He cut off her apology by brushing a fingertip down her nose, and was glad to see the corners of her mouth reflexively curve up just the littlest bit at his purposely ticklish caress.

“No one has ever stood up for me like that. Even my teachers, who had to know how fractured my relationship with my parents was and how much I dreaded going home, didn’t step in. I’m sure because they didn’t see bruises, they didn’t think it could be that bad. And, honestly, when I was away from home, which was most of the time, I pretty much blocked them out, so it wasn’t.”

“So you’re not mad at me for making a total scene and ripping them to shreds?”

A million people could call out his name from an audience and he would never feel as loved, as appreciated as he had when she’d given his parents hell in the middle of the sidewalk.

“I love you, Mia.”

The fire, the worry, immediately went out of her eyes, only to have that wariness about their future together take their place. “Ford—”

“And I love knowing that you’re going to protect our kids just as passionately, without reserve, without ‘thinking,’ if anyone ever tries to get away with not treating them well.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “I know what you’re doing. You think that because I’m all riled up over your parents, it must mean that we’re besties now and you can start talking about marriage and kids again.” She whirled out of his arms. “I’ll have you know that I’m still making up my mind about us, and no amount of sweet talk about how great our kids and life will be together is going to get me to decide sooner. So you can just stop being so gorgeous and awesome and smelling so damn good and saying such beautiful things about how much you love me, because I’m telling you right now that I’ll make up my mind when I’m good and ready and not a moment before!”

Maybe he shouldn’t have laughed at her soliloquy, but she looked so cute as she told him off that he couldn’t help it. A snarl left her beautiful lips, and as she launched herself at him, he caught her in his arms and lifted her up.

“It’s a warm night for Seattle, don’t you think?”

He was big enough to easily pin her arms and legs against him as he carried her out through the kitchen to the back patio. The cool water would be the perfect way to jolt away the bitterness that had lingered from seeing his parents. He was used to them and knew exactly what to expect in the rare instances when they ran into each other, but she had been completely blindsided.

“What the hell are you doing, rock star?”

“Cooling off my hotheaded girl.”

Chapter Twenty-six

Mia’s eyes went wide as she realized he was taking her straight toward the pool. “Oh no. You’d better n—”

He held on to her until the very last second, then tossed her a few feet away from him so that their arms and legs wouldn’t collide when they went under the water together.

She came splashing up to the surface. “You’re in for it now.”

He was more than happy to let her launch herself at him, and as she shoved him down under the water, he pulled her down with him. When they came up this time, her arms and legs were around him and he was kissing her.

Though the water had made her skin cool to the touch, her lips remained full of heat. He’d already told her just how much it meant to him that she’d taken his side earlier...now he wanted to show her with his kiss.

But where his nip at her lower lip started out playfully, the way she responded so passionately with a low groan of pure, sweet desire made it impossible to do anything but devour every inch of her mouth while his hands cupped and stroked even more moans of pleasure out of her. And as his greedy need for her took over, he couldn’t get enough of her mouth, her tongue against his, wanted nothing more than to strip her dress away and have her wet curves totally bared to him like she’d been in the shower on his tour bus the previous night. Only, tonight, he knew that if they stripped away their clothes, there would be no chance of stopping.

Each time he made himself pull away from her, it sent him closer to the edge of madness. There was no one else he’d willingly lose his mind for. Only Mia. And a chance at a future with her was easily worth every painfully hard erection he’d had to deal with this past week.

“Look at you,” she said as she brushed his wet hair back from his forehead with a slightly shaky hand, “so smug, thinking you’ve just kissed me out of being mad at you.”

Despite his raging libido, it was easy to grin at her, considering he felt a hell of a lot more than smug with the most beautiful woman in the world in his arms. “Well, are you still mad?”

Her lips twitched before she finally admitted, “No, damn you.”

“Actually,” he said as he nuzzled the wet skin where her neck met the curve of her shoulder, “it’s pretty hot when you get riled up. Maybe sometime I’ll let you have at me in the bedroom during a fight.”

He could see by the sparkle in her eyes that she liked the thought of it, too, but she said, “We weren’t fighting.”

He nuzzled the other side of her neck. “No?”

“No. I was merely informing you that you were acting like a Neanderthal.”

She tried to swat his kisses away, but she ruined it with a giggle. Not to mention the fact that her halter top wasn’t exactly meant to get soaking wet, and when she pulled back a few inches in mock irritation, he got a fantastic eyeful of her lush br**sts and hard ni**les.

“Damn,” he said as he took a long, hot look, “you’re pretty.”

She ogled his shoulders and chest in his wet T-shirt just as he’d been drooling over her. “Right back at you, rock star.”

Their eyes met and both of them instantly understood that they were teetering on the edge of a precipice. Either they both had to agree to jump over it together tonight...or they had to back away completely.

A week ago, he wouldn’t have thought twice about taking advantage of the softness in her eyes or the hot press of her body against him. But now he knew he’d never forgive himself if he pushed her a step further than she was ready to go on her own.

Fortunately, both of their stomachs grumbled at the same time. “How about we go dry off and finally get to that pizza?”

She put her hands on either side of his face and kissed him before saying, “You should probably prepare yourself, because I think my dress has gone completely see-through.” She leaned in to whisper in his ear. “And I’m not wearing anything under it.”