The Ultimate Seduction

you what, let's concentrate on the things you do remember.'

Her gaze touched his eyes, lingering long enough to make him feel as though she could see all the way into his soul. She took in the rest of his features slowly, as if scrutinizing each one, then finally came to rest on his mouth.

'I remember kissing you,' she said abruptly, her voice low and husky with awareness. She dampened her bottom lip with her tongue, and her breathing deepened. 'Come here,' she whispered.

Mesmerized by her request, he moved the small table in front of her completely out of their way and leaned toward her, bracing a hand on the pillow beside her head. The position caused his chest to press against her full, generous breasts, and he had the fleeting thought that he wished they were both naked so he could feel her skin on skin.

He was uncertain what she intended, but whatever she had planned, he was a willing participant.

Her soft, slender hand traveled up his arm to his shoulder, then her fingers slipped through the hair at the nape of his neck and she drew his head down to hers. Lost in the need reflecting in her eyes, he complied, watching as her lashes fluttered closed and her lips parted for him even before their mouths touched.

While their first kiss had been an act of desperation, this one was born of the sensuality that burned bright between them. She nibbled on his bottom lip, and he let her have free rein to taste and explore to her heart's content, no matter the cost to him physically. He was already hard and thick, completely aroused-a normal, lusty reaction when it came to her.

When she deepened the kiss, he welcomed the moist heat and slow, penetrating slide of her tongue, and met it with his own. He stroked long and slow, hot and deep, and she kissed him back the same way, eagerly and instinctively. So much passion. So much heat. Intense and uninhibited.

A purr of pleasure rumbled in her throat, and he groaned in appreciation, too. She was an irresistible temptation, a searing drug to his deprived libido, and she made him restless and hungry for more of her.

By the time she let him go, she was panting for breath and his own pulse was racing wildly. Their faces were still only inches away, and he wanted to drown in those trusting, velvety blue eyes of hers. Wanted to strip away the sheet and the flimsy gown separating them and make love to her.

The latter wasn't an option. Not here. Not now. Not until she regained her memory and could better define her emotions. It was obvious to him that she didn't realize that she'd been avoiding him and her attraction to him for months now. But this Natalie was giving into desires that had always been inside of her, desires she'd hidden from him before today.

Interesting.

A lazy smile hitched up the corner of his mouth. 'And that was for-?' he murmured questioningly.

She caressed her palm along his cheek, skimmed her thumb along his full bottom lip, though her gaze never left his. 'I needed to make sure what I feel for you is real.'

'And is it?' He had to know.

'As real as I know it to be. You feel good and right, and I really like kissing you.'

He laughed, relieved, and ran the tip of his finger down the slope of her cute nose. 'Just so you know, you have permission to kiss me anytime you'd like.'

Smiling, she settled back against her pillows, suddenly looking tired. While she might appear okay physically, he knew it would take a couple of days for her to fully regain her strength again. And right now, she needed more sleep.

He straightened, making a quick decision that would benefit them both. 'I'm going to leave, but I'll be back in a little while.'

Dread flared to life in her eyes. 'Where are you going?'

Her panic-stricken expression clutched at him, and he instantly tried to soothe her anxiety. 'I need a shower, shave and a change of clothes. And you need to rest. Are you afraid to stay alone?' he asked gently.

'Just a little nervous,' she admitted, her cheeks turning a pretty shade of pink. 'I feel so out of place and disoriented, and you're like an anchor in this storm I seem to be caught up in.'

'I'm sure that's very normal.' Reaching for the call button, he set it within her reach. 'Tell you what, here's the buzzer for the nurse, and if you need me for anything at all, here are my cell phone and pager numbers.' He jotted both on a napkin and set it by her phone. 'Don't hesitate to call me, even if it's just to hear my voice.'

She inhaled deeply, as if inflating her courage. 'You must think I'm a complete basket case.'

No, he didn't think that at all. Her nerves and fears were legitimately based, but he wasn't about to enlighten her of that fact, or the reasons why. She didn't need any more stress to deal with at the moment.

'I'm not always this clingy, am I?' she asked, even as her lashes grew heavy and drooped.

She sounded so embarrassed at the thought that he couldn't help but grin. 'You're only clingy when it counts, sweetheart,' he teased.

'Good.' Her eyes closed completely, and she mumbled drowsily, 'Will you bring me back fresh clothes, too?'

She thought he could because she believed they lived together. 'You bet.' Luckily for him he'd claimed her car keys and ID from her purse before handing over her personal effects to the nurses, so he had everything he needed to get into her apartment and confiscate enough items to make it appear as though she'd moved into his house. But first, he had to call a cab to take him back to his car, which was still parked at Murphy's.

He remained by her bedside until her breathing grew deep and even in sleep before leaving her room. He stopped at the nurses' station, flashed his P.I. badge and gave them adamant orders that other than personnel, no one was to go into her room without someone calling and asking him first.

He wasn't taking any chances with her safety.

Hands on his hips, Noah glanced around what had once been his masculine bathroom, but now shared space with Natalie's feminine toiletries, and knew his cherished bachelorhood as he'd once known it was over-at least temporarily. The thought of trading in meaningless flings for a day-to-day intimacy with a woman didn't bother him as much as it should have, though-because it was Natalie, a woman he'd been chasing for so long. A woman who intrigued him and evoked the kind of emotions that, with other women, had sent him running in the other direction, but with her seemed so perfectly, inexplicably right.

At the moment, he refused to analyze his changing emotions, because he had a job to do and his feelings for Natalie couldn't get in the way of higher priorities, like keeping her safe and protected. Once she regained her memory and was no longer in danger, then they'd focus on them.

He headed back into his bedroom, made room in his closet for her stuff and finished putting away the clothes he'd taken from her apartment. While going through her belongings, he'd learned that she favored jeans and sweats, loose shirts and bulky sweaters. There wasn't a sexy outfit to be had in all of her attire, or the kind of clingy, flattering clothes most women with her kind of figure would have worn. It was as if she'd sought to hide her assets, rather than accentuate them.

That had been an interesting eye-opener, and he'd found the rest of her small studio apartment equally revealing. Instead of the warmth and intimacy he'd expected to find upon entering, the accommodations she called home had felt cold, empty and lonely. Her apartment was a compact place where she slept, ate meals and studied, as indicated by the pile of books stacked on a corner table near the only window in the room. There was nothing to indicate she led anything more than a quiet, solitary life.

The apartment had been filled with only the bare living necessities-a box spring and mattress in the combo bedroom-living room, along with a nightstand and dresser drawers that were old and scarred and didn't even match. Her small thirteen-inch TV sat on a plastic crate, and her small dining table was flanked by two old wooden chairs. Even her cupboards and refrigerator only held a few staple items.

He'd gotten the distinct impression that she could get up and go at a moment's notice and not miss anything she left behind. There was nothing permanent to indicate she'd settled down for good in Oakland. Her belongings were meager, and he hadn't found anything to disclose who she was beyond what he already knew.

He'd even gone so far as to search drawers, hoping to find some kernel of information to help him better understand what had frightened her, but the only intriguing tidbit he'd discovered was an outdated woman's magazine she'd subscribed to with her name and a Reno, Nevada, address on the mailing label. He'd confiscated the item to help him find out about the life she'd led before moving to Northern California.

He emptied the final bag of clothes onto his bed to sort, and her intimate apparel tumbled out. He grinned as