Maybe she owed the man a chance. If they were going to work together, she really would have to learn to relax just as he had. She couldn’t go on questioning his motives for every little action. Then again, if she let down her guard, who knew where things could lead. She bit back the urge to sigh. Her uncomplicated, very focused life suddenly seemed fraught with confusion.
“Tell me about Halloran Industries,” she said, hoping to remind both of them that their attention was supposed to be strictly on business. “I know what was in the annual report, but that didn’t give me a real feel for the company’s history. I think maybe that’s what you should be capitalizing on. What do you think?”
To her relief a rare excitement immediately sparked in his light blue eyes. “You mean exploit the fact that this is a family business, that it’s been around for four generations, ever since my great-grandfather came over from England at the end of the last century?”
“Exactly. It’ll give it a more human image, especially in this age of impersonal conglomerates. Think of a slogan. Four generations of dedication to quality, that sort of thing.”
Before Dana realized what he intended, Jason swerved the car to the curb and cut the engine. His hands cupped her cheeks and he kissed her—a quick, impulsive brush of his lips across hers.
Gratitude. That’s all it was, she told herself sternly. Like last night’s startling goodbye kiss, this one was over almost before the sensation registered. Almost. Its swiftness didn’t prevent the rise of heat, the lightning flash of desire, but both vanished in a heartbeat, leaving Dana all too readily with the illusion of safety.
“You’re fantastic!” he declared, his fingers still warm against her cheeks. “For once Granddad’s instincts may have been right. Maybe you will work out. That’s the ideal slogan. Everyone will love it, especially my grandfather. Tradition is the only thing that really matters to him.”
Dana couldn’t help being caught up in his enthusiasm, though a part of her was surprised that he’d embraced the phrase so readily, that he apparently didn’t intend to throw up roadblocks at every opportunity. “Are you sure? I mean it was just a suggestion off the top of my head.”
“Sometimes the first instincts are the best.”
At the exact same instant they both seemed to realize that his hands now rested on her shoulders, that they were still just inches apart.
Talk about first instincts! Suddenly hers had nothing to do with discovering more about textiles. Heat and desire spun through her again, gathering intensity. He was so close that his breath fanned her skin. The exuberant kiss just moments earlier was nothing more than a prelude to this, she realized now. Innocence had been lost to this sparkling awareness. An increasingly familiar, increasingly demanding tension throbbed between them. The lure was irresistible.
“Dana?” It was a soft, questioning plea that matched the confusion in his eyes.
Dana merely sighed, her heart hammering in her chest. Heaven help her, she wanted his mouth to close over hers. She wanted their breath to mingle. She wanted to know the taste of him, the texture of his skin. She could deny it from now until doomsday, but it would be a lie. She wanted to be in his arms. Just for a kiss. Just for this brief moment of discovery.
When she couldn’t make herself utter the protest that would have stopped him, he leaned closer, still hesitant, still giving her time to say no. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it. With each second that passed, her desire grew. She wanted his lips to caress hers, wanted him to linger long enough for her to savor the unfamiliar sensations that were already exploding inside her.
The first touch was velvet soft and cool. But as if a fire had been lit somewhere deep inside, the kiss heated. She was aware of the gentle caress of his fingers, of the growing hunger as his mouth claimed hers. With the motor off, the air in the car turned chilly, but Dana felt every bit as hot as if it had been a sunny ninety-five degrees. When the touch of his tongue urged her lips apart, need ripped through her, shaking her with its unexpected intensity.
Why hadn’t she known a mere kiss could be like this, that it could awaken astonishing, aching needs? Why did every kiss she’d shared in the past seem as immature and unimportant as those in some silly adolescent game? This one held promise and comfort and danger in an intoxicating blend.
When Jason finally moved away, they were both breathing hard. If she looked half as shaken as she felt, he would know in an instant that he had a power over her that went far beyond his influence with the Lansing Agency. She hoped desperately that he couldn’t see that, that the look of triumph and satisfaction on his face had something to do with that crazy slogan she’d come up with and not the few breath-stealing seconds she’d spent in his embrace.
Deep down she knew better, knew that their relationship had shifted onto what for her was uncharted ground. She had gone this far with men before, but never farther. Never had she felt the consuming desire to see where a few kisses might lead.
“I think we ought to be going, don’t you?” she said, irritated by the breathless quality of her voice. She knew it would be a waste of what little breath she had to protest that the kiss had been a mistake. They both knew that. She recognized it with dismaying certainty. Jason, for all of his impetuous claiming of her lips, had to know it as well. If anything, he was probably having more second thoughts than she was. It
