They’d been out here on this deserted stretch of beach for fifteen minutes, and she’d been sure the beach-fire-blanket combo was nothing more than a play to get into her pants. Nick’s words about Tyler using her to get at him kept bouncing around in her head.

But Tyler hadn’t made a move toward her. Even now, he left a clear five feet of space between them, just like last night on the roof of his shopping center.

Take that, Nick.

He’d bought her pretzels as promised, then walked a few laps of the mall at her side, only asking if she wanted to go for a drive when stores began unrolling their security gates. His anger from yesterday seemed to have faded, his violence from the first night completely gone.

But fury and aggression hid there, just below the surface.

He is not nice , Quinn.

She knew that. Tyler was like an attack dog who’d failed out of doggie school. He might eat treats out of your hand and wag his tail, but if you made the wrong move, he’d bite your hand off and come back for the other one.

It was kinda terrifying.

And kinda sexy.

“What?” he said.

Quinn didn’t look away. Why bother? He’d already caught her staring. “I was thinking you’re kind of hot when you’re not being a total dickhead.”

He let out a low whistle and looked back at the sky. “Turn a guy’s head with talk like that.”

She expected him to see that as some kind of invitation, but he didn’t move.

After a moment, his voice dropped and he said, “Thanks.”

He paused. “You’re not breaking any mirrors yourself.”

But he still didn’t move.

It thrilled her and exasperated her at the same time. Like last night, when he’d dropped that line about Nick being one lucky bastard.

Either he’s not using me or he’s not interested.

It made her want to provoke him. “I thought I was enough to turn you off from sex forever.”

Now he turned his head and looked over. The fire turned his blond hair gold and bounced off his eyes. “That had more to do with Merrick than with you.”

“I don’t know what that means.”

“It means I said that to get under his skin. You could look like a supermodel and I would have said you were a total turnoff.”

“Hmph. Nick would say any girl was a turnoff.”

As soon as the words were out, she wished she could suck them back into her mouth.

Tyler went still.

Oh, crap.

Oh, crap.

Take it back take it back take it back.

But she didn’t know what to say. She needed to undo this. She needed to undo this right now. She’d kept this secret from everyone who was important to Nick, and now she’d practically told his mortal enemy.

She had no idea what to say to change the course of this conversation.

Haha, just a joke. Look! A bird!

Sure.

“That’s interesting,” Tyler finally said. He sat up and pulled a cigarette from the pack in his back pocket. “Very interesting.”

She needed a rewind button. A time machine. Something.

She’d give anything to be back at the dance studio, falling on her face in front of Adam’s perfection. Anything.

She sat up on her heels. Could she beg him to keep it a secret?

Would that be better or worse than pretending it wasn’t a secret at all?

“So you’re not really his girlfriend,” said Tyler.

And what was she supposed to say to that? Here she was sitting with a guy she was attracted to, and she was going to have to pretend to be madly in love with Nick, just to keep a stupid secret.

But Tyler looked over, and she could read it on his face. He knew.

Her voice was soft, almost lost in the sound of the surf. “No.

Not really.”

He started to move the cigarette to his lips, but then he flung it into the fire, unlit. His expression was fierce, all angles lit by the flames. He shifted on the blanket like he was going to leave.

Was he going after Nick? Was he going to take this information and pick a fight, or use it against his brothers somehow? Or was he—

Tyler took her face in his hands and pressed his lips against hers.

Quinn stiffened in surprise—then yielded. He was rough and forceful, but in all the right ways. She’d kissed a lot of boys, but Tyler kissed like a man. No hesitation, no fumbling. First, his mouth, hot and searing and making her feel things low in her belly. Then his hands, finding her waist, pushing her down on the blanket. Then his tongue, pulling at hers.

His body felt secure against her, and his arms caged her there on the blanket. When he drew back to look at her, she wanted to grab his shirt and drag him back down.

But then she remembered what she’d just said.

“Please don’t tell anyone,” she whispered.

“Tell anyone what?”

“About Nick.”

He straightened his arms, pushing himself up until she missed his weight. “Nice,” he said with clear derision. The fire whipped higher behind him. “I kiss you, and you’re still thinking about that stupid f—”

Quinn slapped him. Hard, with all the passion of their kiss and her panic behind it. “Don’t you dare call him that.”

Tyler caught her arm and pinned it to the blanket. He got in her face. “Don’t you dare hit me. I was going to call him a stupid f**k.”

Oh. It wasn’t better, but somehow, it was.

She looked up at him. “I’m sorry.”