Hard Time (Hard as Nails #1) by Hope Conrad Page A

face. “Thank you.”
    “Now that that’s out of the way…”
    Oh shit, here we go.
    “You made me feel like crap last night,” she continues. “You got a piece, and then you took off running for the safety of your apartment.”
    I swallow hard as I try to think of an appropriate response, but I come up empty.
    “I told myself I shouldn’t see you again.” She pinches the bridge of her nose. “I told myself I should talk to George about having you fired.”
    That cuts deep, but the confusion runs deeper. “If you want me fired, or out of your life, then why did you just give me a good word again ?”
    My eyes follow the air as she breathes it, first into her mouth, and then down her throat.
    “You didn’t let me finish. I thought about having you fired, but…”
    Suddenly, I can’t stand the distance between us any longer. I slowly walk up to her, take her hands in mine, and gently pin her to the wall with her arms held above her head. “But what?”
    She stares at me even as her fingers tighten their hold on mine.
    “But what?” I ask again, this time more firmly.
    “But a part of me thought the way you acted after we… Well, I just wasn’t sure. I wanted to hear your side of the story before I rushed to judgment.”
    She shifts her weight, and feeling her against me triggers a wholly expected physical response. “Hear my side?” I question, and shift my body against hers so that my lips graze her ear. “Or have me inside you, again?”
    She cranes her neck so that our eyes meet once more. She’s trying to control her breath, trying to pretend she could stay away from me if she chooses, but I know better.
    Her lips separate, like she’s prepared to speak, but nothing comes out except bated silence between ragged breaths. I release her hands and move my palms to cup her face, holding her still while I kiss her passionately and deeply.
    She kisses me back, finally giving me the answer her words couldn’t. Even after I hurt and confused her, she can’t stay away from me any more than I can stay away from her. That’s why she came here. If she really wanted me gone, she could have been rid of me with one phone call to George. If she really wanted me gone, she would have told my PO what a piece of shit I am. But she didn’t. She fucking saved me from going back to jail, and suddenly all my fears about not being good enough are wiped away.
    I can be good enough. She inspires me to be the best I can be, and even if it kills me, that’s exactly what I’m going to be.
    I pull away from the kiss with an idea, and wait until she catches her breath and she’s left wanting more before I speak. “Who watches your kid?”
    Her brow furrows at my unexpected question. “My sister.”
    “Can she watch her two nights from now, after work?” Two days should be enough to plan a proper date. I’ve never actually been on a real date. I’ve been hitting it and quitting it since the day I matured from my teenage years, and into adulthood.
    “Why?”
    “Because we’ve done everything in reverse.” I tilt my head. “Maybe we can do this right. I’ll take you to dinner, and then I’ll take you home.” I grip her hip with my palm, tight enough to tease her, but not tight enough to leave a bruise—we’ll save that for the next time she’s on her back, except this time she’ll be in my bed. “In between, maybe you can have me inside of you again… Or not. Whichever you choose.” I allow her the space to believe she’s in control, but know the outcome before the gears are set into motion. We’re two of a kind, each blinded by our obsession with one another. It might be an unhealthy relationship, but the obsession runs through our blood.
    “Uhm…”
    “Is that a yes?” And if so, to what? The date and the sex?
    She pushes her hand against my chest, trying to hold on to a modicum of self-control. “It’s a maybe.”
    “That’s not going to work for me, Princess.”
    “Fine,” she huffs and