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She took a sip of her wine, trying to relax the tension across her shoulders. Now that Liam was there she should feel better than she had before, but it wasn’t working out that way.
Liam leaned across the table, covering her hand with his. “What’s new?”
She gave him a taut smile. “I’m going to pick up Carol tomorrow and have David over for dinner. I think if he sees her, he’ll ease off. I’m guessing he still wants her to visit him.” She paused, closing her eyes. “He’s only seen her a few times over the years, although he calls her every once in a while. I don’t know why he’s suddenly decided she needs to come to L.A.”
Liam frowned. “Maybe he wants to get to know her better.”
“Maybe. He was supposed to visit when she was staying with his folks in Colorado Springs, but he cancelled at the last minute. Maybe his folks laid on the guilt.”
“Could be.” Liam yawned, rubbing his eyes. “Sorry. I’m more tired than I thought I was.”
“That’s okay. You’ve got a right to yawn, considering your working hours.”
Liam laced his fingers through hers, then pushed himself to his feet. “Come on.”
She blinked up at him. “Come on where?”
“To your bedroom, wherever it is. I need to see you naked. I need to do more than that, but we can start with the seeing part.” His lips moved into a sly grin. “Always assuming that’s why you wanted me here. If you wanted to play a round of cribbage, I could probably do that, although not with the same kind of enthusiasm.”
She looked up at him with her own sly grin. “I’ve never been much of a cribbage player. But I’ll be glad to show you the way to my room. I’ll even lead you there.”
…
Ruth paused in the doorway, glancing back at him over her shoulder, and his body tightened. He hadn’t realized how much he’d looked forward to this—how much he’d needed it—until he’d spent fifteen minutes staring into her brown velvet eyes. He didn’t recall ever wanting a woman as much as he wanted Ruth Colbert. At least, not since he’d passed puberty.
He followed her inside. The room had a bed, a dresser, and an armoire. It had no room for anything else. Even getting two people inside was a stretch. Fortunately, the bed was ample.
“I chose this room because it’s away from the street,” she explained. “And you can hear the stream when the windows are open.” She gestured toward a block of three windows across one wall. If he listened carefully, he could hear the whispering of water over stones somewhere nearby.
She turned back to him, smiling a little nervously. “It’s not as big as your bedroom. But it suits me.”
“It suits me, too. As long as you’re in it.” He stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her against him. “I’ve been missing you today.”
“You have?”
Those velvet eyes stared up at him, and he could feel his control beginning to slip. “Oh yes, ma’am. That I have.” He brought his lips to hers, sliding one arm behind her head to hold her so that he could plunge deep. His body was moving into very-ready status, but he wanted to take this slow, or as slow as he could force himself to go. He’d been thinking about her ever since he’d left the deli that morning, and now he could savor the experience.
Ruth’s hands slid down his body, moving between his legs to cup him through his jeans. One finger stroked the length of his shaft, lightly.
Maybe savoring could wait.
He took hold of the bottom of her T-shirt and pulled it up, then flipped open the fastening on her bra. Her breasts seemed to fall into his hands, perfect, full, ripe. He brought his mouth to a nipple and sucked hard, pulling it between his teeth.
Ruth gasped, her hands moving to clutch his shoulders. Not as enticing as what she’d been doing before, but less likely to make him lose what little control he was still holding on to. He dropped his hands to her hips, feeling the curve against his palms, then undid the button and zipper on her jeans, pushing them to her feet.
She stepped free and stood before him in the crowded room. Perfectly naked. And perfect.
