“You listen. You pay attention. Your brain is sharp, your heart is soft, and your body is mouthwatering, William.” She slowly smoothed her other palm over his torso, his firm stomach and pecs, his tight nipples covered by stretchy knit, and no, that definitely wasn’t a bag of M&M’S against her thigh. “Of course I find you sexy. You’re literally everything I’ve ever wanted in a man, and I thought you were withmy best friend.”
Carefully, watching her expression for any sign of discomfort, he shifted their positions until he lay halfway over top of her, braced on an elbow.
He blew out a hard breath. Trailed his knuckles down her arm, lingering at the sensitive skin of her inner wrist. “Holy crap, Nina. You’re sosoft.”
If he liked that, he’d find plenty more, no matter where those agile fingers might venture.
“Claudia is great, but ... at first, I don’t think I even saw her.” To Nina’s disappointment, his exploration paused just below her breasts, atop the swell of her belly. “I looked up from that journal, and you were standing there, haloed bythe library’s fluorescent lights, all red-gold curls and straight-backed confidence. You had on that pale-blue dress that matches your eyes and kind of wraps around you, and I’d never seen anything so lovely before. Not in my entire life.”
He shook his head. “I’d never met anyone who exuded such fierce dignity and intelligence while looking that warm and lush and welcoming, and I wanted you then. I’ve wanted you every moment since, because the reality of you—who and what you are, as a colleague, friend, and human being—outstrips every fantasy I’ve ever had. And I ...”
He leaned forward, angled his head a fraction, and slowly, tenderly, kissed her. Sipped leisurely at her mouth and let the contact linger, let their lips cling sweetly for a handful of heart-stopping moments in the dark, velvety night.
She shivered again. This time, not from the cold.
Her knees widened, and his thigh nudged higher. Higher again. Until her gasp echoed against the metal walls of their temporary bedroom, and she arched helplessly against him. His strong hand soothingly kneaded her ass, even as it gently, relentlessly pressed her closer to that firm pressure against her clit.
“I want you now,” he murmured against her parted lips. “I’m beginning to think I’ll want youalways, Nina.”
Her fingers slipped into his hair, tugging lightly, while her other palm smoothed over the straining placket of his jeans, and it was his turn to suck in a harsh breath and rock his body against hers in a mindless surge.
She didn’t need her fleece jacket anymore. If she got any hotter, she was going to start sweating. “If all that’s true, then am I—”
“It’s true,” he interrupted, his voice firm.
“Please let me finish.” She captured his lower lip between her teeth, then released him after a light, chiding nip.“Am I the reason staying at Dogwood no longer seems so unbearable?”
“Yes.” No equivocation. No hesitation.
While that was an intensely flattering admission, he deserved better than his current position. So did she and Claudia. And maybe, if they joined forces, all three of them might find thatbettertogether.
Although, to be honest, it was exceedingly difficult to imagine a happiness greater than what she was experiencing right now.
“I’m honored.” She meant that with all her overjoyed heart. “And we should talk more about our professional futures tomorrow. But for now, I’m requesting one more turn in our game. Even though I’ve already had three in a row.”
The hand on her belly slid upward until he was palming her breast. The pad of his thumb slowly, slowly caressed her beaded nipple as she squirmed beneath him and fought for breath.
That hard thigh pressing against her clit ... If he ever took it away from her, she was going to channel her inner Haymarket Square anarchist andriot.
“I have no complaints.” He sounded amused and very, very turned on. “Please proceed.”
Reluctantly letting go of him, she held up eight fingers. “Never have I ever wanted to have sex with a colleague.”
His face dropped, and he flung his hands away from her body like she’d singed him.
Making sure he watched the movement, she folded down her middle finger too.
His eyes squeezed shut in obvious relief. When he opened them again, though, he pinned her with an outraged glare. “That’s not how the freaking gameworks. Jesus, Nina, you scared the shit out of me!”
“Couldn’t resist. I apologize.” Pointedly, she stared at his hand.
He shook his head at her, but didn’t delay in curling his own middle finger toward his palm. “Would have served you right if I’d made you wait.”
In an act of deliberate provocation, she lifted her ass from their makeshift mattress and shamelessly rubbed against his thigh. Her eyelids fluttered, her breath hitched on a quiet moan, and she forgot for a moment what she’d intended to say next.
Oh, yeah. That was it. “I’ve already been waiting over four months.”
He swept a hot, all-encompassing glance over her body, from her rumpled hair to her socks, then reached for her again.
