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She went into her bedroom and tried to figure out what to put on. Something sexy? Something casual? Panic tightened her stomach. If only she knew if he really wanted her.

She walked to her dresser, pulled open every drawer, then closed them one after the other. “Maybe I’ll just arrange myself artfully on the bed,” she muttered. “After a couple of hours, he’ll get worried and come check on me. If I’m naked, he might get the picture.”

Of course, he might take one look at her bony body and run screaming into the night.

* * *

Jim threw down the baby magazine. In the past twenty minutes, he’d forgotten how to read. That was the only explanation why the words danced around the page like so much gibberish. He’d already tried pacing, but all that did was bring him way too close to Heather’s bedroom door. Which made him think about opening it, stepping inside and joining her in her shower. Which made him break out into a cold sweat. He was hard and ready and tense and he just wanted to get the hell out of here.

What was wrong with him? He’d been in the house with Heather dozens of times. Sure he’d always wanted her, but the needing had been controlled. Something had happened and he couldn’t figure out what. Maybe it was the shower, the image of her naked body, slick and—

Her bedroom door opened. Jim bit back a curse. He hoped she didn’t ask him to move for the next several minutes because there was no way he could stand up without her getting an eyeful of his aroused state. He would think about something else, something calming and not the least bit sexual. Tractors, or helicopters. That was it. He would mentally review his inventory and try to remember what parts needed reordering. He knew he was out of—

“Jim?”

Steeling himself against the inevitable, he glanced up. And sucked in a breath. If he hadn’t been sitting, he would have fallen on his butt for sure.

Heather stood in the doorway to the living room. She wore a short, white terry-cloth robe. A very short robe that belted at the waist and plunged low enough to expose a generous expanse of cleavage. With a certainty he couldn’t explain, he knew she was naked under that robe. Naked except for the sweet scent of her perfume.

His body tightened to the point where he thought he was certain to explode. He couldn’t speak, could barely breathe. His hands clenched into fists. He wanted her more desperately than he’d ever wanted any woman in his life.

For one brief, wild moment he thought she might be coming on to him. Hope flared, then winked out as quickly. Heather would never do that. Not that he wouldn’t want her to, but she wasn’t aggressive and she saw him more as a big brother than as a lover. Didn’t she? Weren’t they both telling each other that they couldn’t get involved? He knew he couldn’t. But that didn’t stop him from wanting her or needing her with a desperation that left him immobilized.

“Did you need something?” he said, his voice thick and hoarse.

Her mouth curved in a smile. “What an interesting choice of words. As a matter of fact, I do need something.”

Was there a leak in the shower? A blocked sink? A spider in her bedroom?

Then she started walking toward him. He couldn’t have said what was different, but he instantly understood the message. Maybe it was the sway of her hips, or the slight thrust of her chin, or the way she led with her chest. In that second, he knew she wasn’t looking for help with a plumbing crisis. She wanted a man. More specifically, she wanted him.

The realization added to his desire until he thought he might choke. He watched her come to a stop in front of him and draw in a breath.

“I’ve never done anything like this before,” she admitted quietly.

Her soft hair fluttered around her face and she tucked a loose strand behind her ear. He noticed that her fingers trembled.

“We’re both consenting adults,” she continued. “Neither of us is interested in a traditional, romantic relationship. Neither of us wants to get involved. But that kiss was pretty amazing, and I can’t help wondering how the rest of it would be. So I thought, if you were interested, we could find out.”

Color stained her cheeks, but she held her ground in front of him. He tried to speak, but his throat had tightened to the point where he couldn’t even breathe, let alone talk. Images flashed through his brain. Of them together, naked, making love. Just like he’d pictured when she first went into the shower. Only this time he could see those tangled legs and touching bodies and know that it was really going to happen. She wanted him. She wanted him.

Heather took a quick step back. “Okay, so I read this all wrong.” She ducked her head and turned away. “You probably want to leave now, and I think you should. The earth is not cooperating by opening up and swallowing me, despite my frantic requests that it do so. It would be—”

“No!” he said urgently as her words sank into his brain. He sprang to his feet, moved toward her and spun her to face him. “I want you. Desperately. I’m just having a little trouble thinking that you want me in the same way.” His hands tightened on her shoulders as he stared into her eyes. Some of the embarrassment faded from her lovely face. “Tell me you’re naked under this,” he said.

“As a jaybird.”

A shudder rippled through him. He groaned aloud, then pulled her close and pressed his mouth to hers.

As far as kisses went, it was as amazing as Heather remembered. The warm pressure of his lips against hers set every nerve ending in her body to dancing. Heat flared all over, although the most interesting was the damp heat between her legs. Even before his tongue tenderly swept inside her mouth, she could feel the rush of dampness as her body readied itself for his masculine assault.

Her arms came up around his neck. As she stepped closer, he pulled her to him, grabbing her waist, then dropping lower to her rear. She was flush against him, her breasts flattening against his chest, his erection straining against her belly. Their heads tilted and he plunged deeper into her mouth. She stroked his tongue with her own. Over and under and around in ever-changing sensations of rough and smooth, while she savored the familiar, sweet taste of him.

She inhaled the scent of his body, a scent she would know always. There would be no problem finding this man in the dark. She touched his cool silky hair, then moved her hands down his broad back. Muscles tightened in response to her touch. He responded in kind, moving his hands up and down until his palms brushed past the hem of her short robe and touched the bare skin on the backs of her thighs. Instantly, his hardness flexed and they both groaned.

He broke the kiss and stared at her, his blue eyes dark and stormy with a male hunger that made her bones melt. As she watched him watching her, he slipped under her robe and delicately traced the curves of her rear. He moved up the side of her hips, then back and down, cupping and squeezing. His fingertips both tickled and aroused, and she didn’t know whether to laugh and duck away or beg for more.

An ache began between her thighs. It pulsed in time with her rapid heartbeat. She wanted to drop to the floor, spread her legs and beg him to take her right there. Then he gripped her rear firmly and raised her. She gave a little hop to help him. He lifted her in the air, pulling her against him as he did. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her toward her bed.