An Exceptional Twist (44 page)

She hugged it even tighter. “I don't know.
I've always watched movies like this. It’s comfortable.”

He laughed, and she bopped him in the face
with it. “Not funny.”

“Hey, what was that for?” He glared up at
her.

“For being nosy.” She jokingly narrowed her
eyes at him, and he laughed louder. “Shhh...I'm trying to watch my
favorite movie.” She bopped him again, but this time he shielded
himself.

He settled into the couch, getting a little
more comfortable. “You sound like your mom with her novellas.”

When she stuck her tongue out at him, he was
about to lose his resolve. The urge to sling her over his shoulders
and take her upstairs was overpowering. Leah had no idea how the
simplest of actions made him want her more than any other woman
ever had.

He pointed a finger at her. “You’d better
stop that, or I'm telling her you’re being a brat.”

Or I'm going to grab that
mouth and kiss the hell out of it
.

The movie was starting, and she threw her
pillow at him again as a challenge. He wasn’t letting her off that
easily. Grabbing onto her waist, he twisted her around until she
was nestled underneath him.

Hovering above her, his arm began to shake
slightly as he spoke a few inches over her face, reminding him that
he didn’t have the strength he used to. As much as he would’ve
loved to follow through on his hunger of taking her right now, he
knew it would ruin everything they’d worked for. It was only fair,
however, to warn her about his weakness when it came to her.

He breathed in her face, causing her to
blink. “I’m holding your pillow hostage if you hit me with it or
stick your tongue out again. I’m trying really hard here, Leah.
You’ve got to know how attracted I am to you.” Losing his balance,
his body pressed into her. The contact caused her eyes to roll back
in pleasure. He was about to make a move when she quickly blinked
in surprise.

Regret hit him instantly. Moving away, he
apologized, “I’m sorry, that was uncalled for.”

The leather squeaked as he sat on the
opposite side.

Leah pushed herself up on her elbows, wide
eyed, catching her breath. “I’m sorry, too. I feel it, too. But we
can’t. Let’s just watch the movie.”

He tossed the pillow back in her direction,
disappointed that she pointed out the truth. Without hesitation,
she flipped to her side and put her head down on it. Evidently,
they were done talking about it.

They stayed silent during the movie, and
somewhere in the middle, they fell asleep.

Leah woke up with only the light of the
television illuminating the room. She tried to sit up when
something hit her head.

“Ouch,” she mumbled, realizing it was
Stefen's head that had bumped her.

They were sharing her
pillow at the junction of the L-shaped part of the couch. Her body
laid at one angle and his on the other. Turning, she watched him
sleep for a moment. The peace on his face as he lightly snored was
a welcome sight.
He must be
exhausted.

She traced the lines of his face with her
eyes until she stopped at his lips. Suddenly, she felt blood
rushing through her veins, causing her body to pound. She loved his
lips and remembered exactly what they felt like on her skin.

No. Stop.

Careful not to wake him, she got up, turned
off the TV, and then grabbed a blanket from the back of the couch.
As she covered him, he roused.

“What are you doing?” His groggy voice was
one of her favorite sounds.

“Just making sure you don’t freeze to
death.”

He backed up, making room for her. “Don't
leave. I haven't had any nightmares tonight. I promise I’ll
behave.” His frantic tone broke her heart.

“You stole my pillow.” She pointed like a
five year old.

“Here, take it.” He pulled it out from under
his head and handed it to her. “Just don't go. Please.”

Grabbing her hand, he pulled her down in
front of him, tossing the couch cushions from the backrest onto the
floor to give them more space.

“Stefen, I don't know if this is a good
idea,” she whispered, unsure of what she should do.

His breath hit her cheek. “Please, Leah. I
sleep better when you’re beside me.”

Fighting back her tears, she attempted to
lighten the mood. “All right, but don't take my pillow.”

“Deal.” He covered their bodies with the
same blanket.

Being in his arms and spooning on the couch
was comfortable, but she knew deep down this was all wrong. This
was a completely new territory for both of them, and they were
going to have to figure out how to make this work. She needed him
for some reason, but it would have to be on a healthy level.

Several hours had passed before Leah woke up
to the sound of the front door opening.

She shook him. “Stefen, wake up. Someone’s
here.”

“What? Who?” His eyes popped open, trying to
focus.

A rather voluptuous woman walked through the
door, carrying cleaning supplies. She was startled when she saw
Leah fly up off the couch.

“Hi Martha,” Stefen said, still rubbing the
sleep from his eyes.

“Oh, Mr. Stefen. I didn't see you there.
Good morning. Should I start upstairs first?”

“No, that's okay. We'll go up and you can
start down here.” He picked up the pillow and pressed a hand on
Leah’s lower back, leading her up the stairs.

When they got to the top, Leah was biting
her nail. “What the hell?” she demanded.

He looked sheepish. “I forgot she was
coming. Caleb hired her to clean the house a couple times a week,
but she comes when Abby isn’t here. Abby doesn’t know yet, so don’t
say anything.” He pointed at her, knowing her all too well.

Leah pressed a hand to her still thumping
heart. “She scared the crap out of me.”

