“Tell me your name,” he said.
“Why should I?” she asked and reached for her sack, but he held it away from her. She rolled her eyes at him and sighed. “Fine,” she said and tossed her hands in the air. “Empty it and just give back the bag then.”
Out of curiosity, he unzipped the backpack and shone the light inside, revealing a host of items that looked like construction junk to him—pieces of scratched wood that looked to be quarter round molding and a pile of ceramic tile. No wonder the backpack was heavy. He pulled out a weighty hand bell that boasted a long crack down its middle and inspected it.
“You’re pilfering?” he asked and she shrugged. Why would anyone want this old junk? He dug deeper into the backpack only to find more garbage. When Edward looked up from his search, he discovered the beautiful woman slipping out of the classroom door then breaking into a run toward the back door.
“Wait!” he cried and ran after her, backpack in hand.
Clem dashed into the night, sucking in the cool air of evening as she raced from the abandoned schoolhouse and into the yard behind it. What the hell was that damn construction worker doing lurking around the building in the near-dark?
Dammit.
Not only had that jerk taken her backpack with the precious pieces she’d found in the schoolhouse, but if he caught up to her, he could turn her in for stealing. She imagined the look on her father’s face when he discovered the truth about how she acquired the treasures she brought to their shop. Along with her uncle Stoddard, Clementine and her father ran the only architectural salvage business in Sovalon. The company was barely staying afloat now, and a robbery scandal would be no good for business.
Usually, when Clem went on these stealth missions, her presence went completely undetected. She targeted places that were set to be demolished. Places where countless historical artifacts would be destroyed if she didn’t step in and save them. In Clem’s opinion, she wasn’t stealing but rescuing prized remnants from the past. The finds she collected told stories of a life before the hectic hustle and bustle of today. They were treasures that just happened to help her struggling family business stay afloat.
Clem heard footfalls rushing toward her. She broke into a sprint toward the alley behind the house, her calf muscles screaming as she pushed them to run faster.
“Stop!” he called out to her, and the deep command in his tone made her flinch. When she heard the sound of his breath, coming fast like hers, she knew he was practically on top of her. A moment later, a heavy hand pushed into her shoulder and got a grip of her shirt. She was jerked backward, and his body crashed into hers, throwing them both off-balance and tumbling them into the grass. The stars seemed to spin above her as she tried to right herself beneath his hard body and wiggle free.
“Get off!” she cried, and he pushed himself up from atop her.
“Who are you?” he demanded and grabbed her by the arm before she could get up and dash off again. “And what were you doing stealing junk from the schoolhouse?”
“Junk?” Clem stuck out her chin.
“Yes, junk,” he said. “I should call the police and have you arrested for trespassing.”
Clem straightened her torso so she was sitting up straight, using the ground under one hand to keep her balance. She leaned in, daring him. “Go ahead and call.”
She raised her eyebrows, waiting for a response, but all he did was shake his head and curl his free hand into a fist. She couldn’t help but notice his biceps—definitely a product of his line of work. Finally, he sighed in what sounded like defeat. His gaze fell on her and softened as he took all of her in and swallowed hard. She knew the look of a man who was into her. She’d seen it before, and she knew she could use it. This guy wasn’t going to call the cops.
“By the way,” she said, still careful not to break eye contact with him. “They’re antiques, not junk.” Not that she expected a construction worker to recognize the importance of her prizes, but his words annoyed her. “And the school is set to be blown to pieces tomorrow, so I wasn’t stealing them. I was rescuing them.”
“Why?”
It wasn’t any of his business, so Clem didn’t answer him. Instead, she took a moment to study the man who had her in his strong grip. Now that they were out in the moonlight and she could see him more clearly, he looked oddly familiar. She knew him from somewhere, but where? His dark eyes dug into her, brooding and serious, but when she dared to stare back into them just as hard, his lips bent into a subtle grin. As quickly as it had appeared, the smile was gone.
“Sorry,” he said and cleared his throat. He let go of Clem’s arm and held out the backpack to her. “I was trying to tell you back there in the schoolhouse that it’s foolish for anyone to be traipsing around a condemned building. Especially in the dark. The dangers—”
“I can take care of myself,” Clem interrupted and took her bag back. He stood and offered a hand to help her up. Something in her twisted, a desire to take his hand, to feel his skin on hers, but she resisted. She stood up on her own, examined the bag’s contents to ensure nothing was missing, then looked up at him. In the light of the moon, his handsome features snagged her attention, bringing to life once again a strange yearning in her belly. Tall and lean, he was obviously in great shape. His wavy sand-colored hair flopped over his face, giving him a boyish look that matched the freckles flecking his nose and cheeks. Warmth crawled up her neck when she realized how long she’d been staring. She couldn’t deny it; she was attracted to him too.
“Thanks,” she said and held up the backpack. “You look really…” She was about to say “familiar” but then decided to leave it. She didn’t need to complicate the situation by showing interest in this man. He may be attractive, but he was clearly not her type if he was in any way involved in the destruction of the schoolhouse. Better to just walk away.
She swiveled on one foot, but before she could take a step away from him, he had a hand on her shoulder and was angling her body into his. His lips landed on hers before she knew she wanted them to, but once they were there, she couldn’t deny her desire. The heat was palpable between them, and in the space of one small kiss, a million fires were lit on Clementine’s skin. When the man pulled away, he looked just as surprised as she was. Clem stepped back to gather herself. What the hell was that?
Without thinking, she held up her hand and gave an awkward wave. “Bye,” she said and started in the other direction.
“Wait,” he called out.
She swung back around, ready to give him an earful about how she may have kissed him back but she certainly was not interested in anything more, especially with someone like him whose very career put him at the polar opposite end of everything she stood for. But before she could say a word, he held out her backpack. In the throes of their kiss, she must have dropped it.
“You don’t want to forget this,” he said.
His hand brushed hers as she took the bag from him, and a thrill coursed down her arm. The fire was once again ignited, and she felt herself melting like candle wax in the flame of his stare. She had to extinguish this desire and cool the hell down before she did something she would regret. With all of the gumption she could muster, she broke from his gaze. She ran off in the other direction, her bag full of treasures bouncing against her shoulder, the memory of his lips overshadowing everything else.