Love Me Knot (2 page)

“Let’s take mine.” She dug into her purse for her keys as she strode ahead of him. “I’m parked over here.”

Ryan fell behind a bit, if only just to admire her from the back this time. The lavender dress she wore flirted over delicate curves, before ending just above her knee and showing off a great expanse of shapel
y legs, which ended in
sexy strappy sandals.

His body stirred and he made a grunt of appreciation. Damn it was going to feel nice lying between those legs tonight.

She climbed into a blue Hyundai and unlocked his door. Ryan settled in beside her and buckled up, surprise flitting through him as he recognized the Alice in Chains album she was listening to.

So not only was this chick hot, but she had awesome taste in music. And apparently she drove like a bat out of hell, he realized a second later.

Ciara put the car in reverse and backed up so fast he had to grab the handle on the door.

He bit his lip to avoid laughing as she tore out of the parking lot.

“So where’s this burger place?”

“There’s one on Second Street.” He paused. “Or you can stick with that spontaneity thing and we can head to my place. I’m pretty awesome on the grill.”

She was quiet for a moment and he glanced over to find her expression unreadable. Had he pushed it too far? Too fast?

“Where do you live?”

“Canyon Beach.”

Her brows furrowed. “Isn’t that...?”

“About a half hour from here, yeah.”

“Hmm.” She drummed her short, manicured nails on the steering wheel. “Well, I’ve had the burgers on Second Street and they were just all right. So let’s head to your place.”

Well shit, she’d actually said yes. He couldn’t stop the grin as she accelerated out of town. From what he’d seen so far, Ciara was fun. And man could he use a good dose of fun right about now.

“So what do you do, Ryan?”

“What do I do?”

“Career wise. What do you do for a living?”

He glanced out the window to the ocean that crashed into the cliffs just below the highway. It was a view he was all too familiar with and knew intimately.

“I’m
in the
Coast Guard.” He paused and
glanced back at her. “A rescue swimmer
.”

He waited to see if there’d be any extra feminine interest or enthrallment at that statement, since it wasn’t an uncommon reaction with women. But Ciara just frowned.

“Coast Guard? Hmm, you know I’m not sure if I’ve ever actually met anyone in the Coast Guard.”

Nice. She probably didn’t know what a rescue
swimmer
did or what an elite group they were. Which was actually kind of refreshing. It meant she was interested in him as a person and not for his often-dangerous career.

“That’s because there’s not a helluva lot of
us. We like to joke that there’re
probably more cops in New York than there are people in the Coast Guard.”

“Wow.” She cast him a quick glance. “Okay I’m noticing a trend here. You Wyatt boys seem to have a thing for heroic careers. I know Todd’s a firefighter. The other two are like law enforcement and military, right? And you’re Coast Guard?”

“Yes. Which is also part of the military. We’re just not combat orientated.”

“Oh, right, sorry. I swear I knew that. So, really, why the heroic careers?”

He watched as her face tinged pink and smothered a soft laugh.

“It wasn’t exactly something we planned, it just kind of happened. Besides, I thin
k we’re all adrenaline junkies. We’d never
be happy with some desk job.”

“I hear you on that.”

“What do you do, Ciara?”

“I’m a nurse.”

“Well
see, look at that—also a heroic
career.”

The blush in her face deepened. “Thank you. Yes, it’s rewarding and challenging. I’ve only been out of school for a year and a half now, so it’s all pretty new.”

Before he could stop himself, Ryan reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Where did you say you were from again?”

“I didn’t.” She drew her bottom lip between her teeth and worried it.

He knew he should be wondering why she wasn’t answering, but it was damn hard to think about anything but how sweet her mouth looked. How amazing it would feel parted beneath his.

Beneath his suit pants his cock stirred and Ryan drew in a
deep
breath to try and slow down the instant physical reaction. But as his gaze slid lower, to the soft swell of breasts above the V cut neckline on her dress, he knew it was a losing battle.

“I’m from Idaho.”

His attention slid back to their conversation as she finally answered. He opened his mouth, ready to ask again why she’d come out to Wyattville, but closed it as she swerved the car to the side of the road.

“Wow,” she muttered and unfastened her seatbelt. “This view. Will you look at this view?”

Oh he’d been looking plenty, but it wasn’t at the ocean that had her attention.

“I need to take some pictures real quick. Do you mind?” But she wasn’t waiting for an answer as she grabbed her camera from the backseat.

Ryan joined her as she climbed from the car a moment later and strode to the edge of the road that overlooked the Pacific Ocean. This part of Highway 101 was especially beautiful. The massive rocks were just offshore, with waves pounding into them and sending sprays of white foam into the air.

Standing close to her, he was barely aware of the familiar scent of the salty ocean. All he smelled was her perfume, catching on the breeze that carried it to him. It was soft and subtle, kind of like her. And sweet.

Damn, she looked beautiful standing there. Her chestnut brown hair lifting gently in the breeze, her eyes shinning with excitement as she took picture after picture. She turned the camera on him and clicked off a few pics before he realized it.

He lifted his hand to stop her and she just laughed. It was such a soft, feminine sound, that his body reacted instantly to it and the image she made.

He wanted her—with an intensity that wasn’t really familiar to him.

Ryan caught her wrist as she tried to take another shot, and tugged her forward. Her laughter slowly died and her eyes widened with awareness.

