“What’re you doin’ here?” he repeated, dark blue eyes shining dangerously.

I ignored the danger, mainly because, at this point, I was seriously angry.

“Did you just carry me in here?” I snapped.

“Ava, I’m only gonna ask one more time,” Luke warned.

I put my hands in the spare space between us, right on his rock-solid chest and gave a mighty shove. Then my eyes widened and dropped to my hands.

I was pretty certain I had given a good, old shove but he didn’t move, not an inch.

Holy shit.

Okay then, new tactic.

“First, your friend physically detains me and now you’re carting me around against my will,” I yelled. “I’m calling the police.”

“You’re gonna tell me what’s going on. Are you in trouble?”

“Step back, Luke.”

“Are you in trouble?”

“Step back!” I shouted.

He didn’t step back. Instead, he got closer, so much closer, his body touched mine and one of his hands went to the door beside my head, the other by my hip. I was totally trapped.

I sucked in breath.

Yippee! Bad Ava shouted in my ear.

Oh my, Good Ava breathed.

It was safe to say I pretty much would have sold my soul to the devil a thousand times in my life to have Luke this close.

“Talk to me, Ava,” Luke ordered, his voice had dipped low. He didn’t sound pissed off now, he sounded patient and a lot like Luke had always sounded whenever he talked to me. Gentle. Affectionate.

I should have responded to his tone but he was so close, my head tilted back to look at him and my eyes caught on his mouth. That ‘tache was hot but it surrounded the most superior set of lips I had ever seen in my whole goddamned life. I had of course noticed he had a nice mouth but I never had the opportunity to stare at it in that kind of proximity.

The top lip was nicely formed, the bottom one full; the balance was perfect and there were these sexy ridges that made you want to explore. I found myself wondering if that mouth was soft or hard when he used it to kiss you. Then I found myself wondering what it tasted like. Then I found myself thinking I wanted to run my tongue along it.

“Ava,” I watched it move as it said my name and my eyes drifted dreamily up to Luke’s.

I was in kind of a fog and when my eyes hit his I was no longer thinking clearly, totally lost in the moment, so lost I licked my lips.

“Jesus,” he muttered, his voice soft and now he was staring at my mouth.

I watched, fascinated as his face stayed hard but his eyes went warm. Ultra warm. Warm in a way I had never seen before. He always looked at me with warmth in his eyes and I knew he didn’t look at everyone that way, but as he always looked at me that way I knew this was different, way different. His eyes were warm in a way that made me feel warm, all over.

He wasn’t that far away but he started to come even closer.

Ho-ly shit.

I blinked and, self-preservation in mind, I shoved at him again, pulling my head back with a jerk and cracking it against the door.

The moment was broken.

“Step back!” I shouted.

Luke’s eyes narrowed. “What are you playin’ at?”

“I’m not playing at anything,” I yelled. “I was in the neighborhood, I thought I had time on my hands. Mom told me you worked here so what the f**k? Stop by and see an old friend. Then you all act like Neanderthal crazies. Jeez. Forget it. I have to go to the dentist. He’s gonna be pissed.”

I shoved again but Luke still didn’t move.

“You’re lying,” he said.

“I am not!”

His face came closer. The closer I thought it would have come a moment ago when, for one heart-stopping, insane moment, it seemed like he was going to kiss me. This time, it came in threateningly.

“You waltz in here, after five years, not lookin’ like you, not actin’ like you, jittery and bitchy, somethin’ I never would have expected from you. You lie through your teeth then stare at my mouth like you want to stick your tongue down my throat and when I’m ready to give you that opportunity, you go back to bitchy and lying.”

I was staring at him. I couldn’t help it. I’d never heard anyone be that brutally honest before in my life.

And he told me he was going to give me the opportunity to kiss him.

Um… wow.

“I’m not playin’ this game, Ava,” he warned, snapping me out of my thoughts. Gentle, affectionate Luke totally gone, we were back to dangerously pissed off Luke. “You got trouble, you tell me right now so I can help you. I find out another way, you’ll pay.”

My head jerked. “What?”

“You heard me.”

I had heard him and I couldn’t believe what I had heard. “Did you just threaten me?” I asked.

“It wasn’t a threat.”

Read: It was a promise.

Yikes.

I didn’t know what “paying” would entail and I sure as hell wasn’t going to find out.

“I’m not in trouble,” I told him. And I wasn’t, not really. Okay, maybe a little bit. But I was worried I was about to be in a lot in trouble.

“I find out you are…”

“You won’t find out I am. In fact, I can promise you won’t see me again,” I bit out, glaring at him.

“I’ll see you again,” he said in a way that I felt a thrill go up my back.

Seriously, it was high time to escape.

“Step back,” I demanded.

He stared at me.

“Step back!” I shouted.

He stepped back.

I whirled, threw open the door and stomped down the hall.

Then I was twirled around, a hand at my elbow and I jerked my arm out of Luke’s grasp. He was, for some reason, now grinning, face relaxed, one corner of his lips tipped up.

“Wrong way,” he said and he looked about ready to laugh.

Great.

I was a total dork, making my grand exit and going the wrong way.

I threw him a look that should have made him spontaneously combust (of course, it did not) and stomped the other way, Luke beside me the whole time. His vibe had morphed from pissed off to amused and I didn’t like it one bit.

He opened the door to the reception area for me and I hightailed it across the room, focused on the outer door and escape and not looking at anyone.

“Later,” I said to the room at large because I didn’t want to appear rude.

For some reason, this was met with Shirleen saying, “I’ll put money down that she’s livin’ with him in four days.”