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“Sasha,” I say, her voice low and heated on my tongue.
She inhales softly, blinking up at me. So angelic, this beauty. She was meant to be painted. No piece of art will ever come close to capturing a beauty as ravishing as hers. But I’ll sure damn try.
“Yes, Alden?” she says, the question innocent.
Maybe it makes me a dirty bastard, but I can’t resist any longer. I lower my lips to hers.
3
SASHA
As Alden kisses me, one of his broad hands slides to the back of my neck, his other hand coming to rest on my thigh. I melt into his kiss. Melt into his grasp. Melt intohim.
I should be long gone by now. I should be in the van, the paintings loaded in the back, the headlights throwing light out ahead of me on the road. There’s no justifiable reason why I’m still here.
And yet I am.
I wasn’t sure what I was expecting him to look like when I first knocked on his door, but it wasn’t a broad-shouldered, hulking man who looks like he spends his afternoons chopping wood. Which, considering his self-sufficient lifestyle, maybe hedoesdo. His hands are so strong, his tattooed forearms thick with muscle. The shadow on his square jaw burns deliciously against my skin as we kiss.
I wonder if he’ll leave paint stains on my clothes. God, I hope so. I want to see the paint later and know this actually happened.
Because right now it feels like a dream.
Alden slides his hand higher on my thigh and deepens our kiss. He kisses confidently, dominantly, and I can’t resist placing a hand on his muscular chest. He groans at the contact, as if a single touch sends pleasure surging through his whole body.
Encouraged, I slide my hands up and over his shoulders. He pulls me toward him, dragging me onto his big lap, and our kiss grows messier, our tongues sliding and licking, our lips wet. Desire burns inside me, settling high between my thighs. It’s a desire full of pressure and need.
The magnetism between us is unbelievable. I want to keep touching him. I want to slide my hand down his chest, and then keep going. I want his mouth on my breasts, and lower. I want to do all the things I’ve only ever imagined doing with a man.
But I also want to keep my job.
I’m barely able to summon the willpower to stop, but I do. I set my palms on Alden’s chest and gently push him back. It’s bad enough that I got so caught up in our conversation that I lost all sense of time, but to let him kiss me, and to let him kiss me likethat…
Alden’s gaze drops to my lips. He’s flushed, his cheeks ruddy, and his hand is still smoothing circles on my thigh. I can’t bring myself to push it away.
I swallow hard. “I really should get those paintings, Alden.”
It takes him a moment to recover. He shakes his head, drawing a hand across his rugged jaw. “About that…”
“Oh, no,” I say. “Please don’t tell me you don’t have them. Kristina will throw a fit.”
“I have them,” he says. “Don’t worry.”
I pull myself off his lap. I don’t want to, but I need to cool things off. “Then what is it?”
“They need another day to dry before they’ll be safe to transport. You can stay here this evening. They should be ready to travel after breakfast.”
Staying the night? At his cabin? That’s insane. “Alden, I—”
“It’ll be dark soon,” he says, leaving no room for argument. “I can’t have you driving down the mountain in the dark. It’s not well lit. Plus there’s so many goddamn possums around here. Correct me if I’m wrong, but you seem like the type who would veer dangerously off the road to avoid hitting one.”
I cringe, but I can’t deny it. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“Honey, it’s a great thing.” He stands up and offers me his hand. “Just call Kristina and tell her you’ll be in tomorrow. I promise you’re safe here.”
It’s nuts to trust him. I should roll my eyes and stand up and drive the van back down the mountain and tell him I’ll be back in the morning. But it’s dark, and there are possums…and Alden’s hand is warm when I accept it. So warm and strong and safe.
“Okay,” I say slowly. “I’ll stay. But can I at least see some of what you’re working on?”
