“I’m—”

“She’s too busy working and keeping me satisfied to have any time to chat with you, Rix,” Lord interrupted. “If you’re not here to buy or pawn something, I suggest you move along.”

“You sure about that, Lord?” Rix did that head-tilting thing again, and his eyes raked us both. “You’re looking a little tense, man. A woman this fine should have you relaxed and taken care of.”

Lord’s big hand wrapped around my hip and drew me flush against him.

What the—? My internal question cut off as I realized what was happening here: He was marking his territory. Which was crazy, considering Mr. One-Word-Wonder had practically avoided me all week. Besides, I was nobody’s territory. I didn’t get a chance to think about it for too long, because Lord’s chest vibrated behind me. Did he just growl?

“Don’t you worry about my woman taking care of me. As a matter of fact, don’t you worry about a goddamn thing when it comes to my woman.”

His woman?

Apparently Lord was a mortal man. A little competition, and I was back in the game. But we’d be talking about this his woman thing later.

Elle stiffened, and I tightened my grip on her hip and kept her pinned to me. A few seconds passed before she relaxed into my chest. Good. She’d have to be completely clueless to not pick up the vibes Rix was throwing down. He was here to scope her out and decide whether or not he wanted her for himself. And the look on his face said he absolutely wanted her. I couldn’t blame the guy. I’d been fighting it for days, and it was a losing battle. Those dresses, that hair, those tits, that ass. Not to mention her crazy, peppy personality. She was constantly upbeat, bringing life into the shop that had never been there as long as I’d been running the place. I constantly found myself fighting the urge to go hang out on the sales floor—which I generally did several hours a day—but with Elle there, I didn’t think I could handle the temptation. She was cutting through my restraint one thread at a time. I’d been holding firm to my do not touch decision, even as my willpower faded more every day. But that was before.

Watching Rix study her curves with an eye toward ownership flipped every possessive switch I had. There was no way in fuck I’d let him swoop in and take her because I’d never fucking see her again. Not because Rix would break her or kill her, but because the motherfucker barely let another man near the women he claimed. He owned them. There was no way in hell I was letting him add Elle to his numbers.

“You sure she’s your woman? She didn’t sound so sure, Lord. In fact, she looked pretty fucking surprised.”

I had no doubt she did. There wasn’t a damn thing I could do about that. Fuck, I’d probably give the girl whiplash if she knew what was happening right now. “If there’s any surprise on her face, it’s because she can feel the giant hard-on she’s giving me just being pressed up against her.”

My words might have been crude, but they were also true. My dick had sprung a life of its own the second her body had come into contact with mine.

“Is that so?” Rix was laying down the challenge, and there was nothing I wanted to do more than put his interest to rest once and for all. He wasn’t buying the act, and I couldn’t let him leave while he had any doubt about Elle being unavailable to him. My brain kicked into gear, but Elle was quicker. She turned her head, and her body followed. She wrapped around me like a vine, hand trailing up my chest and shoulder until it curved around my neck. Her green eyes were sparkling with amusement as she pulled my head down to her level. She was going for it.

Well fuck, if we were going to do this, we were gonna sell it. And I was going to get the taste of her I’d been denying myself since the first time I’d seen her. I reached down and cupped her ass with both hands and lifted her onto the countertop next to the cash register.

Her sharp little inhale was one of the sexiest sounds I’d ever heard, and she didn’t miss a beat. She gripped my shoulder with her other hand and held on while I lowered my head to take that luscious mouth. The moment my lips touched hers, I knew I’d made a big fucking mistake: one taste would never be enough.

Her fingernails dug into the muscles of my shoulder as she opened for me, and my tongue dove inside. Cinnamon and woman. That was Elle. Spicy and sweet. I slid one hand up her back, burying it in her hair so I could tilt her head for better access. My dick, which had already been hard, pulsed against my zipper.

I’d never been so turned on by a fucking kiss.

Never.

I was so goddamn screwed.

But I didn’t stop. Couldn’t stop.

Elle gripped me tighter, and neither of us did anything but breathe in the other until the sound of the door chime pierced our bubble.

My head jerked up, not sure who else was catching our show. But I saw no one. Just an empty shop, and out the window, Rix climbed into a blacked-out Caddy. I dropped my eyes to Elle; her pupils were huge, her chest rising and falling on each breath.

“Is he gone—” she started to ask.

But fuck it, I needed another taste of her. I lowered my lips to hers again and devoured.

Who the hell was this guy kissing the living daylights out of me? Was this Lord—the silent, brooding guy who’d basically avoided me? I mean, I knew I was the one who decided to make this a real show for that guy, Rix, but now he was gone.

And yet Lord was still kissing me.

And it was the best kiss of my life. Hands down. Bar none. Without a doubt.

It went on and on … until someone cleared a throat.

“Umm … you two might need to get a room.”

Mathieu.

Lord lifted his face again, and it was everything I could do not to drag his lips back down to mine for a third round. With the kid as an audience. Yep. I was officially shameless. I unlocked my hands from around his neck and slid off the counter.

Which meant I slid along the front of Lord’s rock hard chest, chiseled abs, and the huge bulge in his jeans. I forced myself to squeeze out from between him and the counter.

It was either get away from him or grab on tight and beg him to take me for a ride right out in the open in front of God and everyone.

I was making my subtle escape when Lord reached out and grabbed my hand. I froze when his callused fingers wrapped around mine.

“You need something, Mathieu?”

The kid choked out a laugh. “Just came to grab my dinner.”