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“Are you asking me out?”
“I’m asking you in, sugar. To my hotel room. I’m just passing through and I don’t have much time.” His grin faded. “I want you and you want me. We should do something about that.”
“Well, I…I…” I never was right there on the tip of her tongue. But the last thing she wanted was to admit the sad truth out loud. She’d never had anyone make such a proposition.
She’d never wanted one.
Until now.
She shook away the thought. “You’re arrogant. And presumptuous.”
“And right.” He leaned in close, his lips grazing her ear. “You do want me.”
“Says you.”
“Says this.” He moved so quickly that she didn’t have time to blink, much less anticipate his touch. His fingertips grazed the side of her breast, and her nipple instantly pebbled. Her lips trembled and she swayed ever so slightly. “So let’s do something about it.”
“Sex,” she blurted. “I…This is crazy.” She wasn’t doing it. She couldn’t. “I’m sorry if you got the wrong idea, but I don’t…I can’t…I mean, I won’t. I don’t do one-night stands.”
He didn’t say a word. He just leaned back and stared down at her. Her nipples tingled in response. The pressure started deep, spreading, consuming, until it was all she could do not to lean forward and press herself shamelessly against him.
Talk about a mixed message.
He looked at her for several long seconds, as if he couldn’t quite believe she was turning him down. Oddly enough, there was nothing arrogant about his expression. Rather, he seemed genuinely surprised.
Finally he shook his head and reached into his pocket. His warm fingers played at hers as he reached for her hand.
“I’m at the Skull Creek Inn.” He pressed a cold piece of plastic into her palm. “If you change your mind.”
But she wouldn’t, because Nikki Braxton didn’t jump into bed with a stranger, no matter how good-looking. She’d spent her entire life playing the good girl, holding back, convinced that by doing so she could guarantee a solid, lasting relationship.
And how’s that working for you?
The question haunted her for the next few hours as she gorged herself on funnel cakes, homemade fudge and a huge hunk of Miss Emma’s award-winning chocolate cake, and tried to forget the most incredible kiss of her life.
But she couldn’t forget, she finally admitted as she climbed behind the wheel of her Ford Explorer. Any more than she could avoid the truth: despite her best efforts, she was no closer to her own happily ever after than her mother had been. Even more, she was sexually frustrated to the point that she’d melted at the booted feet of a virtual stranger. And she’d totally embarrassed herself in front of the ladies’ bingo squad.
Her flawless reputation had died in a matter of seconds, and just like that she’d gone from good girl to a chip off the old block.
Forget frustrated. She was desperate.
And there was only one way to ease the anxiety eating up her common sense.
She stared at the key card he’d pressed into her hand, and the implication rushed through her brain.
Pleasure, pure and simple. Nothing less but nothing more.
Her fingers closed around the plastic, and she had the sudden urge to chuck it into the nearest trash can.
No man’s going to buy the cow if he can get the milk for free.
But this wasn’t about making a purchase.
This was strictly a barter. Sex for sex. Temporary.
For the first time in Nikki’s life that didn’t seem like such a bad thing.
She keyed the ignition, gunned the engine and pulled out of the high school parking lot. Five minutes later, she pulled up next to a shiny black-and-chrome chopper parked behind Skull Creek’s one and only motel.
Fighting down a wave of nerves, she walked to the door and knocked.
He answered wearing nothing but a pair of blue jeans and a knowing expression that said he’d had no doubt that she would show up.
He’d been waiting for her.
She had half a mind to turn and walk the other way. He looked too certain with his molten silver eyes and sensuous mouth. Too handsome. His chest was hard and muscular. Dark wisps of silky hair swirled from nipple to nipple. He had broad shoulders and sinewy arms. The ornate tattoos around his biceps made him seem darker and more dangerous. Primitive. Forbidden.
And she could no more resist him than Eve had been able to resist that ripe, juicy apple.
“Nikki Braxton,” she blurted. “Thirty years old. I own the local beauty salon. Born and raised right here in town. I like the Pussycat Dolls, chocolate pudding and playing solitaire on my computer. And I’m forever in search of new highlight colors.”
And then she kissed him.