“Sorry.” His hand grazed her cheek, making
her forget all about Martha cleaning downstairs. “Are you awake, or
do you want to go back to sleep?” he smirked, knowing exactly what
his touch was doing to her.

“I’m definitely awake
now.”
And it’s time for me to step away
from the hot guy.

She remembered today’s plans. “What time are
we meeting the realtor?”

“Eleven.” He cocked his head to the side,
his eyes filled with hope. “I thought we could walk around the
beach after that, if you don't mind.”

“Sure, I'm going to jump in the shower
first.” She turned and headed into the room where her suitcase
was.

“Well, I'm going back to bed for a few more
minutes,” she heard him call out. “Wake me up when you’re out. We
can grab a bite on the way.”

Digging through her suitcase to grab her
clothes for the day, she yelled back, “Will do.”

Stefen was excited for
Leah to see the house. He couldn’t put his finger on why exactly.
She was about to help him make a huge decision. He’d never asked
another girl for an opinion on anything.
Ever
. But he was starting to realize
he’d been wasting too much of his life doing things by
himself.

They pulled through the community gates of
the exclusive neighborhood at Miramar Beach, the south side of
Santa Barbara. A moment later they were sitting in front of the
house. He turned off the ignition, sat back, and watched her
face.

Her mouth gaped wide open.
“Are you kidding me?
This
is where you’re buying a house?”

“You know the area?” He smirked, knowing
damn well she did. Abby had already shared one of their ‘if we ever
win the lottery’ wishes with him, and it was to live in this
neighborhood.

She gave him a smartass
look.
Did Abby tell her?

“Uh, yeah. In our dream
world, Abby and I talked about buying a house here. They’re
right
on the beach and a
lot of celebrities live here, too.”

“I wanted a house with a pool, so I could do
my laps, but I guess the ocean will do.” He smiled and winked at
her bewildered look. The concern in her eyes bothered him. “Why do
you look so worried?”

She fiddled with her fingers. “These houses
are really expensive, Stefen. You might have a trust fund, but you
aren’t working regularly anymore. Can you really afford it?”

This was another part of her charm. She
didn’t care about how much money he had. She wanted to make sure he
could actually afford the kind of lifestyle he was accustomed
to.

“Not a problem.” He opened his door.

“Of course not,” she mumbled to herself.

Sitting back, he turned to her, “What was
that?”

“Nothing.” She breathed out.

They got out of the car and walked up to the
two-story modern home.

Stefen loved the straight lines, large
windows and white exterior of this house. He’d already pictured it
furnished.

“You’re missing some flowers out here, but I
know someone that can help ya out with that.” She pointed to the
empty planters along the front, giving him a cheeky smile over her
shoulder.

Pulling the front door open, Stefen stepped
aside, allowing Leah to walk in first. He wasn’t surprised to see
what drew her in right away. The sliding glass doors in the living
room were wide open, allowing the ocean breeze to fill the
space.

The picture of her standing there, looking
so at peace, the ocean in the background, her hair blowing in the
wind—it did something to him. Suddenly, he could see her in this
home with him. This was something he could get used to.

He swallowed hard, thinking about losing her
to another man. Seeing her in this space brought images of what the
future could be like. The more time he spent with her, those
original reasons he’d compiled of why they couldn’t be together
seemed to disappear.

Her sundress danced with the breeze as she
turned, catching him gawking. “Look,” she took a deep breathe.
“Isn’t the view spectacular?”

Staring at her, he practically choked out,
“Breathtaking.”

A female voice sounded from behind him. “Mr.
Hunter, I’m so glad you decided to take another look at this gem.”
Marlene, his real estate agent, stood at the bottom of the stairs,
noticing Leah behind him. “Oh, I was under the impression that this
house was just for you.”

Over the course of the week, she’d licked
her lips and tried to run her finger on different parts of his
body, as well several other innuendoes. It was no secret she wanted
more than just his business.

Peering behind him, he noted Leah’s
discomfort. Her eyes darted all over the room as she bit her lip
nervously. He stretched his arm behind him and encouraged her to
take his outstretched hand. Leah carefully took his arm.

“This is Leah,” he said, leaving it at that.
Marlene didn’t need any more explanation. “Since she’ll be here all
the time, I want to make sure she’s as comfortable as I am.” He put
his arm around Leah, rubbing small reassuring circles on her back,
and she melted into his arm.

Damn, I love when she does that.

Something switched in the air and the once
flirty agent tightened both her eyes and her thin lips. She lifted
her chin, which made her look stuffy and—dare he think
it—arrogant?

Snubbing her nose at Leah, she scoffed,
“Well, I can’t imagine not loving this house. It’s beautiful, yes?”
She lifted an eyebrow, purposely looking down at Leah. “Definitely
the most beautiful she’s ever seen.”

Unbelievable
. Did he used to sound
that egotistical?

Unfortunately, he knew the answer—yes.

Puffing his chest, he felt the need to
remind her who the hell was paying her salary. Massaging Leah’s
shoulder, he laid out a new plan for Marlene to follow, “Seeing as
you and I have not signed any legal documents, I’ll be letting Leah
decide who will and will not represent me in this sale. I suggest
you show her some respect.”