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She kissed him.
Chapter Thirteen
Cara Delaney was kissing him.
Cara Delaney was kissing him.
Matteo had never felt anything better. He was finally tasting her, after that maddeningly featherlight kiss by the fire, and she tastedsogood. When she opened her mouth a little, he did, too, groaning when their tongues touched. The wet silk of her mouth was hot, and he let himself sink into it, surrendering as if to a hot spring. He felt that kisseverywhere. Perhaps he wasn’t going to have to take the direct approach advised by Imogen after all. Although then he started to fret that Cara wasn’t in her right mind.
With a great deal of effort, he pulled away. He was nothing if not accustomed to self-denial. “You don’t know what you’re doing.”
Confusion washed over her face. “I only had one glass of wine. I’m not drunk.”
“You might be drunk on good news.”
He expected her to roll her eyes, but she laughed. Loudly. It echoed through the silent space, a long, delighted laugh that made his insides feel wobbly. He watched her with a sense of awe.She was so uninhibited with her laughter. It made him wonder what she looked like when she came. “Imightbe drunk on good news,” she finally said, “but I’m fairly certain that good news has no bearing on consent.”
So she wanted to do this? There was only one way to find out. Really, Imogen had been right. Directness was best. He cleared his throat and tried to infuse his bearing with the seriousness called for by the situation. “Cara. I feel that you and I have come to a certain understanding. We’ve been calling it a truce, but I feel that it’s evolved into quite a strong, and productive, alliance.”
“Okay...” Her brow furrowed.
“Would you agree that our alliance has been characterized by a refreshing ability to speak openly with each other?”
She smirked. “Well, youdidtell me you didn’t like me on day one.”
He chuckled. “Exactly. Which is why I feel comfortable asking you the question I’m about to ask.”
“Okay...”
“Would you be interested in a casual sexual encounter?” He thought that direct question would have cleared things up, but when she didn’t say anything, just blinked and looked as bewildered as ever, he added, by way of clarification, “With me.”
She leaned closer, putting her face right near his, and one corner of her mouth quirked upward. “I’m pretty sure we were justhavinga casual sexual encounter before you started talking about it.”
“Oh, yes. I see what you mean.” His face heated. And then, heaven help him, she climbed on his lap, andeverythingheated. “Do I take this as a yes?”
“You take this as a yes.” She undid the bottom button of his shirt, and he thought he might die.
“You don’t think it’s an ill-advised idea?” he rasped. “You don’t think it will... complicate things?”
She paused in her unbuttoning. “Well, this is wildly unprofessional.”
Oh. He hadn’t been talking about that. He’d meant “it might complicate things” in the sense that one or both of them might develop feelings. But clearly she wasn’t worried about that, so he resolved not to be, either.
“Sleeping with the client is generally frowned upon,” she said even as she resumed her unbuttoning.
“I’m not the client,” he said.
“That is a very good point.” She pushed her blouse off her arms. She was wearing a black lace bra, heaven help him.
“I thought so. Morneau is the client. Or, I suppose, technically, it’s the board of directors.”
She reached around and unclasped the bra and let it slide off her shoulders, too. He entertained a momentary pang of regret that he hadn’t gotten to look his fill at her wearing it, but he revised that thought immediately when presented with small, creamy, pink-tipped breasts. “Matteo, may I ask a favor of you?”
“Anything,” he said, though one part of his mind was aware that promising things in the heat of the moment to a woman as smart as Cara Delaney was not a wise move.
“Shut up.”
That he could do. He clamped his mouth shut and let her straddle him. She’d been sitting on his lap before, but she slid down and nestled herself right against him. He was already hard,a fact she seemed delighted by as she buried her face in the crook of his neck and ground against him.
