

Damn, I could get lost staring in those green eyes.

I manage to pay attention to the game we're playing when it's my turn. Yeah, we're taking turns, the same way Piper and I did when we were kids.

When it's not my turn, it's hard keeping my eyes on the TV. They want to be on Violet. Can't blame them. The woman is gorgeous and her sweater is tight on her curves.

Already, I want her body against mine, under mine, on top of mine… doesn't matter as long as I can get her eyes rolling back in her head.