Read Cuffed: A Novella for Free Online Page A

in my
bed when Steph interrupted and then when I got back you had fallen asleep.”
Shane said with a sheepish grin as he walked farther into the room, now
standing only a few feet away from me.

 
    What did he mean by finally? I’d known Shane for almost
twenty years and not once had he shown an iota of interest in me. I would have
known, I had been infatuated with him growing up. He had always treated me like
he had treated Steph, casual indifference.

 
    “Why are you messing with me Shane?” I asked perplexed by
his sudden interest.

 
    “I’m not Lex,” Shane said moving closer still. “I’ve wanted
to date you for years, but you always treated me like Steph’s older brother. I
took a chance last Friday night and hoped it would pay off. I didn’t expect you
to freak out Saturday morning when you saw Rachel. I thought we’d have time to
talk when I got back from training. Then you wouldn’t return my calls.”

 
    He knelt down in front of me. “I was hoping you wouldn’t say
no to Steph when she invited you to come over tonight. I texted her every
twenty minutes asking if you had gotten there yet. I needed to see you after
Thursday night.”

 
    “Why?” He looked down for so long I thought he wasn’t going
to answer.

 
    “I can’t stand the thought of you dating another man.
Spending time with him, cuddling with him, sharing your bed with him when those
are all the things I want to be doing with you. It’s all I can think about.”
Shane admitted looking up at me through his thick, dark lashes.

 
    “You’re crazy.” It was the only thing I could think to say.

 
    “About you,” he said with a self-deprecating chuckle.

 
    “I’m not sure what to say right now.” I told Shane staring
over his shoulder at the pictures hanging on my wall. It was hard to think with
him this close to me.

 
    “Just say you’ll give me a chance.” He said as he got up and
sat next to me on the sofa, invading my personal space as his thigh pressed
against mine. “That’s all I want Lex, a chance to be with you.” Shane’s arm
wrapped around my shoulders pulling me tight against him.

 
    I briefly wondered if I was having another wine fueled dream
and would wake up alone in my bed. But, if that were the case there would be
far fewer clothes involved right now. So this was actually happening, holy
hell. What was I going to do? The teenage girl inside of me was jumping up and
down for joy, but what about the adult me? What did I want?

 
    Who was I kidding? I was ready to start jumping up and down
too, Shane wanted to date me! I must have been taking too long to respond because
I felt Shane’s fingertips on my chin, gently turning my head to face him.

 
    “So, what do you say Lex, will you give me a chance?” He was
giving me those damn bedroom eyes again.

 
    What did I have to lose? It couldn’t be worse than the past
week. If I said yes I wouldn’t have to live with the regret of never having had
a chance with Shane. He was offering me one on a silver platter. Besides, those
green eyes of his were hard to resist.

 
    “Yes,” I managed to say before he kissed me. I melted
against him as he threaded his fingers through my hair.

 
    His lips felt heavenly against mine, and I didn’t resist
when he pulled me into his lap, my back resting against the arm of the sofa. I
lost track of time as we kissed. Shane pulled back and stared down at me, “I’m
so glad you said yes.”

 
    I gave him a shy smile. This was new territory for me. I’d
never made out this passionately with anyone before, nor had I sat in a guy’s
lap before. I had always been too afraid I’d hurt him. Shane seemed content
with the way we were seated though, so I didn’t say anything.

 
    Shane leaned in to kiss me again when I yawned. I was
suddenly exhausted. I hadn’t slept well all week and now that I had finally
relaxed my body, with the help of the wine, was reminding me it needed