Page 50 of His Saving Grace

The rest of her icy resolve melted under the wave of heat that flowed through her. Like the idiot she was, she nodded. If she closed her eyes, she’d probably see the splat on the sidewalk where her common sense had landed. What was it about him that she couldn’t resist?

His lips tilted up in a naughty smile, the spark of heat returning to turn his eyes sapphire. He brushed another kiss against her lips. This time he lingered, deepening the kiss, stealing her breath.

She kissed him back, opening her mouth, trying to entice him. He nipped her lower lip, the slight sting zipping through her veins and right to her core. He then pulled away, and she couldn’t stop the whimper that escaped.

“Tomorrow,” he said, and swept his lips against hers a third time, but only in the barest hint of a kiss. Leaving her wanting, craving, aching for him. The bastard.

He turned and walked down the stairs and the loss of him, of his heat and his scent, made her want to chase after him, throw her arms around him, ask him not to go. He had wiggled his way under her skin, burrowing so deep she wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to get rid of him. She wasn’t sure she wanted to.

She had tried so hard to avoid him after the night spent in his bed. He entered the room and she left. Stopped going to eat with the rest of the family. She saw him coming and turned and walked away. But it had all been useless.

He’d occupied her every waking thought. And plenty while she slept. The way he looked when he laughed with Jake. The hurt he tried to hide every time Owen rejected him. The love and loyalty he had for his family. The guilt he felt about his dad. The way his eyes darkened when he looked at her. The way they narrowed, as if he was trying to see past the outer her and right into her soul.

She closed her eyes at night, and her thoughts always turned dirty. She was obsessed with the feel of him pressed against her. All that sinewy hardness. His hand on her breast, the slide of his palm against her hardened nipple. How he held her tightly, his erection pressing against her.

And then, good Lord, he’d cornered her in the barn and kissed the daylights out of her. Her resistance had shattered. He’d tasted so good and felt so wonderful in her arms that she’d been unable to resist. Had eagerly wanted more. If they hadn’t been interrupted, she wasn’t sure how far she would have let it go. Judging by tonight, the answer seemed pretty obvious.

His limp was pretty prominent as he stepped onto the porch of the main house. He turned and waved to her, and she smiled. She lifted her hand in return. He made her lose her convictions, every damn time.

What was it about him that had her tied up in knots one minute and ready to strip him out of his clothes the next? She’d never felt like this before. No one had ever made her feel the things he did. It seriously scared the crap out of her.

He stood on the porch, watching her, his hand on the doorknob. It took a minute for her to realize he was waiting for her. She turned and unlocked the door, pushing it open and ducking inside. She peeked out the window. He slipped through the back door of the main house.

She sighed and dropped back against the door. There was only one solution. Tomorrow, she would sleep with Mason, appease her fascination, and then move on. Perfectly logical, bordering on brilliant.

Her imagination leaped into overdrive, filling her head with ideas and images that would make even Jake blush. She wandered into the bedroom, snapping off the lamp on the way. The darkness pressed in, but for the first time in forever, she wasn’t choked by fear. Instead, an unexpected giddiness bubbled up inside her. She just needed to get through work tomorrow, and then the plan to rock Mason’s world could begin.

Changing into the old t-shirt she wore to bed, she ducked into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth, staring at her reflection. Doubts filtered in. Not about sleeping with him, because that was happening.

No, it was more the massive, gaping flaw in her plan. The flaw that suggested once with Mason would be enough. Hell, forever might never be enough where Mason Callahan was concerned.