“You are absolutely gorgeous,” he said quietly. “Which I’m sure you hear all the time.”

Pleasure flickered in her gaze, before long lashes swept down to cover it. “Considering I spend my days wearing scrubs and a ponytail, no. Not really. I’m not usually all dolled up like this.”

Ryan caught her chin between his fingers and tilted her head up so she had to look at him again.

“Scrubs or a frilly dress, I think you would still be stunning.” His gaze slid to her lips. “I want to kiss you, Ciara.”

He heard her breath catch. “Are you asking my permission?”

“I rarely ask permission, darlin’. You just caught me thinking aloud.” 

And then he closed his mouth over hers, cutting off whatever response she might’ve made. Her hands came up to his chest, but not to push him away. They clung to the lapels of his suit as he parted her lips with his own and slid his tongue inside to taste the sweetness of her.

And god in heaven was she
sweet. Ryan gathered her close
, reveling in the softness of her curves pressed against him. He moved his hand up and down her back, tracing the silk of her dress.

She moaned softly and responded to his kiss, exploring him as much as he did her. The kiss deepened and intensified, sending his thoughts careening and his control bordering on the brink.

Ciara abruptly pulled away, breathing erratically as she burrowed her face against his chest.

“Wow...” she whispered. “That was...I don’t even know what that was.”

Exactly. Ryan let her go and took a step backward, a little stunned himself at the intensity of the kiss. He’d meant the kiss to be something seductive—a hint at what she could expect later tonight, but
there’d been an intimacy
. A jolting spark of chemistry that was totally alien to him.

It was probably a damn good thing that she lived in Idaho, or Ciara might be the kind of girl to make him line up for that water his cousins were drinking.

Ciara smiled, showing off a sparkling white smile as she tossed her hair. “Anyway, we should head back to your place. I’m starving.”

He wanted to ask if she meant for more than a burger, but something told him she literally meant food. She was refreshing like that. He’d only just met her, but she invigorated him. Gave him the same rush that jumping from a helicopter into the Pacific did.

Ryan followed her back to the car. From the pocket of his pants, he felt his cell vibrate, but ignored it. Messages could wait. Realit
y could wait. Because right now
his world was all about Ciara and the night ahead of them.

Chapter Three

Had she lost her ever-loving mind? Ciara silently asked herself that question again as she followed Ryan Wyatt into his house.

She’d driven thirty plus miles to go home with a stranger—a guy she’d known for exactly, oh, ten minutes. And why? For a hamburger she could’ve ordered on Second Street?

You can’t be considering going to bed with him tonight. You can’t, you freakin’ hussy!

But after that kiss...hell yeah she was.

Ryan closed the door and flashed her another smile, and then waved her on. Ciara followed after him, her heels clicking on
the linoleum in the entryway breaking
the silence.

She quietly observed the interior of the house. It was a cute place with high ceilings
and
a sunken living room near the front.
The walls were decorated with blown up photos of the Oregon Coast, wildlife, and other nature images. Hmm. So apparently she wasn’t the only one who loved the view around here.

Did he ever tire of it?
His
house
seemed
to be only a few miles from the ocean’s doorstep
, judging by where
he’d turned off the highway,

Amazing.

She smiled faintly. It was hard to imagine living so close to the sea. Idaho wasn’t exactly ocean
front
property.

“I’ll go fire up the barbeque. Make yourself at home.”

Ciara nodded, hoping the relief she felt wasn’t as obvious in her expression. Butterflies still fluttered in her stomach. For a moment she’d wondered if he’d skip the burger and go straight for the seduction. The way he’d kissed her—hell, the way she’d kissed him back—had left no doubt what he ultimately wanted.

She wandered around the house, taking in the décor and getting a vibe for the man who lived here. It didn’t scream bachelor pad, which was kind of a surprise with the way he’d picked her up.

“There, that didn’t take too long.”

Ciara turned as he came back into the room.

“How often do you do this?”

O
h, Jesus, I actually asked that out
loud? 

Ryan arched a brow. “Do I do what?”

“Umm, bring girls home that you barely know.”

He was quiet for a moment. “Do you really want me to answer that?”

“I...” Her stomach knotted. “No, actually, I don’t.”

Because whatever air of spontaneity had inspired her to drive back to his house, dissecting Ryan’s history with women would kill it.

Ryan’s expression flickered with open curiosity as he crossed the distance between them. “Actually, not as often as I used to.”

He cupped
her face again and trac
ed
her cheek with a feather light fingertip.

“There’s no pressure, Ciara. I have no expectations.” His gaze softened. “I’m cool if you just want to have burgers and head out.” 

Something inside her melted a little. Obviously he wanted more, and if she were honest with herself, so did she. But he wasn’t going to pressure her for it.

“Well I can’t really just drive off into the sunset, because your car is back at the pavilion.”

“No worries. I can have one of my cousins drop it off.”

“You have some pretty nice cousins. What about brothers or sisters? Do you have any of those?”

He nodded. “I have a younger sister.”

“Was she at the wedding?”

Something flickered in his eyes. Frustration? Anger? Whatever it was, it wasn’t a happy emotion.

“No she moved back east a few years ago. Doesn’t really like to visit all that much, but she sends her son out each summer for some uncle/nephew bonding time.” He let her go and turned away. “Let’s grab those burgers and head out back.”

Ciara adjusted the strap of her purse and followed after him.