Read Once More (Mercy Heart #1) for Free Online

chance to get to.  But first, let’s get to know each other.  There is no rush.  I want to spend time with you, learn everything I can about you.  And I want to share with you about me.  Does that sound acceptable to you?” he asked, flashing a devilishly handsome grin.  The smile that stretched across her face was so bright and full of excitement that it caused his chest to tighten in a way he’d never felt before.  What on earth have you gotten yourself into here, Bryant?
    “Yes,” she responded in a breathy whisper.  “That sounds wonderfully acceptable to me.”
    “Good”, he quietly replied, planting a soft kiss on her cheek.  “Now that we have that cleared up, I can’t help but notice that you are dressed for a run.  Care if I join you?  We can swing by my place so I can change and then run on campus.”
    “That sounds great!  I am ready if you are.”  She grabbed a couple protein bars as well as her jacket and they left.
    The drive to his fraternity house was pleasant, with a relaxed flow of conversation and comfortable silences.  He changed quickly while she stretched in the yard, and off they went, but not before he shot dirty looks at a few of his fraternity brothers who had gathered on the porch to enjoy the view.  He possessively placed one hand on her bare lower back and used the other to flip off his frat brothers, who sheepishly smiled and waved as they began to run off. 
    Almost an hour and over six miles later, they returned to his house.  Though hot and sweaty, she looked just as gorgeous, perhaps even more so, than she had before they started.  He, on the other hand, felt as though his heart would get tired of beating so fast in his chest and would just stop all together at any moment. 
    “Wow…” he said, after his breathing was under control.  “I guess I’m not in as good a shape as I thought.  Good thing you are a nurse.  I may need mouth-to-mouth.”
    “Well, I would be happy to oblige, Mr. Bryant,“ she said, and then she quickly turned away, moving into a stretch to avoid eye contact with him.  Happy to oblige?   Where did that come from?  Her cooled down face was now hot again, but this time with embarrassment. 
    He stood there, momentarily stunned at her flirtatious side.  Sensing her mortification, he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, stilling her movements. 
    “Please don’t turn away from me,” he said in a husky whisper, “especially when you are being so damn sexy.  It is completely appropriate to flirt with me, you know.  I encourage it, even.” 
    Her body relaxed in his arms, and she turned around, finally meeting his gaze.  “I’m sorry –“, she began, but he interrupted her.
    “Do not apologize,” he said as he dropped his arms and grabbed her hand, pulling her towards the house.  “Come on.  Let’s get a drink.  I am dying of thirst after that run.  Then we can hit the showers,” he added, with a wicked grin.  She shook her head but did not resist him. 
    While he showered, she waited in his room.  It was much more neat and tidy than she had expected, though assuming she knew what to expect seemed laughable as she had never stepped foot in a frat house until today.  His desk was taken up with two computer monitors, and a couple of phones, much like the one he had in the park on the day they met.  She studied his bulletin board, searching the faces in the photographs of his family and friends.  When he came back into the room, his hair damp from his shower, he was barefoot and dressed only in a pair of jeans.  She found herself unable to tear her gaze away from the V-shape his abdominal muscles made as they disappeared under the low waist-band of his pants.  Feeling suddenly light-headed, she realized she had stopped breathing.  She finally looked up to his face and found him smirking at her.
    “If you keep looking at me like that, I will be unable to keep my promise to take things slowly,”