Staking His Claim by Tessa Bailey Read Free Book Online Page A

backed out of the bathroom as if afraid to lose sight of her. That look caused something awful to coil uncomfortably inside of her. He didn’t know who he was looking at in such a manner. He thought she was someone else entirely. Not the impulsive idiot she was in reality. Dammit to hell, Lucy .
    She turned and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Hair a tumbled mess, lips swollen, she barely recognized herself. It was more than her appearance, though. The regret coursing through her veins was palpable in the air around her. After a moment, she overheard snippets of the discussion taking place at the door.
    Found the part after all…installed…car’s ready to go…
    Relief and disappointment warred so hard in her stomach, it caused her eyes to close. Leaving now and continuing their drive to New York meant she wouldn’t have to face her lie much longer. She could part ways with him, hope he would chalk their encounter up to a hot fling and not pursue seeing her again. The crippling wave of panic that came along with that thought, however, blocked everything else out. She should come clean. Now. Before another minute passed.
    And see the tenderness in his eyes turn to disgust?
    No. Maybe it made her a coward, but she couldn’t do it. Just a few more hours and she could leave him with a fond memory, instead of the outrage she suspected would come along with finding out she was Brent’s little sister.
    Outside the bathroom, she heard the door close. Taking a deep breath for courage, she pasted a smile on her face and walked out into the bedroom to find him, hands on hips, staring thoughtfully at the door. He snapped to attention when he saw her, but looked less than pleased.
    “The car is re—”
    “I heard,” Lucy interrupted brightly. “That’s great news.”
    “Is it?” Matt said under his breath. Swallowing hard, Lucy pretended not to hear him as she pulled on her clothes, doing her best not to wince when the material dragged over her sensitive backside.
    When she’d finished dressing and he still hadn’t moved, she had no choice but to face him. There was no way to prevent her eyes from tracking down over his shirtless body. Good Lord, he enlivened every cell in her body. Knowing she could never allow herself to touch him again caused her physical pain. “What?”
    “You seem awfully eager to leave.”
    Lucy steeled herself against the urge to drop her purse and throw herself into his arms. Instead, she waggled her eyebrows. “I’ve got big plans for this week. I guess I’m eager to get started.”
    Then without a backward glance, she breezed out of the room and headed in the direction of the garage, hating herself a little more every step of the way.

Chapter Five
    Matt’s hands clenched on the steering wheel as he exited the Holland Tunnel. Minutes away from dropping Sasha off and he still had no idea where the hell they stood. She’d been feigning sleep for the last fifty miles, head propped against the window, her curls still messy from his goddamn hands. Several times he’d had to tamp down the urge to pull over and drag her across the console onto his lap. Not to fuck her, although that’s undoubtedly where it would lead if he got that close. First, though, he wanted to get an honest reaction out of her. If it meant interrogating her on the side of the highway, he’d been prepared to do just that.
    Then the flashbacks had started, causing him to question everything. Had he imagined her enthusiasm when they’d made love back in the motel room? Had her uninhibited response been a projection, something he’d wanted to see, but didn’t really exist? It stood to reason, since she’d been deathly quiet afterward, standing motionless in front of him in the bathroom, pale as a ghost. God, if he’d hurt her…
    Matt glanced at her delicate form for what felt like the thousandth time. Shit, he’d been rough as hell with her. She’d seemed to want it, even requested it. Hadn’t she? He’d