Read In A Heartbeat (The Shameful Regret Series) for Free Online

Love you!”
Sly tells me.
    “Love you too.” I quickly mumble and hang up the phone. I
still haven’t torn my eyes away from Connor. He just keeps standing there. His
head is cocked to the side like he’s trying to figure something out.
    Michelle notices my distraction and looks in the direction
that has captivated my attention. “Oh.” Is all she says. And I still haven’t
stopped looking at him.
    A slow grin forms on Connor’s lips and he makes his way
across the street to us. He doesn’t even look for traffic. He just starts
walking even when a car leans on the horn as he walks directly in front of it.
Suddenly he is standing directly in front of me looking down. “Sweetness.” He
says and reaches his index finger to the corner of my mouth to wipe off some
excess icing, then traces my bottom lip. Connor brings his finger up to his
mouth and licks the icing off.
    Oh! Sweet! Lord! It may be possible for someone to
spontaneously combust. I feel like I could burst into flames at this very
moment. I sit there gaping at him. I still haven’t uttered a single word.
    Connor pulls the chair out from under the table beside us
and flips it around straddling it. His jeans stretch across his thighs and he
folds his tan forearms over the back. I see part of a tattoo sleeve peeking out
from under his green t-shirt. The color really brings out his eyes and makes
them stand out all the more. “If you aren’t going to finish that, I’ll be happy
to help you out.” He smirks and pinches off a piece of my cinnamon bun.
    Michelle looks between the two of us. I’ve never seen her
speechless before. The look on her face is priceless. She looks just as
confused as I do. Why is he sitting here, taking my food? He should be running
down the street as far away from me as possible. “I’m going to run inside for a
minute and get some more coffee. I’ll leave you two alone to, uh, chat.” She
hops out of her seat quickly and is through the doors before I have a chance to
object.
    Damnit! She left me. She left me alone with him. “Hi.” I
mumble and look down at my lap. I can’t look into his eyes when he is this
close to me.
    “What happened to you last night, Lynae?” Connor takes his
hand and tilts my chin up so I’m forced to look at him again. “You looked
positively terrified.”
    I don’t know what to say to that. I was terrified, but it
really wasn’t him that I was frightened of. He did nothing wrong. I still don’t
understand why I feel safe with him near me. Sure, I’m scared shitless right
now because I’m worried that my heart will literally beat out of my chest, but
I have this general sense of calm and being protected with his hands on me.
“About that, I’m sorry.” Is all I can say.
    Connor keeps my chin held between his thumb and fingers. He
won’t let me look away. Those emerald pools are staring into me like they can
see right into my soul. I almost feel like he can see my secret. “You have
nothing to apologize for.” And I’m not sure if he’s talking about just last
night, or if he senses that I carry guilt for what happed in my past.
    My entire body is buzzing. “What are you doing here?” I ask
and quickly add, “I mean, why did you stop to talk to me?” I hate that I sound
completely rude, but I need to know why he came over to our table, and I don’t
want to talk about last night. Hopefully he will take the hint. Does he feel
the same connection that I do? My heart is hoping that he does, but my head is
telling me to be wary.
    I still can’t explain why I feel so safe around him. Usually,
anytime somebody other than Daddy or Sly gets that close to me, I have an
instinct to pull away. With Connor, I find my body being drawn closer to him.
“Help yourself, why don’t you?” I say when he releases my chin and reaches
forward to pinch off some more of my cinnamon bun.
    “She does have a bite to her.” Connor chuckles.
    I look at him and smile, then lean forward to pick up