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hide it for an entire evening had been a real exercise in self-control. He wasn’t sure how he’d deal with the whole auction thing tomorrow except to keep as much physical distance between them as possible.
    And how the fuck had he let himself be talked into it? Matt Stark had just steamrollered over him.
    Now, to complicate matters, he’d offered to drive Jinx home and her presence and scent filled the cab of the truck.
    “You’re very quiet over there.” Her voice broke into his mental conversation with himself.
    “Sorry. It’s just been a long day. A long couple of days, as a matter of fact.”
    To say the least.
    “You know this naked body will be like a nine-days wonder,” she pointed out to him. “Rowan County isn’t noted for that kind of excitement, so it will be the main topic of discussion.”
    “Yeah, I figured that.” He slid a glance at her. “I’m still feeling my way here, you know. I don’t want to piss anyone off, so you think we can come to an agreement? I’ll do my best to keep you in the loop and you give me a little space to investigate this?”
    From the corner of his eye he saw her turn toward him. “I’d say that’s a good deal. Listen, Dillon.” She put her hand on his arm and he nearly combusted just from her touch. “Maybe we got off on the wrong foot a little. Part of that’s on me.” Her laugh was a soft bubble of sound. “I guess I still have too much New York for this place. Anyway, I promise to do better.”
    “Me too.”
    Silence dropped over them again. Dillon struggled to find something to talk to her about but he found himself strangely tongue tied. When they hit the outskirts of town, he realized he at least had to ask for directions.
    “Where to now?” he asked.
    “Straight through town then left at the little shopping center.” Jinx guided him through downtown to the northwest residential area and onto her street. There was an old-fashioned streetlight at each corner and a couple of the houses still showed a light in a window, but for the most part the row of older homes was dark. “It’s the house at the end of this block. The one with the big porch in front.”
    Dillon turned into the driveway and put the truck in park, taking in the sight of the large, well-tended house and what he could see of the front yard. A porch fixture cast a limited amount of light, just enough to see the front door and a small portion of the porch. To Dillon it looked—settled. Permanent. Much as his parents’ home did. He had trouble matching it up with Miss New York sitting next to him.
    The snick of the seat belt as she released the catch nudged him into reality.
    “Thanks for the ride.” Jinx opened the door to climb down.
    Dillon turned off the ignition and nearly broke his neck getting out of the cab. She was already in the driveway by the time he got around to the other side of the truck.
    “Sorry. My mother would smack me for not opening the door for you.”
    She lifted a shoulder. “No biggie. I can do this myself.”
    “At least let me walk you to the door.” He closed his fingers around her elbow and the same bolt of desire speared through him straight to his cock.
    Well, shit. What the hell’s happening here?
    Just like two days ago and just like earlier tonight, he didn’t seem to be able to get anywhere near Jinx Malone let alone touch her without wanting to rip off her clothes and plunge himself inside her very sexy body. As he guided her up the steps to the porch, he wondered if she was having the same reaction.
    When they stopped at the front door, Jinx slipped the narrow strap of her purse from her shoulder to fetch her keys. At the same time, she turned toward him and his hands automatically lifted to rest on her shoulders. She looked up at him, a quizzical expression on her face, and it seemed the most natural thing for him to lean down and brush his lips against hers. She quivered beneath his touch, her breath hitching.
    Before he could change