Jo Leigh - Daring In The City

“Look, even knowing I should have my head examined, I’m going to let you manipulate me into that extra day.”

“Thank you. That’s very nice.” April really needed to get upstairs. Her head kept getting fuzzier. “So, I’ll plan on leaving the morning after the second night. Not counting tonight.”

With another shake of his head, he said, “What is it you did in St. Louis?”

“Hmm? Oh, lots of jobs. During and after college I worked everything from construction to pet sitting to serving promotional drinks to drunk businessmen. That one was the most lucrative, although getting my ass pinched got old real quick.”

“So, you never worked in sales, huh? You know, you look as though you’re about to fade away. Why don’t you let me walk you to your room?”

She laughed. “It’s just upstairs.”

“The last thing we need is you falling and breaking something.”

“Not to mention suing you. I wouldn’t do that. Wes, on the other hand, would. Can you believe him? How could I not have realized he was an epic asshole? That’s very disturbing. I’m going to have to think about that one—” She yawned. “Just not tonight.”

Luca stood close, and looking up at him made the room spin. She took another sip of her beer, belatedly remembering it was ill-advised.

“Wait a minute. Don’t move,” he said. A moment later he was back, holding a bottle of water. Then he put a hand on her back and helped her stand. Which was very nice of him. So was his sliding an arm around her waist and pulling her against him.

He was so much bigger than Wes. Taller, stronger, more muscular. He smelled good, too. Masculine. She was pretty sure he wasn’t wearing any cologne, either, at least not the kind Wes stocked up on. “He liked to smell like the woods,” she said. “Wes, I mean. But he hated the woods. Hated camping. Made me take care of all the spiders.”

“Did he?”

As they got closer to the stairs she found herself leaning more heavily against Luca. “You’re nice, though. Thank you for this. For letting me stay. I’ll be out of your hair before you know it.”

“I’m sure of it. Come on now, step up. We can do this.”

It took some concentration for her to climb up the staircase. Or maybe she was simply distracted by the man who was helping her. His body felt warm and solid. His arm tightening around her made her feel safe. So foolish. She didn’t know him. She just needed to get him to let her stay until she could find a job—heck, several jobs—so she could earn enough to find a place to live that wasn’t a cardboard box.

“No way I’m not going to start my own business,” she said as they made it to the second-floor landing. “No way that asshat’s going to stop me.”

“Good for you,” he said, walking her to the bedroom door. “Here, take this.” He handed her the water.

It took a moment for her to get a grip on it, as she was busy feeling bereft again. About Wes. About the loss of Luca’s arm around her waist. About the stupid mattress and wrinkled sheets. She looked up at him one more time, steadying herself with a hand on his very broad, hard chest. “I’ll pay you back, you know. For the pizza and beer. And water. For the next two nights. I pay my way,” she said. “No matter what.”

“Okay, we can talk about that tomorrow. For now, though, I think you should get some sleep, huh?”

She slid her palm off his chest and listed to the left. His arms came all the way around her, and she leaned gratefully against his chest, so tired and weak she didn’t know how she was going to make it to the mattress. When she fully realized what she was doing, she straightened away from him. “Sorry,” she muttered.

“It’s okay. You’re crashing from all that adrenaline from earlier.” He loosened his arms but didn’t pull away. “Take your time.”

“You’re a nice man, you know that?”

Luca smiled. “Yeah, I’m a real peach.”

“You are.” April smiled back at him as he turned her toward the room. “I’ll vouch for you.”

“You don’t know me. I could be a real scumbag.”

“No, you’re not,” she said as he gave her a gentle push forward. “I just know it.”

“You thought you knew Wes,” Luca reminded her.

Her stomach clenched, and she stumbled into the room and waited until he shut the door behind him before the tears fell.

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