Mixing Temptation by Sara Jane Stone

Author:Sara Jane Stone
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2016-09-01T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

NO ESCAPE.

Despite all her talk about superheroes and sexy costumes, those words repeated over and over like the refrain to a song Josh couldn’t get out of his head. Hell, he swore he saw the letters spelled out in the sky as he stared up at the stars.

He had a hard time imagining the bold, beautiful Caroline trapped by anything. Wearing a sparkly leotard and fighting crime? Hell yeah. But never defeated.

Maybe I put too much faith in her strength.

He glanced at the door leading to the cottage’s warm and snug interior. He didn’t mind the cold night air or the wooden floorboards beneath his sleeping bag. He’d wanted to give her space. And he’d needed some himself.

What if his brothers had been right? The idea practically gave him hives. But still, he had to wonder if this little road trip was destined to implode. He knew what he wanted for his future. And driving around the coast with his girlfriend was a far cry from settled down. Add in the fact that she wanted to spy on her rapist and this trip seemed destined for failure.

The past is best left alone. Better to move on.

He’d learned that lesson over and over. When his mother left without looking back, when an accident stole weeks of his life, literally wiping them from his memory. Yeah, he knew better than to look back.

Plus, he’d witnessed his brothers’ struggles on their way to love. Chad had been up front with him after Josh’s breakup with Megan.

I let my abandonment issues hold me back when I fell in love with Lena.

And Josh had laughed until his sides hurt. He’d wished he’d recorded his brother, the former town playboy, talking about his feelings. But when he told Chad to repeat himself word for word so that he could capture his statement, his older brother had threatened to kick his ass.

Just don’t fall into that trap.

That was Chad’s final bit of advice. And it had taken Josh a while to receive the message, but he’d finally made the call. Time to get serious and settle down. Only he didn’t share his brother’s ‘issues.’ His mother was part of the past. He didn’t linger on the memory.

But he knew it wasn’t that easy for Caroline to let go. Maybe tomorrow’s trip down memory lane would help. Maybe it would sever the connection. Or maybe her ‘issues’ were too big.

No escape.

Josh closed his eyes. He knew what he wanted. A fourth date. Caroline in his bed—­or hell, the front seat of his truck. But he didn’t want to be her escape. He wanted to be her home—­her second chance at a future that wasn’t marked by fear and failure.

And I wouldn’t turn down another massage. . .

His body responded to the memory. But he didn’t reach beneath the sleeping bag to ease the ache. That was one feeling he wanted to linger, ready and waiting to play out their mutual fantasy.

“PLANNING TO CHANGE into your costume on the road?” Josh held out a steaming cup of coffee.

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