Hot Alphas by Lora Leigh Page A

couch.
    Those little tank tops were going to get her ass in trouble. They outlined her breasts perfectly.
    Today, instead of jeans or oversized sweatpants, she was wearing a pair of shorts that practically made his tongue hang out of his mouth like a slavering fool.
    They weren’t indecent, but the material ended far too short for his peace of mind, and they fit. They fit her perfect. One slender leg was lifted and bent, her bare foot resting on the cushion of the sofa. She looked relaxed, comfortable, and just like the shorts fit her body, she seemed to just fit into his life.
    â€œNone of you threatened to kill each other, you mean?” he snorted.
    She gave a small, light chuckle. “Mom says when that happens she looks for the safe room because the explosion is coming.”
    He almost winced. Yep, he could almost feel it coming himself.
    â€œWhat usually instigates the explosion?” he asked carefully.
    â€œJ.D.” She didn’t even hesitate before giving that answer. “He’s not allowed to screw with Mom’s life or her friends’ lives, but for some reason, she refuses to put her foot down on my life. And poor John D., his mother died when he was a baby, so he’s had no other example to follow but J.D.”
    Plopping down at the bottom of the couch Turk almost felt sorry for John D. Almost. The entire time the bastard had been there he’d petted on Erin like she was a homeless pup or something.
    As he sat there contemplating the other man’s drowning, a delicate little foot slid to his thigh. Automatically he reached for it, gently kneading her arch as he tried to convince himself that drowning her stepbrother was a bad idea.
    â€œJohn D. and I are really close though,” she said.
    He wondered how long he’d have to hold John D. under the water?
    â€œHow close?” He glared at the wall instead of her.
    â€œNot that kind of close,” she answered, an edge of laughter flirting with her tone. “He was always the big brother. Pulling my hair and hiding my hair bows when I first moved in. The first time I caught him unaware and planted my fist in his solar plexus he still didn’t take it seriously when I told him to leave my things alone. Then I caught him coming in drunk as a skunk one night. He passed out in the garage. I spent the night chewing gum and planting it in his long, pretty black hair. The next day Mom nearly had to shave his head bald. He must have gotten the message then.”
    Okay, he might let the bastard draw a breath or something.
    Turk narrowed his eyes on her. “Vengeful creature,” he grunted.
    It would be hard to get seriously aroused when a man knew a woman could do such damage, he thought.
    She shrugged with a smile, lifting her breasts beneath that snug top. “He knew I’d done it, but he never told on me. Never got me back. But he did stop stealing my things.”
    Kneading her little foot he stared over at her, seeing the genuine affection she felt for her stepbrother, but none of the hunger for him that lit her eyes.
    Okay, he might let John D. live. Maybe. If he could keep his hands off what belonged to Turk.
    That almost had him stilling in shock.
    His? When had he actually decided she was his?
    They’d settled into a wary routine for the past week, one Turk had felt unraveling from the moment it had developed. Still, they both seemed to be adhering to some unwritten set of rules.
    Erin cooked, he cleaned up and stacked the dishwasher. While he remotely helped Gabby work the surveillance cameras at the bar, she worked on reports J.D. kept her busy with.
    Come midnight, normally the busiest part of the night for the bar, and for them, was when the tension developed. When the air between them became rife with arousal, with awareness.
    As it was now.
    â€œYou’re quiet, and you’re staring at me,” she said suspiciously. “What are you thinking?”
    About her lips wrapped