Animal Magnetism Read Online Free

vehemence.
    He actually felt a smile curve his mouth. “Or maybe I should offer it to you. Are you hungry?” He hadn’t considered the fact that maybe she was homeless, but he took in her clothes and rust bucket Jeep and wondered. He held out the Snickers bar.
    Looking away, a faint tinge colored her cheeks, she shook her head. “I couldn’t possibly—”
    “I have another,” he lied.
    Shielding her eyes from the bright sun, she gave him a long, serious once-over. Not playing fair, he tore open the candy bar and wafted the chocolate beneath her nose.
    “You’re evil,” she said, and snatched it out of his hand. She broke it in half and then slid his part back into his pocket. Sinking her teeth into her portion with a big bite, she went still, then moaned in pleasure.
    “Do you need a moment alone with that?” he asked, amused. And also a little turned on.
    “Oh my God.” Her voice was thick and throaty. “Good . ”
    “So it’s true,” he murmured, watching her mouth avidly. It was a really great mouth, soft, with a plump lower lip. “Everyone has their price.”
    “Yes, and mine is chocolate. Offer me some and probably I’d follow you anywhere,” she admitted.
    “Probably?”
    “Well, you’re still a stranger.”
    “I told you my name.”
    “I’d need more than that.”
    He just looked at her, smiling. They both knew he’d had her at chocolate.
    Laughing at herself, she took another bite of the Snickers, licking that lower lip of hers to get a stray strand of caramel. “Seriously, I was raised better than this. Make me feel okay about getting into a stranger’s truck.”
    What could he possibly tell her that wouldn’t scare her off or deepen the mistrust? And why did he even care? “I’m a pilot,” he said.
    “Okay.” She nodded. “That’s good. I’ve never heard of a pilot who murders people. Who do you fly for?”
    “An international organization who hires me out to places like Doctors Without Borders, the government, whoever’s paying. So see? You’re safe enough from me. Get in.”
    She looked into the back again. “What’s with the camera case?”
    An observant , junk-food-loving felon. “I’m also a photographer.” Sometimes even a paid one. His photos had been in both Outsider and National Geographic this last year. Given his adrenaline-fueled life, taking pictures grounded him in a way nothing else could.
    Well, except sex. Sex was always his first choice, of course. Not that that would be happening while here in Sunshine.
    Lilah was watching him closely again. Mistrustful little thing, which for some reason, made him like her all the more. “It’s just a ride,” he said quietly.
    “Yeah. Um, so do you ever lure women into your truck with candy bars in order to get them to pose naked for you?”
    “Nah. My editor frowns on the exploitation of women. It’d have to be a side job and only if you say please.”
    She rolled her eyes at him but took a step closer to the passenger door. “So does being a photographer ever get you laid?”
    There was no good answer to that question, but yeah, sometimes it got him laid.
    Clearly reading his face, she shook her head. “Don’t tell me. You trade on your good looks and that whole sort of badass vibe you’ve got going on, right? And women fall for it hook, line, and sinker.”
    “Yes, but you’re on to me, so no falling for you. Plus you’ve got protection.” He jerked his chin toward the mallard at her feet. “A guard duck.”
    They both looked at Abigail, who was busy preening and fussing with her feathers to get them just right. “Is it legal to own a duck?” he asked.
    “I’m duck-sitting. Are you sure you’re not also a cop?” Lilah wanted to know.
    “Why, do I look like one?” He felt the weight of her scrutiny. He knew what she saw when she looked at him. Dark hair cut short enough to be maintenance-free—when he remembered to have it cut at all. Tanned skin and a rangy, tough build from long months at