Unexpected Lovers Box Set by J.B. Heller

Once again,I had a crappy night’s sleep, so I’m up before the sun. I get ready to head into the office to give my mind something other than Atticus’s continued silence to focus on.

I fill my to-go mug to the brim with steaming-hot coffee then slip my feet into a pair of black high-top Converse and head out the door.

Stopping in front of the elevator, I decide it’s too early for Atticus to be up and about. It’s too early for anyone, really; it’s not even six yet. So, I tap the down button and try to sip my coffee, but it’s still scalding.

Three seconds later, the door slides open, revealing a mouthwateringly sexy Atticus in a pair of running shorts, his arms crossed over his bare, sculpted chest, head dipped down, and one foot propped against the wall behind him.

Lord have mercy on my soul ... the man is so disgustingly gorgeous it makes me want to do very bad things to him. If I had the confidence Sadie does, I’d walk right in there and lay one on him.

I sigh then realize what I’ve done, and my grip on my coffee falters. I gasp as hot liquid seeps through my cream-colored sweater dress, scorching my skin beneath. I grab the fabric, yanking it away from my body, and stare at the fresh stain in horror.

This dress is one of my nicer items of clothing, and now it’s ruined, while my skin feels like it’s on fire.

Holy shit! It hurts so bad.

I don’t paymuch attention as the lift door slides open to allow another passenger into the cart until a feminine sigh fills my ears. My head jerks up in time to see Kinsley tugging her dress away from her gorgeous body.

The doors begin to close before she enters, and I throw my hand out to block it. This is my chance. As unprepared as I am, I’m not going to let it slip by me.

“Are you all right?” I ask, eliminating the distance between us, coming to stand in the hall with her as the elevator closes behind me. She’s holding an empty travel mug in one hand as she tugs the stained fabric of her dress away from herself with the other.

She blinks her big green eyes at me several times before a small pained whimper escapes her.

“Shit,” I mutter, stepping nearer to her. “Let me help you. Which one is your apartment? You need to get this dress off and get under a cool shower.”

Kinsley doesn’t say anything—nor does she move. She just stares at me. Is she in shock?

Carefully placing my hand on her hips, I crouch a little to bring my eyes level with hers. “Which one is your apartment?” I ask again.

She swallows hard. “B,” she grits out from between clenched teeth.

“Okay, let’s go,” I instruct as I take the empty travel mug from her and lace my fingers with hers then tug her down the hall. “Keys,” I ask when we stop in front of her door, and her hand flexes in mine.

Her eyes dart down, and I follow their trajectory. “Pocket,” she murmurs as a tear rolls down her cheek.

Snug black pants are under her dress, so I reach out and slide my palm over one hip, then the other, until I feel the lump belonging to the keys. Dipping two fingers into the tight pocket, I retrieve them then quickly open the door.

As soon as we’re inside, I take hold of the hem of her dress. “We need to take this off,” I say, and I tug it over her head and toss it on the floor. The sight of her in a fine lace bra is something I will never forget. Before I get carried away, my gaze goes to the bright-red splotches covering her chest and stomach.

Fuck, it looks bad.

“Where’s your bathroom? I need to get you in a cool shower right now,” I tell her. “Lead the way. I’ll do the rest.”

Nodding, she starts for a short hallway to the left. I follow close behind, my eyes straying to her ass as she walks. Focus, you horny bastard! I chide myself. She’s hurt. She needs me to help her, not crack a boner.

She opens a door and steps inside. A quick glance around tells me we’re in her bedroom with an attached bathroom.

Taking her hand in mine again, I lead her into the small en suite then turn the faucet for the cold water. As soon as I turn back to her, her face is contorted in pain, and I grimace. “It’ll feel better soon,” I promise.

Her eyes shine with unshed tears, which guts me. There is no worse feeling than seeing someone in pain and not being able to take it away from them.

I step as close as I can to her without touching the tender burns, then I cup her cheeks. “I’m going to have to take off your pants. I’ll leave your panties on, but we’re going to have to get rid of the bra too. I won’t look,” I say then adjust my statement. “Okay, I’ll try not to look. You’re very beautiful, and I’m a man who appreciates beautiful things. But I’ll behave, I swear.”

She swallows hard, like she did in the hallway, then nods once.

I get to work removing her clothes, focusing on my task and not the phenomenal body being revealed to me one delicious piece at a time.

As soon as she’s down to nothing but her panties, which incidentally match the bra I removed, I reach a hand into the shower again, checking the temperature, then turn back to face her. “In you get,” I instruct with a jut of my chin toward the cubicle.

She blinks at me a few times, shakes her head, then does as I said, stepping in under the spray. She flinches at first contact with the water and tries to step away from it.

