Total pages in book: 179
Estimated words: 170878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 170878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 854(@200wpm)___ 684(@250wpm)___ 570(@300wpm)
I had some experience with gauging how drunk and therefore how unpredictable a man was just by the scent of whisky on his breath.
Furthermore, Beau was a responsible father, a responsible person. I knew he wouldn’t have done anything to jeopardize Clara’s life, certainly not something like drinking and driving.
“I fucked up,” he stated plainly. “None of those things are excuses for failing my daughter. For dropping the ball.” He bore his gaze into me with an intensity that had me forgetting how to breathe.
“You caught it. All of it.” He looked around the room again. His entire body seemed to sag, he looked defeated. Devastated.
“And I fucked up,” he repeated.
I wasn’t sure what made me do what I did next. Well, that’s a lie. Basic human empathy. I was born with it. It had bitten me in the ass more times than I could count. And it would likely bite me in the ass this time too. But I couldn’t program it out of me. I didn’t want to.
That softness was what urged me forward, to put my arms around Beau, tentatively, as if I were trying to hug a tiger. Which I kind of was. I wasn’t sure whether he was going to bite or not.
But I didn’t know what else to do. I didn’t think anyone had considered hugging Beau through all of this. I doubted he showed his father or his brother this side of him. The side he probably hid from even himself. He had to be strong. Unyielding. Unmoved by emotion. He had to be steady as a mountain.
There was only so much a human could take. Even a large, seemingly capable asshole like Beau.
He needed a hug.
No one else was there to give him one.
So I did.
And to my immense surprise, he didn’t push me away, didn’t lash out. He stiffened for three seconds—I counted—then he did the unthinkable… he hugged me back.
He was warm. His body was hard, yet the nook of his chest felt like a cocoon. I was enveloped by his scent, imprinting it onto my memory. Those strong arms around me, the feeling of safety.
It had been a long time since someone other than Clara had hugged me too. And I hadn’t realized how much I needed it. How much I needed Beau Shaw’s arms around me.
Neither of us spoke. He held me tight, his chin on my head. I could’ve sworn I heard a sharp inhale as if he were smelling my hair.
I was immensely glad I’d showered.
When his hands moved, I prepared myself to be lurched back into whatever dynamic he dictated— awkwardness, menace, cold silence.
But he didn’t push me away; he pulled back only enough so our faces were inches apart, his hands on my hips, our bodies still brushing.
The intimate stance was overwhelming. This was no longer a comforting hug. If it ever had been. There was a definite energy between us.
A sexual energy.
I could not deny the hunger in Beau’s eyes. The need. That ghost of a look at the wedding was present, alive, wild. Every cell in my body responded, my skin tingling with arousal, excitement.
My mouth moistened, my stomach clenched, holding my breath as he lifted his hand to cup my chin and leaned forward.
He was going to kiss me.
Beau Shaw, my asshole boss, was going to kiss me. And I already knew it was going to be the best kiss of my motherfucking life.
Just before our lips brushed, as I was leaning forward, readying for impact, Beau stopped.
His chest was rising and falling rapidly. The hand grasping my hip tightened. Like he was anchoring himself to this earth with it.
“Hannah.” His tongue slid across his front teeth. My body seized.
My name coming out of his mouth was no longer grating, unpleasant. In his rasped voice, it sounded like it was a prayer.
“Yes?” I whispered, my voice breathy, the word almost a moan.
His gaze searched my face. When it focused on my parted lips, his eyes flared. My stomach dipped at the pure hunger, the reverence, in his gaze.
“You need to go to bed. Now.” His tone told me this wasn’t up for discussion. He lingered for only a moment more before he stepped back. Purposefully.
My body sagged, my heart deflated, and my skin was suddenly ice-cold.
I looked up to see if Beau’s mask was back in place, if he was regarding me cruelly. But he wasn’t. His entire body was stiff, but his eyes were still alight with desire.
I wanted to step forward, take charge, own that kiss that I felt in my cells. I prepared myself to do that. There was no way my body could handle this buildup of tension without release. There was no way I could survive the next few seconds unless Beau’s mouth was on mine.
“Don’t.”
The single word gave me pause. It wasn’t an order. It was a plea.