right woman comes along, I’ve got an open mind about marriage. And I want a big family, too. I love kids.”
She gave a shudder, but he knew she was exaggerating by the teasing sparkle in her eyes. “I get my fill of kids with my eight nieces and nephews. One night with them, and I’m completely wiped out.”
He lifted an eyebrow, wondering how much of that statement was truth, and how much she’d tried to convince herself of.
The final song ended, bringing the Christmas party to a close. Slowly, reluctantly, he let her move from his embrace. A sense of loss filled him-there were no more excuses to postpone the end of the evening. And judging by the slant of their conversation, he pretty much ascertained that no further invitation was forthcoming from her lips to see him again.
She’d made it clear that her job was her priority, that a real man in her life was something her parents wanted, but she had no time or desire for. He wasn’t going to push the issue…at least not much.
On the drive back to Teddy’s place, Austin had plenty of time to mentally plan his strategy to sway Teddy into giving them another chance, another date, one that wasn’t tangled up with lies and pretenses. Just them. And their attraction for one another.
He wondered if he stood a chance against her restricting goals, wondered if he was being foolish for wanting to pursue something that might be all one-sided. And then there was the issue of her family, and what they expected of Teddy…and of a boyfriend.
Meeting their expectations would be impossible, but at the moment none of that mattered to Austin, not when his chest ached at the thought of never seeing Teddy again. Not when he wanted this woman so badly that physical need coalesced with strong emotion.
After parking the Mustang at the curb, he insisted on walking Teddy to her condo. She wrapped the shawl around her in an attempt to chase away the midnight chill, but her teeth began to chatter. Slipping his tuxedo jacket off, he draped it over her shoulders, and she snuggled into the warmth.
She smiled up at him. “Thanks.” Her voice held a slight quiver, but he wasn’t sure if it was from the cold, or if she was nervous.
“I had a great time tonight.” He’d especially enjoyed their elevator ride up, and slow dancing with her-both opportunities had been private, and incredibly enlightening.
She rolled her eyes. “Between Louden, and Janet, it was certainly interesting, if anything.”
He smiled. “I think everything went well. We established a believable relationship, so hopefully Louden will back off like you hope.”
She held up crossed fingers for luck. “As long as Janet doesn’t remember you as a cop who strips, we’ll be in good shape.”
Taking the house key from her grasp, he unlocked the door and opened it for her. She handed him back his jacket, started to step inside, then turned around before she cleared the threshold. A light from the living room behind her illuminated her slender form and tipped her upswept hair with gold. Even in the shadows, her eyes shimmered with regret.
“Well, I guess this is goodbye,” she said softly, and offered him a slight smile.
The last thing he wanted to say was goodbye. “Not just yet.”
Reaching into the pocket of the tuxedo jacket draped over his arm, he withdrew the sprig of mistletoe he’d swiped off their table as they’d left the party. The greenery was crushed, but still in working order. Her rich, chocolate brown eyes widened as he braced his arm on the doorjamb and dangled the mistletoe above her head.
His stance was lazy, deceptively so, and he grinned wickedly, declaring his intent. “I believe you and I have unfinished business to attend to.”
6
SHE SHOULD HAVE said no. She should have resisted. But Teddy didn’t stand a chance against the seductive pull of Austin’s darkened gaze, or the knowledge that this man made her feel restless, needy sensations no other man had ever evoked.
Reckless desire caused her pulse to race. The promise of pleasure glimmering in his sexy eyes touched off a quiver of anticipation deep in her belly. And because she knew he’d make good on that silent vow, she impetuously decided that one last, parting kiss to remember him by wouldn’t hurt anything.
His warm fingers brushed along her jaw and curled around the nape of her neck, urging her to meet him halfway, persuading her to participate and give as much as she took. She swayed toward him, too eager to taste him, too anxious to experience the heady thrill of having his mouth on hers.
His head lowered, hers raised expectantly. His lashes fell slumberously, she closed her eyes and waited. His mouth skimmed hers gently, teasing her unmercifully. Her lips parted with a soft, inviting sigh, and he gradually deepened the kiss, slowly, seductively, cajoling her tongue to mate with his, and offering his own in return.
The kiss was incredibly erotic, a lazy, tantalizing possession of the senses. It inflamed and stimulated a depthless passion, and there was nothing she could do but surrender.
Abandoning all coherent thought, all common sense, she tossed her small purse somewhere behind her in the condo, twined her fingers into the thick strands of hair at the back of his neck and opened her mouth wider beneath his and whimpered, a silent plea for him to ease the ache building within her.
He answered with a deep, dark growl that reverberated in his throat, and with her face framed between his palms and her mouth anchored firmly beneath his, he guided her backward, into the darkened entryway, kicking the door shut behind them. A cool whoosh of air caressed her stockinged legs as he dropped his coat at their feet. Pushing her against the wall, he dragged the shawl from her shoulders to join his jacket, and pressed his hard, muscular body against hers, the urgency in him undeniable. Her knees threatened to buckle, but he wedged a leg between her thighs, and she felt the swell of his erection against her belly-thick, hot and pulsing. The male heat of him surrounded her, engulfed her, sparking a liquid fire that settled low in her stomach.
His breathing roughened, and his heart hammered as frantically as her own. She identified with that out-of- control need, and it frightened her as much as it thrilled her. Her head spun, her mind whirled, and the crazy momentum didn’t show any signs of slowing.
He continued to kiss her, wild, greedy, insatiable kisses she returned with an enthusiasm that should have shocked her, but didn’t. Like a thief, he pilfered and ravished. Like a willing captive, she succumbed and yearned for more.
He obliged her, sliding his fingers into her hair and gently dislodging the rhinestone pins securing the strands. He found each clip, untangled each one and dropped them to the carpeted floor until her hair tumbled around her shoulders in a tousled mess. He crushed the silky tresses in his hands, massaging her scalp, her nape, and then her shoulders.
Finally, he freed her lips, and she moaned as he touched his open mouth to her throat, stroking his soft tongue across the pulse point at the base. And then he bit her sensitive skin, gently, just enough to cause another rush of excitement. She was so distracted by this new, delicious sensation that she was unaware of him slipping his thumbs beneath the thin straps of her dress and dragging them down her arms until she felt the fabric covering her breasts give way.
She gasped at the shock of cool air against her heated skin, felt her first bout of modesty as he lifted his head and looked his fill. His eyes burned with hunger, his gaze ravaged. She shivered, but didn’t move. Nor did she protest when he licked the tips of his fingers and slicked them over her nipples, drawing them into tight, aching points. But she groaned, long and low, when he lowered his mouth and laved those tender crests with his tongue, then drew her into the hot depths of his mouth.
Biting her lower lip to keep from crying out, she pushed her fingers into his hair, brazenly holding him close as he leisurely lapped and suckled and nuzzled. He worked his wet mouth from one breast to the other, his tongue, lips and teeth teasing her with devastating thoroughness. The pleasure was dizzying, and frustrating, and in an attempt to soothe a sharper, more intimate ache, she clamped her thighs against the one riding high between hers and arched into him.
A harsh, aroused sound hissed from Austin, and he buried his face at the side of her neck, his breath hot and