4
THE MOMENT NIKKI touched her lips to his, Jake felt a wave of heat unlike anything he’d ever felt before. Her lips were so warm, so hungry, so damned different from any female he’d ever been with.
He was always the aggressor.
The predator.
Not this time. She backed him up into the hotel room and kicked the door shut with her foot. Her tongue tangled with his and she slid her arms around his neck. Her small fingers splayed in his hair, and heat shimmered down his spine from the point of contact.
His gut clenched and his body throbbed and suddenly he was back in the driver’s seat. He slid his arms around her waist, shoved his hands beneath her T-shirt and felt her bare skin. She was soft and warm and his body trembled. He steered her around toward the bed and urged her down. He pulled back, his hands going to the button on his jeans. He made quick work of them, shoving the denim down his legs so fast that it was a wonder he didn’t fall flat on his ass.
Her gaze fell to his massive erection and she hesitated. She was having second thoughts, damning herself for being so impulsive.
Jake fought for his control and steeled himself against the delicious heat coming off her body. Because he didn’t just want to take from her. He wanted her to give.
The notion stuck. A crazy, insane notion, but he couldn’t help himself. He’d spent a century taking, drinking, feeding, and for once he wanted to know what it felt like for a woman to give herself. Not because he demanded but because she wanted to.
He closed his hands over her shoulders, guiding her down onto the mattress. His fingers skittered over the soft material of her T-shirt, molding the cotton to her full breasts.
Easy…
The warning sounded in his head, and he managed to move his hands away before he could stroke her perfectly outlined nipples.
He scooted down to pull off her sneakers and toss them to the floor. Then his fingers went to the button on her jeans. His heart pounded and his pulse raced and an ache gripped him from the inside out. He stiffened, fighting the urge that roared inside of him.
Slow…
He smoothed the denim down her legs. His fingertips brushed her bare skin, grazing and stirring. The friction ripped through him, testing his control with each delicious inch. Finally, finally, he stood near the foot of the bed and pulled the jeans free of her long legs.
Clad only in the thin cotton shirt and lace panties, she looked so damned sweet and innocent. So opposite of any of the women he usually kept company with. He grew harder, hotter, and anticipation zipped up and down his spine.
His gaze traveled from her calves, up her lush thighs, to the wispy lace barely covering the soft strip of blond silk between her legs.
He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry. With a sweep of his tongue he licked his lips. The urge to feel her pressed against his mouth nearly sent him over the edge. He wanted to part her with his tongue and taste all of her secrets. Need pounded, steady, demanding, and sent the blood jolting through his veins at an alarming rate.
The hunger roared inside of him and made him think crazy-ass thoughts. Like how she was just about the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen and how he wanted her more than any other woman in his past.
Because she was different from every woman.
He stared deep into her eyes. Gone was the glimmer of loneliness he’d glimpsed earlier. He saw only uncertainty now. And anticipation.
His hands started to tremble and he felt a driving force wrap around him, propel him toward her. He dropped to the bed beside her and reached out. His fingers brushed the velvet of one hip.
It wasn’t enough.
His hands seemed to move of their own accord, traveling the length of her body, exploring every curve, every dip, lingering at the lace covering her moist heat.
He traced the pattern with his fingertip, moving lower until he could feel the slit between her legs. She gasped and her legs opened. She wanted more and he wanted to give it to her. He followed the edge of her panties and barely resisted the need to dip his fingers beneath and plunge one deep into her lush body.
Not yet. She was still too stiff. Too wary. Despite the growing desire that flushed her skin a bright, delicious pink.
Jake tamped down on his hunger and forced his hand up over her flat belly. Her soft flesh quivered beneath his palm as he moved higher, pushing her T-shirt up until he uncovered one creamy breast.
His fingertips circled the rose-colored nipple, and he inhaled sharply when the already turgid peak ripened even more.
Leaning over, he touched his lips to her navel, dipped his tongue inside and swirled. She whimpered, the sound urging him on. He licked a path up her fragrant skin, teasing and nibbling, until he reached one full breast. Closing his lips over her swollen nipple, he pulled and tugged.
