She sat staring at him, pressing her lips together, looking bewildered and turned on.
He could work with both of those things.
“Let’s go somewhere warmer.”
He started to shift to get up but she didn’t move. Since she was on his lap, that meant he didn’t get far. She was light. He could have easily picked her up and carried her off to his—Joe’s—truck. But he sensed her hesitation.
Considering they’d just met, that made some sense.
Joe and Phoebe had set them up. They had no reason to fear that the other was a serial killer or anything, but that didn’t mean they should hop into bed together.
Did it?
Levi pondered that for a moment. Why not? Joe wouldn’t set him up with someone crazy. And Lord knew they had the chemistry for it. He was turning over a new leaf but he wasn’t becoming a priest. Having sex with a nice girl who might expect him to show up at her grandmother’s for Sunday dinner and take her to the movies on Friday night would definitely be different. Different was what he needed.
“I have one question,” she said. “Before we go to your place.”
Yes.
“Whatever you want,” he told her sincerely. “And if it involves tinsel, all the better.” At her little grin he leaned in and said softly, “But turnabout is fair play. Remember that.”
“What if you never want to see another piece of tinsel again in your life?” she asked.
He gave her what Phoebe had labeled his bad boy grin. “There’s always candy canes if I can’t take the tinsel.”
She seemed to be considering that. Carefully. And thoroughly. Much to his delight.
“I may never be able to look at a candy cane the same way again. And that’s just based on my imagination.”
He stared. Completely surprised and as turned on as he’d ever been talking about candy.
“I’m buying every candy cane in this town.”
She laughed. “You can’t. Other people deserve candy canes too.”
Was there any chance, any chance at all, that this woman was thinking the things he was thinking about candy canes?
“Fine, we’ll leave three or four. But I’m a huge fan of peppermint flavored…things.”
She laughed but it sounded breathless. “I can’t believe I’m talking like this with you.”
He ran a hand over the curve of her hip to her butt. “Because we just met?”
“Because you’re a nice guy who’s doing Phoebe a favor by taking me to the formal.”
No way had Phoebe told her that. If anything Phoebe would look at this as a favor on Hailey’s part—going out with her brother-in-law, keeping him out of trouble.
“I’ll tell you a secret.” He ran his hand over the delectable curve in his palm. “No guy is so nice that he isn’t willing to do dirty things with candy.”
“Is that right?” Her grin was huge.
“Trust me.”
“Any candy?”
“Any candy.”
“I did not know this.” She was clearly amused.
“Well, I’ll tell you another secret.”
She leaned in. “Can’t wait.”
“Women are pretty much our candy.”
