“Where is the next place?” he asked, pulling out of the parking lot.
She folded her hands on her knees, drawing his attention to her hands. Delicate hands, he thought. Pretty nails. Not long and dagger-like, but neat and pretty. Hands he could easily imagine as they wrapped around…don’t go there!
“I’m not telling you where the next place is, Reid.”
“Good. We’re done. You can stay at the hotel or–”
She laughed, interrupting his next suggestion. “I’m not staying at the hotel. And I’m not going apartment shopping with you anymore.”
“Fine. That’s settled.”
She looked over at him and he could have sworn that her glance eased some of the tension he was feeling. He liked having her look at him. Was that weird? Yeah, probably kind of weird. He didn’t care. She had beautiful blue eyes. The kind of eyes a butterfly might envy. He smiled slightly, thinking of Selena as a pretty, blue butterfly with stiletto heels.
“What’s so funny?”
He shook his head. “Nothing. So you’re done for the weekend. Good. Let’s…”
“No. I’m not done. You’re going to drive me back to the hotel. I’m going to get my rental car and go off to find an apartment alone. You’re a liability.” She turned those baby blues on him and he laughed.
Damn, she was cute when she wanted to be firm. “You’re not going apartment shopping alone,” he told her. “Where’s the next one?”
She crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. “No. Take me back to my hotel. I’m going on my own. You’ll just mess up the next visit and I don’t want that. I’m giving each of these places a fair shake and will choose one that works for me.”
His smile broadened. No one ever challenged him when he gave an order. The fact that Selena thought she could…well, it was hot. And he kind of liked it. Not that he was going to let her get away with it, but he still liked that she wasn’t intimidated by him.
“What’s the next address?”
She pressed her lips together and he chuckled. “Okay, you think you’re more stubborn than I am? Fine! We’ll just head back to my place. We can go swimming this afternoon. It’s going to be hot once the sun comes out and has burned off the evening chill.”
Her mouth fell open as he put the Jeep in gear, ignoring her sound of disgust.
“Fine!” she grumbled and pulled out her phone. As soon as they pulled into the parking lot of the next apartment complex, he knew he wasn’t going to like it. But instead of pointing out the flaws, he followed her into the rental office.
She told the sales person what she was looking for, still hanging onto the idea that she wanted only a one bedroom. He then followed them to the unit, enjoying the view of Selena’s pert butt in the cute shorts and those long, sexy legs. He wondered what she would look like in shorts and heels instead of the flat sandals she was wearing. He could see her in heels that would make her shorts look even shorter. Yeah, he liked that image. Of course, if she’d worn heels, he never would have taken her to a place like this. Even now, some guy exiting the building couldn’t help noticing Selena’s legs. The idiot just about broke his neck twisting around to watch her, then almost ran into Reid. The bald guy stumbled backwards and Reid did nothing to help him as he adjusted his glasses.
“Keep your eyes to yourself,” Reid grumbled, stepping around the man, following the two ladies into the empty apartment.
This one was just like the last one. A kitchen and den area barely large enough to fit a love seat and table with two chairs. The bedroom was so small, he doubted that a king sized bed would fit. And she was definitely going to need a king sized bed. He wasn’t going to hold back, he realized as he watched her walk through the apartment. There was an obvious attraction between the two of them. It was powerful and she was beautiful.
Maybe he could change. For Selena, he could contemplate a relationship. Not marriage. Hell no, he wasn’t doing marriage, but he’d love to see her when he walked into his house every night. He knew that her smile would light up the night in a way nothing else ever could.