“Fuckin’ starved for this. Smelled it the whole ride here. Come on.”

With wide eyes I watched him walk past me and head for the couch.

My couch. In my house.

“What do you think you’re doing?” I called out, trailing behind him.

He tossed a pillow out of the way and sat down on the far end. After setting the pie on the coffee table, he gripped the bottom of the dark oak and pulled it closer until the table was almost touching his knees.

“Sit down. Eat with me,” Jamie ordered, rubbing his hands together and hovering over the plate after pulling back the Saran Wrap. He tipped his chin at my bowl of noodles. “See I interrupted you, so don’t give me shit about not bein’ hungry. I know you are. Come on.”

I stopped beside the couch and stuck my hands on my hips. “What makes you think I want to eat with you? I don’t even want you in my house.”

“Too bad.”

“Excuse me?” I bent a little at the waist. “Too bad? Are you crazy? I could call the cops, you know? You’re trespassing. This is private property.”

Jamie laughed under his breath. He turned his head to look at me.

“You reach for that phone and I’m gonna give you a repeat of yesterday, which I don’t mind doing, babe, considering what your fuckin’ mouth tasted like, so go ahead,” he warned, letting his gaze settle on the cleavage popping out of my dress, which I realized I was openly displaying for him since I was bending for emphasis.

Shit.

I quickly straightened up. “You can’t threaten me like that,” I informed him.

His eyes took their time reaching my face, and when they did, they were burning.

“Think I just did,” he stated. He cocked his head. “Now, you callin’ or what?”

I quickly realized I was in a bind, and under no circumstances did I want or need a repeat of yesterday, except for maybe the part where I tapped Jamie with my car. That I wouldn’t mind doing daily.

But the other stuff, which led to me making bedroom noises? No. No way. That was never happening again.

Huffing out a breath, I shook my head.

Jamie smirked, then looked back down at the plate he was hovering over and fished out a precut slice with his hand.

“Normal people use forks,” I commented, not at all sounding rude, in my opinion, but simply pointing out the facts.

“Good for them,” he shot back, sounding every bit of rude. Bastard. He glanced over at me before taking a taste. “You gonna stand there and watch me eat or are you gonna sit?” he asked. “’Cause you can do either one, Legs, but I ain’t goin’ anywhere until I enjoy this pie, and you ain’t rushin’ me.”

“I don’t want you here.”

“And I already cleared up my views on that when I said too bad,” he reminded me. “Warned you already, so I don’t know why you’re actin’ all surprised about this.”

“Warned me about what?” I asked, stepping closer.

Jamie exhaled exhaustively as if this conversation was a chore for him, please, sat his elbows on his knees, and held the slice above the plate in case of drippings, which I appreciated but I wasn’t about to tell him that. Then he looked me in the eyes and went on to explain, “Said you’d be seeing a lot of me while we both wait for you to cave and come beggin’ for my dick, and that’s what’s goin’ on here, babe. You’re seeing a lot of me. Got your address from Sunshine, which I’m guessin’ you figured out by now, meanin’ I don’t gotta limit my exposure to the shifts you work at Whitecaps. Anytime I feel like seein’ you, I’m gonna see you.”

I blinked at him, trying to absorb everything he’d just said but only managing to focus on the very first horrible chunk of information he shared, and while I focused on that shocking admission, my heart started racing.

“You were serious about all of that? You actually want to bet me?” I asked.

Jamie lifted his brows. He didn’t say anything, but I read that look. He was serious. Completely serious. Meaning Syd was right.

I was in a sex competition with Jamie McCade.

Son of a … bitch.

“I’m not playing,” I quickly announced, shaking my head. “No way. No way.”

This was absurd.

Jamie looked back down at his slice. “You’re playin’,” he said.

“No, I’m not.”

“Yeah, babe, you are.”

“Don’t tell me what I’m doing, Jamie.”

His eyes cut to mine again, only now they were filled with heat and a desire to challenge. Then I watched as he placed the slice back in the dish, shoved the coffee table away, sucked the juices off his fingertips while coming to his feet, and once they were clean, reached down with both hands to work at his belt.

My eyes jumped between his hands and his face as my heart went from racing to runaway, threatening to break free from my chest. Why is he working at his belt? He’s supposed to be eating pie and then leaving. What is going on?

“What are you doing?” I asked. My voice shook with anxiousness.

His belt whipped lose, startling me. Then he popped the button on his shorts while sharing, “Bet already started, Legs, so if you’re tellin’ me you ain’t playin’, that means you’re throwin’ in the towel and admittin’ this is what you want. And if that’s the case, I’ll take my pie after I’m done takin’ you.”

What?

WHAT?

His eyes darkened. “Time to find out how greedy that pussy really is,” he growled, unzipping his shorts.

I inhaled sharply through my nose. The sound from his throat and the slide of his zipper rolled up my spine.

“Wait!” I pleaded, holding up my hand while his reached inside his shorts.

Jamie froze. He cocked an eyebrow. And he waited.

I was on the verge of throwing up. I’d never felt panic like this. Not just because of what I’d prevented, but because of what I knew to be fact; there was only one way I could play this out.

“Fine, okay? I’ll play your stupid game,” I told him. “Just please don’t … take out your penis.”

I turned my head away and winced.

Good God. What was happening? I almost saw it.

I almost saw Jamie McCade’s penis.

That wasn’t a risk I was willing to take. I’d seen ugly penises before, but knowing my luck, there would be nothing ugly about what Jamie was packing and no amount of lying on my part would convince that loser of my disinterest.

He’d most likely won trophies for that thing, too.

A chuckle drew my attention back around.

“Why, Legs? What’s your problem? Once you see it, you know it’s game over for you?” Jamie questioned with all the arrogance in the world while zipping and rebuttoning his shorts.

Probably.

What? No! I pinched my eyes shut.

God, I was going to kill Syd. She was basically dead to me.

“Just sit down and eat your stupid pie,” I ordered, stepping between the couch and the coffee table and huffing in annoyance.

I wanted to get back to my food while it was still warm, and maybe if I let Jamie eat, he’d leave sooner rather than later.

Maybe …

I was clinging to that hope, as weak as it was. I wanted him gone.