He swept his hands downward, cupping her heat through the scanty lace of her panties. Wisps of silky hair brushed his palm like licks of fire, stoking the hunger that already raged inside of him.
She gasped and arched toward him. But despite her reaction, there was something inside of her that still held back.
“Jake McCann,” he murmured, his lips grazing her nipple. “I was born and raised in a hole-in-the-wall town called Junction. My favorite color is blue and I like horses.”
THE DEEP, HUSKY VOICE echoed in Nikki’s ears, and she opened her eyes to stare up at the man leaning over. His hand stilled between her legs, his palm pressed tightly to her sex.
“C-can you ride?” She wasn’t sure how she managed the question. The heat from his touch seeped into her, making her head spin. But she managed anyway, her curiosity getting the best of her.
His gaze glittered hot and bright, like liquid silver. “Darlin’, I can ride better than I can walk.”
He hooked one finger under the edge of her panties and pushed the lace to the side. He trailed his fingertips over her moist flesh, his gaze never leaving hers. As if he knew how wound up she was. As if he knew his effect on her.
He knew her.
Inside and out.
She stiffened at the unsettling thought. But then he pushed a finger deep inside and she stopped thinking altogether.
She gasped, her lips parting, her eyes drifting closed at the intimate caress.
“Open your eyes,” Jake demanded, his voice raw with savage lust. “I want to look at you. I want to see what’s in your eyes when you come apart for me.”
Nikki obeyed and he caught her gaze. He slipped another finger inside her.
Her legs turned to butter. Her knees fell open, giving him better access.
But he didn’t go deeper and give her more of what she wanted. Instead he stared down at her, his gaze so compelling that she couldn’t help herself. She arched her hips, rising up to meet him, drawing him in.
The more she moved, the deeper he went. The pressure built.
“That’s it, sugar. You’re getting closer.”
She continued to move from side to side, creating the most delicious friction, her insides slick, sweltering from his invasion. She tried to breathe, to pull oxygen into her lungs, but she couldn’t seem to get enough. Pleasure rippled from her head to her toes, and the room seemed to spin around her. Her hips rotated. Her nerves buzzed.
She hadn’t felt so good in a long, long time.
If ever.
She ignored the outrageous thought and concentrated on the feelings roiling inside of her. Her head fell back. Her lips parted. A low moan rumbled up her throat and spilled past her lips.
He leaned down and caught the sound with his mouth. His hand fell away from her as he thrust his tongue deep, mimicking the careful attention his purposeful fingers had given her only seconds before.
Straddling her, his knees trapped her thighs. He leaned back to gaze down at her. He was a black silhouette, a man made of shadows, a stranger.
She knew his name, she reminded herself. And his favorite color. And there was just something about him, an understanding that said he knew her all too well. Her likes. Her dislikes. Her fears.
Hello? We’re talking a one night stand here. Stop thinking and just feel.
She touched his bare chest, felt the wisps of hair beneath her palm, the ripple of muscle as he sucked in a deep breath. Her attention shifted lower and she grasped him, trailing her hand up and down his shaft. His flesh pulsed in her palm and a shiver danced up her spine. She wanted to feel him. She wanted it more than she’d ever wanted anything.
He thrust into her grip as she worked him for several long moments before he caught her wrist and forced her hand away. He leaned down and snatched his jeans off the floor. Pulling a condom from his pocket, he ripped open the package and rolled the latex down his penis.
And then he touched her.
His hands started on her rib cage and slid her T-shirt up and over her head. He touched her anywhere, everywhere, as if he knew what she craved better than he knew himself.
He did.
The truth hit her as she stared into his silver gaze and saw her own ferocious hunger mirrored in the bright depths. He knew her, all right. He knew her frustration. Her need.
He felt them both.
She wondered if he had his own string of fetish-ridden ex-girlfriends. He lowered his head then and drew her nipple into the moist heat of his mouth, and suddenly the only thing on her mind was touching him. She slid her hands over his shoulders, feeling his warm skin and hard muscle.
He suckled her breast, his teeth grazing the soft globes, nipping and biting with just enough pressure to make her gasp. Her breast swelled and throbbed.
