Chapter 12

Gideon leaned against the counter, arms folded across his broad chest as he regarded Emma. His dark eyes narrowed as they swept over her, and she had to suppress the shiver that threatened to run down her spine.

“You didn’t sleep,” he said. “Something wrong with the couch?”

“No, no, the couch is fine,” she rushed. The heat was rising in her cheeks. “Just…something wrong with me.” She tried to smile and failed. In spite of how gentle he’d been with her at Sangre and how she knew Jesse idolized him, Gideon in the flesh—in the broad, well-muscled, perfectly groomed flesh—was more than imposing. And it didn’t help that he watched her with eyes that felt like they were boring right through her skin. “But thank you anyway. For everything.”

“Gideon,” Jess said softly, “remember when we talked about not staring at our clients like you’re trying to see the wall behind them?”