Chapter 9

INDIE

Before Indie could react, Seth trapped her between the door and his body.

She glanced up at him, then turned her gaze to the zipper of his jacket, not wanting him to see the disappointment that she felt.

She wasn’t a novice when it came to men, but she had a talent for choosing the worst ones, and her ex was the king of the bunch.

She had only realized after she had left him that he was toxic, but by then the damage had been done to her self-esteem.

Having Seth look at her the way he did scared her. She was afraid he would admire her for a little while, then he’d be distracted and would become annoyed with her.

And she had promised herself that she would not be an annoyance to anyone ever again.

But thinking about it and believing it were two very different things.

“Indie?” She tilted her head up when Seth said her name, but refused to look at him. He lifted her chin with his finger, his touch gentle but firm.

“Indie…I want to get to know you better, go out with you, share your interests and show you mine.”

“Oh…,” she sighed.

“But mostly, if it wasn’t for the fact that I’m working an extended shift tomorrow, I’d be stripping you bare and finding out if you taste as sweet…~all~…~over~…”

Indie’s breath hitched as she felt her body respond to his suggestion. His voice dropped to a gravelly whisper.

“You—you want to…to do that?” she asked.

He laughed against her shoulder before placing an open-mouthed kiss on her collarbone. She shivered as he slowly slid his tongue up her neck to her ear and whispered, “And so much more.”

“Oh, fuck,” she gasped, her eyes wide as she stared at him.

“Oh, fuck indeed,” he said with a smile before kissing her deeply. He slid his fingers into her hair as he slowly broke the kiss.

Indie’s hands clutched at his sweater to support her weight since her legs and spine had become nothing but overcooked noodles.

“Indie, I really need to go now, or I won’t make it through my shift tomorrow.”

Regret made his eyes as dark as the needles on a fresh Douglas Fir at Christmas. She took a deep breath and nodded, not feeling as bad now about him needing to go. “Okay.”

“Damn, Indigo! Don’t look at me with those eyes!” he groused as he leaned down and kissed her again.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, pushing her hands into his hair to pull him deeper.

He tightened his hands on her hips before sliding a palm down her thigh and hooking her knee around his waist.

Feeling his hardness so snugly against her had Indie’s body throbbing in response, especially when he started thrusting against her.

There wasn’t enough space in her lungs for air as she felt her muscles tense, tiny fireworks going off behind her closed eyelids as he deepened the kiss even more.

Everything exploded when he sucked her bottom lip hard—the fireworks tore her mind, body, soul, and eternity to shreds as she fell apart in his arms.

He held her until he was sure that she could support her own weight, raining soft kisses across her forehead and cheeks. Indie settled against his chest and heard his heart racing.

She smiled, secure in the knowledge that she wasn’t the only one affected.

For the first time, she was able to understand why some women went crazy about a man who could make them see stars.

Seth had just handed her the galaxy, and they hadn’t even gotten undressed yet!

“You okay?” he asked softly.

She laughed. “I am way past okay.”

Seth chuckled as he looked at her. “Good, because I ~need ~to go now.”

“Then you better go before we start again.”

“Shit, Indigo! You are making it so hard,” he moaned against her lips.

“That’s not such a difficult thing to do, apparently.” Her eyes widened when she realized what she’d said, making him laugh as she blushed.

“Good night, Indigo Madison ~Aphrodite~ Dawson.”

***

“Hey, Dreamy-Dopey-Droopy-Something-Dwarf, what’s up with this…” Grace waved her hand in front of Indie’s face, her own expression bunched in consternation.

“This ~what~?” Indie asked, unable to stop the smile.

“You’ve had this marshmallowy look on your face ~all ~day. You ~didn’t~—!”

“Didn’t what?” Indie asked casually, enjoying riling Grace.

“You did the all-night-tangle with ~him~!”

Indie bit her lip to stop the laughter from bubbling over, but she could feel the blush spread along her cheeks. “I didn’t spend the night with him.”

Grace looked at her with wide eyes, reminding Indie of the wide-eyed and wide-mouthed emoji. Indie tried to stop her giggle, but it broke free anyway.

“Indigo!”

“It wasn’t ~all night~. He left early because he had an extended shift today.” Indie felt her smile stretch even wider. “We’re going on a date tomorrow.”

“Oh, wow, at least you have some time before jumping over the cliff.” Grace didn’t try to hide her sarcasm.

Indie loved her best friend and Grace was the one constant in her life, especially after her dad disappeared and her mom died.

She understood why Grace was so protective of her, but Grace tended to always look out for everyone else.

She was the best person Indie knew, but she was so afraid of letting other people close or even letting someone else care for her that she made Indie worry.

After Grace’s parents had died, her grandmother had taken care of her, and she spent the summers going to different parts of the world with Indie and her sister.

Indie knew that Grace was only protecting her circle, and she loved her friend even more for that.

“I really—”

They looked up when the doorbell jingled, and Indie could feel her insides melt at the sight of Seth filling her doorway.

A light dusting of snow covered his hat and jacket and his face was a charming red from the cold.

His eyes, though, blazed with an emerald fire that sparked a response deep in Indie’s soul.

“Oh, my little blue bells at New Year!” Felicity complained as she pushed Seth out of the way and entered the shop. “Are you serious? Can the two of you just get it over with?”

“Or can you ~not~ just stay away from each other?” Grace countered, frowning at Felicity.

“Nope, neither,” Seth said calmly, his eyes fixed on Indie. “For now, this will have to do.”

He leaned over the counter, cupped Indie’s cheek, and placed the lightest of kisses on her waiting lips.

The brief contact was searing, and Indie gasped as the fire ignited along her nerve endings.

She was aware that Grace and Felicity were debating with each other, but everything else faded away except for the way he was looking at her.

“Tomorrow,” he whispered into her ear before tugging at her lobe with his teeth. Indie’s eyes widened as she felt her body respond…

She was going to need to carry extra underwear if she was going to allow Seth into her life.

His tongue teasing her lobe made all conscious thought evaporate, and all Indie could do was murmur a non-intelligent ~yes~.

“Oh, you are both screwed,” Felicity and Grace said in unison as the deputies received a call on their radios and rushed out the door.