Page 131 of Rising Heat

“See? Glamorous.”

She laughs.

“I’ll admit, it’s a little cooler than I pictured.”

“Give it five minutes.”

She starts toward me, and that’s when I notice the container tucked under her arm.

“What’s that?” I ask, nodding toward it.

She glances down like she’d almost forgotten she was carrying it, then lifts it with an innocent little shrug.

“Girl dinner for me. Peace offering for you…”

“Or bribery. Depends how this tour goes.”

“You brought me baked goods?”

“I brought you chocolate chip cookies.”

She pops the lid and holds it out for me to see inside.

“You baked for me?”

“I was hungry.”

“And then voluntarily transported them to my workplace.”

“I’m taking them back.”

I grab one without asking and take a bite.

“Jesus,” I say around it. “I love your cookies, Darcy.”

She narrows her eyes while I let the innuendo sit between us. I just grin, finishing the bite like I hadn’t said exactly what I meant.

“You’re unbelievable.”

“I get that a lot.”

Before she can change her mind about the cookies—or the tour—I reach for her hand. It feels so natural I don’t even think about it until our fingers are already laced together.

We rarely do repeats with the women we share. And we certainly don’t do solo missions. But with her, I don’t want it to be a one-time thing.

I ignore the thought completely.

“Come on,” I say, leading her deeper into the station.

She looks around, curiosity written all over her perfect face.

“Do I get to climb on things, or is this more of a look-don’t-touch situation?”

I chuckle.

“Careful. You’re starting to sound like trouble again.”

“Starting to?”