"You shouldn't wander off alone. It's dangerous."
Kendrick's words startled her from her contemplation of the grooves on the wall. Whirling, Ruth clasped a hand to her chest.
"Must you sneak?" Lost in the marvel of her discovery, she never heard him arrive. But she should have expected it, given his new goal in life involved sticking to her like glue.
"I don't sneak. I skulk. I am a professional skulker, best in my family." A wild boast that made her smile and giggle. It was then he hit her with it. His first genuine smile. Not just any smile, but an intimate grin, just for her.
Hear that? The silence. It was the sound of her heart stopping in shock. God, she'd thought him cute before, but a truly happy Kendrick, wearing a sexy, teasing grin, was enough to make her knees weak. It took all of her control not to throw herself at him.
"Skulking is for animals."
"Yeah. That sounds about right." He inched closer, his lips still curved so sexily.