Joel’s breath catches slightly, a little flush tinting his cheeks, but then—oh no.
Oh no.
His grin turns lethal.
He adjusts his towel, purposefully slow.
My eyes dropbefore I can stop them.
He catches it.
Ihatehim.
“Happen to hear anything of interest, Ace?”His voice dips just slightly, teasing—knowing.
Okay, maybe he didn’t know before.But he most certainly does now.
I swallow hard, raising my chin high as I force my face into an expression of total indifference.“Oh, yes.The sound of water is an utter fascination of mine.I listen for it whenever I can.”
Joel hums, amusement flickering behind those green eyes of his like he knows exactly what game I’m playing and is more than happy to let me lose.
Joel steps in closer, his body radiating heat, his towel slung low enough that my brain issues an immediate evacuation order.
He’s too close, too smug, too… unfairly gorgeous for a man who just did what he did while thinking about me.
My pulse hammers against my ribs.This isn’t happening.Thiscannotbe happening.
“Good to know.”His voice is silky smooth, smug as hell.“Wouldn’t want you to be bored.”
My pulse spikes dangerously, and I have to clench my fists to keep from doing something insane—like smacking that stupid smirk off his face.Or worse, wondering what it would feel like pressed against my skin.
Nope.No.Absolutelynot.
Joel shifts again, his towel dipping another fraction of an inch, and my fight-or-flight instinct short-circuits enough to make me whimper under my breath.
I need to go.
I need to gonow.
But my feet are still rooted to the spot, and Joel—because he is the actual worst—takes a slow, deliberate step toward me.
Finally, my stupid feet move as I back up.
He follows.
The hallway wall stops me cold.
His grin grows when all I can do is blink back at him, my words held captive in an alternate universe.
I swear to god, this is how I die.
Joel braces one arm against the wall next to my head, caging me in.His scent—clean soap, a hint of spice, something inherentlyhim—fills the space between us, and I can’t breathe.
I can’t doanythingexcept exist in the molten chaos of this moment.
He leans in, his voice dropping low.Dangerouslylow.“You sure you weren’t listening for something else?”
My stomach flips and another whimper escapes my lips before I finally bite out, “Go to hell, Price.I wasn’t spying on you, if that’s what you’re getting at.”