and tugged down, but she was only able to get so far. Whispering a soft apology, he left her momentarily while he yanked the shorts off, and as long as he was in position, he spread her robe completely open, and when he lay down again it was flesh to flesh.
He lowered his head until he kissed her once more, but only a peck. Turning so he could nibble the edge of her chin, he whispered, “I don’t understand this. How I feel when…”
“I know,” she said. “It’s crazy. But, oh, God.”
“Uh-huh.” He licked, then nibbled, then moved to her neck, kissing, murmuring sweet sounds that had no words, just the heat of his breath, the wet of his tongue, the sharpness of his teeth.
Distraction came when he cupped her breast, using the flat of his palm to circle her nipple, brushing against it so lightly it was as if she imagined the caress.
Everything in her wanted more. “Please,” she begged, pressing herself into his hand. “Don’t make me wait.”
He lifted his head and stared down at her. It was too dark and his face too shadowed to see him clearly, but the length of his pause made her think he could see her.
He said nothing as he moved on top of her, spreading her legs with his knees to nestle between them. Once settled, he found her hands, and slid his fingers between hers. He lifted both hands until they were above her head, brought them both together, then using one hand, so much larger than hers, he grasped both wrists tightly. When she tugged, he held her fast, immobile.
“What-?”
His low chuckle did all sorts of interesting things to her body. She tried to wiggle, but the way he held her captive, she could hardly move.
Spreading her legs farther, he touched her with his free hand, and after getting the lay of the land, he thrust a finger inside her, making her gasp with the sudden intrusion. The next second his mouth covered hers, swallowing her surprise as his finger plunged inside her.
There was nothing gentle or gentlemanly about anything he did. His tongue and his finger worked in rhythm, each taking her roughly, giving her no option but to surrender to the pleasure, to abandon herself to whatever wickedness was in store.
His body tensed as he ravaged her mouth, his fingers thrust inside her once more and then were gone, replaced quickly with the full length of him, filling her completely, making her gasp and arch her back.
He took her, plunged into her over and over roughly, the gentle man she’d known replaced by this animal presence, this predator.
She writhed beneath him, so awash with awareness and excitement she could hardly breathe. She heard herself moan, although the sound was unlike any she’d made before. Her hands struggled to break free even though she didn’t want to be free. Her body was more hers than ever before, even as her moves were unfamiliar and jerky.
“Mine,” he whispered gruffly, the tone brooking no quarter, taking possession of her body, her mind, her soul.
She wrapped her legs around his hips, meeting each thrust with one of her own, two bodies crashing together like waves to a craggy shore.
Her orgasm came quickly, with such ferociousness she could only cry out, inarticulate, trembling. She squeezed him both with her legs and with her inner muscles, and he went over the edge, too, his cry and hers twining like their bodies.
When it was over, he released her wrists, collapsing on top of her in a heap.
She didn’t mind. She wanted to feel his chest rise and fall. She still had him inside her, and that she wasn’t willing to relinquish.
Dizzy from the exertion, her body continued to spasm in echoes of the fierce climax, and every time she did, he answered in the same way.
Finally, long after the main event had ended, he sighed deeply, then kissed her. Gentle Dan had returned, but now she knew that there was another side to him, darker, rougher, and she wasn’t sure which she preferred.
“I hate it,” he said, “but I have to.”
She whimpered. “Please, no.”
“I must. Cramp in my leg.”
She kissed his cheek. “Poor baby.”
“It’s your fault.” He rolled off her, leaving her empty and chilled.
“How is it my fault?”
“You make me crazy. I have no self-control when I’m around you.”
“That’s not me. That’s you.”
“Nope. I know it’s you.”
“How?”
He turned his head to look at her. “Because it doesn’t happen with anyone else.”
“Oh.”
He shook his head. “I don’t know what to do with you.”
“Me, neither.”
“I keep thinking the best thing is to leave you alone. Go back to square one, and focus on the research. Get possessive around Owen, then back the hell off.”
“That sounds right.”
“But then we’re alone, and I can’t think about the research at all.”
“I have no thoughts to spare. I have two more days of this campaign, and I can’t let down my guard. It’s everything I’ve worked toward and my future is tied to the outcome. So what do I do? I spend every free second thinking about you.”
“It’s a problem.”
“No kidding.”
He turned onto his side, propping his head up on his hand. “What are we going to do?”
“I have no idea.”
“We could try again. Going back to the original deal, I mean. Look, but no touch. Questions, answers.”
She nodded. “It won’t be easy.”
“Granted. But we’re both adults. We should be able to curb our animal instincts for a couple of days.”
“Right. Especially now that we’ve, uh…”
“Yes. Gotten our ya-yas out, so to speak.”
“Well said.” Jessica grinned. “So that’s that. We’ll be grown-ups. You’ll sleep in here, I’ll sleep in there. We’ll talk. It’ll be great.” She turned onto her side, facing him, mimicking his posture exactly. “We’ll be models of decorum.”
“Platonic.”
“Yet caring.”
He frowned. “But you know, we’ve already kind of ruined tonight.”
“Technically, you’re right.”
“So what I’m thinking is, let’s just get all this sex business out of our systems. You know, boogie till we drop. Then it’ll be easy to be paragons of virtue.”
“I can see why you’re so successful in business. You look at the big picture.”
“Right. The kit
“I figure,” she said, “after I get a little water, maybe have a piece of fruit, we could meet in the bedroom.”
“Ah, a change of venue.”
She grinned. “Well, we wouldn’t want to leave out anything.”
“Wise, wise woman.”
“Okay then. I’m going to drink and eat.”
“I’m going to go to the bathroom, then join you.”
She leaned over and kissed him. “Oh, goody.”
“Amen to that.”
