King's Promise. Adrianne Byrd

got, the weaker her knees became and the wider his smile stretched.

      “Excuse me, ladies,” she said, and waited for two of the girls to step aside so that she could pass.

      During what took about two seconds tops, Cheryl could feel Xavier’s gaze as though it was a feathery touch stroking the sides of her face. She even quivered and darted her eyes away.

      “Good night, Cheryl,” Xavier said.

      There was something about the way he said good night that sounded familiar, though it was the first time he’d ever said it to her. How easy it was to imagine him saying, “Good night, Cheryl,” every night for the rest of their lives before curling up together and going to sleep.

      What in the hell is wrong with me? Snap out of it!

      “Good night, Xavier,” she responded softly, and maneuvered past him and his laughing clique. Cheryl didn’t know why she thought that there would be some kind of relief once she passed him on the stairs. There wasn’t.

      None.

      She knew he turned, not because she saw him, but because she could feel that feathery caress now floating down the back of her head and then lingering on her butt. All right. That knowledge did make her smile a bit. One thing for sure, none of the girls that she saw dancing tonight even came close to what the good Lord and her mama blessed her with.

      “Excuse me, guys. I’ll be right back,” Xavier said.

      Cheryl’s eyes bulged while her brain screamed for her legs to move faster. And that was just what the hell they did. Then that magical baritone said, “Cheryl, wait up.”

      Don’t you dare stop! She shoved open the glass front door and marched like a soldier headed off to war. Xavier chuckled.

      When she realized that the deep rumble sounded entirely too close, it was a nanosecond before his hand locked around her wrist. Cheryl gasped aloud as an electric charge surged through her body. Unfortunately for Xavier, it also activated her self-defense reflexes and before either of them could process what was happening, she’d turned and flipped his large frame over on the asphalt. Once reality settled in, Xavier was lying on his back on the pavement with Cheryl still holding his hand and her right foot planted squarely in the center of his chest.

      He blinked. “I just wanted to see if you were interested in grabbing something at the Waffle House, but, uh, I can take a rain check.”

      Realizing what she had done, she released his hand and removed her foot from his chest. “I’m sooooo sorry. You just startled me.” She dropped down and then tried to help him up.

      Still dazed and confused, Xavier sat up and looked around. “How in the hell…?”

      “I, uh, took some self-defense classes a while back.” She waved off the question and gave him a nervous smile.

      “You took classes or you taught classes?” He stood up. “I don’t know whether to be embarrassed right now or impressed.”

      Cheryl smiled and stepped back. “Well, I did have the element of surprise on my side,” she offered as a way for him to save face.

      He nodded as he proceeded to dust himself off. “Good point. I’ll add that to my version of events when I’m nursing my pride over a bottle of Jack Daniel’s.”

      “Don’t beat yourself up too bad. I’ve taken down men a lot bigger than you.”

      A singular brow arched in the center of Xavier’s forehead.

      “Really? Care to tell me about it over waffles?”

      “Uh, maybe another time,” she said, clinging to the leather strap of her duffel bag and stepping backward toward her car. “I’m really beat and just want to fall into bed.”

      An effortless smile eased across his face, and though he didn’t say the words, his eyes asked, Want company?

      “See you tomorrow night,” Cheryl said, continuing to walk backward to her car.

      “Yeah.” He started walking backward himself. “See you.”

      Cheryl bumped into the front of her car and then turned around so that she could go to the driver’s side and climb in as soon as possible. After getting behind the wheel and starting the car, she was still a bundle of nerves. When she pulled out of the parking lot, Xavier, still standing at the front door of the club, lifted his hand to wave goodbye.

      She smiled sheepishly and waved, then quickly jammed her foot on the accelerator and peeled off. Not until she was twenty minutes down the road did her heart rate return to normal and she felt like herself again.

      “This case is definitely going to be a lot harder than I thought.”