the additive. Some people had an instantaneous reaction once the product was consumed. With others it took longer to achieve any sign of arousal.
'Mmmm,' Jack murmured after a moment, the rumbling sound strumming along her nerve endings as effectively as a caress. 'Espresso and caramel. I like it. What is the candy called?'
'Heavenly Kisses.'
A slow, purely male smile curved his lips as he considered that, setting off a conflagration of heat in the pit of her belly. 'The taste… the name…' His gorgeous blue eyes darkened with desire as he stared at her mouth. 'It conjures up all kinds of possibilities, don't you think?'
Oh, yeah, the possibilities were endless. 'Try another,' she urged breathlessly, amazed by his gradual transformation from businesslike to much more personal, and aroused by the sexual magnetism that radiated off him.
By all appearances, Jack's system reacted fairly quickly to the aphrodisiac.
He picked up another piece, bit off half of it, and chewed. But instead of finishing it off, he lifted the candy to her mouth, tempting her. 'Your turn,' he said, and gently slipped the chocolate past her parted lips.
Her tongue touched his finger as she accepted his offering, and he groaned deep in his throat. Her heartbeat quickened beneath her breast He didn't pull his hand back, but instead traced her bottom lip with his warm fingers, then smoothed his thumb beneath her chin. When he tipped up her face, she found herself mesmerized by the erotic heat flaring in his eyes, the lust that was solely for her.
With his free hand, he took the container from her and set it on the table and out of their way. 'How about we see if that candy of yours lives up to its name?' he murmured wickedly, then lowered his head and brushed his lips over hers, slow and seductive, imploring her to let him in.
Coaxing her wasn't necessary, not when she ached for his kiss more than her next breath. She wanted this, wanted
Slanting her mouth beneath his for a better fit, she sighed and welcomed the lazy stroke of his tongue against hers that made her breasts swell and her nipples tighten into hard little points. He tasted so good… like espresso and sweet caramel and hot, aroused man. She couldn't get enough of him.
He stepped closer, bringing with him the delicious heat of his body. She felt him tug the clip from her hair, felt the heavy mass fall to her shoulders and caress her shoulders in a wild disarray. He sank his fingers wrist-deep, twined the thick strands around his fist and held her steady for a long, lush kiss that threatened to consume her senses.
A tingling, insatiable hunger unfurled within her, one she recognized all too well. Unable to stop herself from fully indulging in the reality of Jack kissing her so passionately, she placed her hands on his solid chest. He groaned just as those defined muscles of his flexed beneath her palms.
Emboldened by his reaction, she slid her arms around his neck and arched into him until their hips met and the tips of her breasts pressed against his chest. In return, he skimmed his splayed hands down her back, molding her body impossibly closer to his.
He caressed his palms over her bottom, squeezing and kneading her there before grasping her waist. With a strength that astonished her, he lifted her up so she was sitting on the table-all without breaking their deep, devouring kiss.
His hands slid down her thighs to her knees, urging them apart so he could step in between and press up against her with shocking intimacy. There was no mistaking the thick, unyielding erection beneath the fly of his pants.
He was hard,
Shamelessly, she wrapped her legs around the back of his thighs to increase the exquisite pressure right at the crux of her sex, and she felt him shudder in response.
Never letting go of her mouth, he worked her shirt up to her waist and slipped his hands beneath the hem. She immediately stiffened, her first instinct to suck in her stomach, but then he feathered his fingers up over her ribs in such a soul-stirring way that she forgot everything but the sexy way he made her feel. His touch was feverish on her cool skin, and when his thumbs grazed the underside of her heavy, aching breasts she thought she'd unravel right then and there.
He teased and tormented her with the brush of his fingers, heightening her desire, but not quite quenching it. She made a mewling sound she didn't recognize as her own. Like a lover completely in sync with his partner's demands, Jack understood her unspoken need. He cupped her breasts in his large palms, found her throbbing nipples through the sheer lace of her bra with his fingers, and scraped his thumbs across the pebbled tips in the most excruciatingly arousing way.
She felt herself growing wet, felt that frenzied, desperate need building right where he was moving against her in a slow, rhythmic parody of sex. The urgency within her crested, and just when she thought she'd topple over the edge of what she knew would be a stunning climax, he pulled his mouth from hers, buried his face against her neck, and stopped the provocative thrust of his hips against her.
He was panting. So was she. Deep, gulping breaths that did nothing to ease the pulsing tension that had settled in her belly, and lower.
Lord, she'd never, ever, been driven to the brink so quickly-and certainly not with so much clothing in the way- and she instinctively knew it had everything to do with the incredible man who'd kissed her with such fiery possession, and not the half bite of candy he'd fed to her.
'You are so warm, so soft all over,' he murmured against her neck, his breath feathering hot and moist across her skin. He nuzzled his damp lips just below her ear and inhaled deeply. 'And you smell so damn good. Like a warm cupcake just out of the oven, and it makes me want to take a big bite out of you.'
Goose bumps rose on her flesh, and she threaded her fingers through his thick, soft hair to keep him right where he was. 'Go ahead,' she whispered, a dare that shocked even herself since she'd never been so brazen before.
He gently sank his teeth into the sensitive curve of her neck, then soothed the love bite with the lap of his soft tongue. She shuddered, wanting to nibble on him in return.
Too soon, he lifted his head and met her gaze, looking dazed by what had just happened between them.
He eased his hands out of her shirt and she immediately mourned the loss of his warm touch.
'I'm sorry,' he murmured, and shook his head as if to clear it. 'I don't know what came over me, except I just had to kiss you. I didn't mean for things to get so out of control-'
She pressed her fingers over his lips to stop his words. Even if he didn't understand his reasons for being so amorous, she did, and she refused to let him spoil the moment for her with an apology. 'I liked kissing you.'
Grasping her wrist, he pulled her hand away from his mouth and flattened her palm on his chest, right over his rapidly beating heart. 'I liked kissing you, too. A whole lot.'
She nearly melted right there on the spot.
He smiled, his gaze on her face as soft and arresting as a caress. 'I think those candies more than live up to their name. Let's hope they don't cause this kind of reaction in everyone who eats them.'
Amusement laced his tone, but he was closer to the truth than he realized.
'Would that be such a bad thing?' she asked.
'I suppose not.' Placing his hands at her waist, he pulled her off the table, letting the length of her body drag slowly, sensually, against his until her sandaled feet touched the floor again.
She tugged her shirt back into place self-consciously, even as another surge of awareness sparked between them like wildfire. She wondered what would happen if she coaxed Jack to eat the rest of the Heavenly Kisses- wondered if the aphrodisiac might have the same effect as a dose of Viagra and keep him 'up' the rest of the night.
The sinful thought made her entire body shudder with a surge of renewed lust.
He glided his fingers along her jaw and cupped her cheek in his warm palm, his touch infinitely tender. 'I think I'd better go, because if I stay I'm gonna eat you up, lick by lick, nibble by nibble, bite by bite…'
A shiver rippled down her spine as his deep voice trailed off, and it was all she could do to swallow the selfish demand,
