Experimenting With Ed (17 page)

“I’m enthralled,” she explained.

He raised his head.

Claire shrugged. “You’re enthralling. What can I say?”

Ed smiled, the openly happy grin that always knocked her sideways.

“Up you go,” she told him, giving his shoulder a poke. “I’d better get some clothes on before a state trooper comes knocking on our,” she glanced up and laughed, “steamed-up windows. Aren’t we a cliché?”

“Your fault,” Ed told her, kissing her thoroughly before shifting back and helping her sit up.

It took a few seconds for his words to register, since Claire was still hazy after his kiss. “Wait. My fault?”

She could see the gleam of his grin in the dim light. “Sure. You’re that hot.” He tossed the condom into the empty fast-food bag that now served as their garbage before pulling his jeans over his hips.

Claire snorted, fishing around on the floor for her clothes. “Please. In a hotness contest, you’d win hands-down. I’d say eighty-six percent of this condensation is your fault.”

He actually chuckled at that and she grinned. It always felt like such an accomplishment to make Ed laugh.

Once they were more or less dressed again, Claire gave his arm a tug. “Shove over, Eddie. I’m driving for a while.”

“Sure?” he asked. “You’ve hardly slept.”

“Definitely. I’m wired.” As he shifted into the passenger seat, climbing over him, she tugged his stocking hat down over his eyes. He gave a halfhearted growl and she laughed. “I think it’s the thought of meeting your friends.”

“You’ll like them,” he assured her as she clicked her seat belt into place.

“I’m not worried about
that
,” she said. The engine turned over smoothly and she smiled. Despite the rude things she’d said about the station wagon, it was completely reliable and she was developing fond feelings for its front seat. “What if they don’t like
me
?”

Ed snorted.

Making a U-turn and heading back toward the interstate, she shot him a mock glare. “You were supposed to say that they’ll love me.”

“‘Course they will.”

“You think?”

“Yep.” He already sounded half-asleep and they weren’t even on the entrance ramp yet. “They won’t be able to help it.”

Claire grinned. “Are you saying I’m irresistible?” She chose to take his grunt as an affirmative. “Oh good. But it’s not just meeting your friends. I’ve never been to Colorado before. I wonder what the town will be like. Will it be cold
all
the time? I mean, I see pictures of these people in the mountain towns who have to dig out their whole fricking front door because the snow is up to their
roof
and, even though that might be kind of cool once, a whole winter of that might get old, don’t you thi—”

A snore from Ed cut her off. She glanced at him and smiled. The sun was beginning to come up and she could see him clearly. His big form was slumped sideways, his head resting against the window. Another snore escaped and her grin widened. If she could look at him like this and still feel her stomach contract with happiness and excitement and affection, it really must be love. Honestly, she wouldn’t have even cared if there’d been drool.

Yep. Definitely love.

Humming happily, she focused on the road. The mountains were just barely visible in the distance, looking more like a painted backdrop than the massive piles of rock they actually were. She drove toward them in the pink dawn light, with no idea what her future held but truly not caring. Ed would be with her.

That was enough.

About the Author

Katie Allen grew up in the Midwest with a horde of sisters (five) and one beleaguered brother. After an enjoyable four years working on her creative writing/art degree, and two not-so-pleasant years struggling toward her MBA, Katie somehow ended up as a mechanical engineer in Denver, Colorado. When her job disappeared during the recession, it was the kick in the rear she needed to head back to Minnesota and jump into writing full-time.

When she’s not writing (many books are necessary to pay for her unfortunate equine addiction), Katie rides horses, reads (of course), does gymnastics and looks for new (and occasionally insane) ways to research her books (cop school, anyone?).

Katie welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and e-mail address on her
author bio page
at
www.ellorascave.com
.

Tell Us What You Think

We appreciate hearing reader opinions about our books. You can e-mail us at
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.

Also by
Katie Allen

Breaking the Silence

Chasing Her Tail

Hide Out

One-Two Punch

Private Dicks

Raw Footage

Seeing Blind

Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora’s Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you breathless.

www.ellorascave.com

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