I don’t even think. I just move until I’m pressed against her back, keeping her under the running water. “You need to stay in here for at least ten minutes, then we’ll reassess,” I say into her wet hair.

Her body goes rigid, and I place my hands on a safe and completely innocent part of her body—her shoulders. “I won’t look or touch anything I’m not supposed to,” I assure her.

“Wh-why are y-you helping m-me?” she stammers, her teeth chattering from the cool water drenching us both.

This is certainly not something I would do for just anyone. I mean, I’m standing in the shower with her, and the most words we’ve ever exchanged have been via e-mail. I clear my throat, buying myself time to come up with a reasonable explanation.

Before I can come up with something, her bedroom door flies open, and one of her roommates waltzes into the bathroom. “Hey, Kins—”

Fuck. Me.

The roommate’s eyes widen, and her jaw drops. Her gaze swings from me to the mostly naked woman in front of me then back to me again. She picks her jaw up off of the floor as her eyes rake over my bare chest, and a slow, approving smile quirks her lips. “Well, I didn’t see this coming.” She smirks.

“Ah, hi,” I say.

Kinsley snaps out of the shock-induced haze she’s been in since burning herself, and she spins around to face her roommate. “It’s not what it looks like!” she blurts.

And now, her gorgeous, wet tits are melded against my chest. The cold water makes her nipples pebble, and it gives my traitorous dick ideas, because holy shit, she feels so fucking good.

The roommate arches a brow, her smirk growing. “Really? ‘Cause it looks like you’re getting naked with Mr. Tall, Dark, and Brooding. What would you call it?”

Clearing my throat, I bring their attention to me. “I should go. Your friend can take it from here. Just promise me you’ll stay in here for a bit longer. It’ll do you good. I know a thing or two about burns.”

At the mention of burns, her roommate steps forward, in turn blocking my exit from the shower cubicle.

“What burn?” she asks.

“She spilt hot coffee over her chest and stomach,” I tell her. “She’ll be fine; it shouldn’t blister, but it will be tender for a little while. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I really should go.” I step back from the tempting woman I haven’t been able to stop thinking about then sidestep around her roommate, snatching a towel off a rack on my way out.

I quickly wrap the towel around my hips, covering my wet running shorts, and make a beeline for the front door. Unfortunately, there is yet another roommate in my way. The short redhead eyes me, then the direction I just came from, and props a hand on her hip.

“Explain,” she says, pointing at my dripping chest with her free hand.

Running my fingers through my hair, I sigh. “It’s a long story, and I really should be going.”

Crossing her arms over her chest, she shakes her head at me. “Yeah, I don’t think so. Kins already left, and I know Lennon didn’t have you in her bed last night, so what the hell are you doing in our apartment?”

A smile tugs at my lips. This tiny little thing actually thinks she could stop me if I really wanted to walk out of here. “I was helping Kinsley. She spilt hot coffee over herself. She’s in her bathroom with Lennon. You should go check on her.”

Red’s eyes widen. “Is she okay?”

Nodding, I tell her, “Yeah, she’s fine. Just a little shaken, I think.” I extend my hand. “Atticus.”

She eyes my hand then takes it in a firm grasp. “I know who you are.” She smirks. “I’m Emory.”

“It was nice to meet you, Emory, but I really need to get going.” I motion to the door with my hand.

“Right,” she says then steps out of my way. As I swing the door open, she calls to my back, “Don’t be a stranger, Atticus.”

I look over my shoulder to her, grinning. “I won’t.”

* * *

“Whoa,where’ve you been? I thought you went for a run?” Arlo asks as I step through the front door.

I flick his backwards ball cap off his head as I pass him. “I was, but I ran into my mystery woman.”

“Wait, she lives in our building? You didn’t mention that,” he says, following me to my room.

“Yeah, well, she does. Anyway, she had an incident with a hot coffee, and I, ah, helped her,” I mumble as I select a suit for work.

Arlo props himself against the doorframe, watching me. “I see,” he says, not bothering to hide the humor in his tone. “And how did your help result in you needing a towel?”

I shake my head and smirk at my son. “You want to know about your old man’s sexual exploits?”

He grins and shakes his head. “Yeah, right. You don’t even know her name. No way you nailed her this morning.”

“You’re right. I didn’t. But I do know her name now.” I wink as I stride around him, laying my suit over a chair in the corner of my room.

“And …” he prods. “Don’t leave me hanging.”

I can’t hold back the smile lifting my lips. “Her name is Kinsley,” I say. “Now get out. I need to shower, or I’ll never make it to work on time.”

Arlo waggles his brows then chuckles. “Don’t think about Kinsley too much while you’re in there, or you’ll definitely end up running late.”

Ignoring that last jibe, I drop my shorts and get in the shower. The image of Kinsley in nothing but her panties takes over my mind as I stroke my rapidly hardening cock under the hot spray.