“I should really get going. It’s late,” she said as the moment dragged on.
Tanner turned toward her and then closed the small distance between them. “Why are you always in such a hurry to leave?” he asked as his arms wrapped behind her back and he tugged her against his chest — the beautiful chest she’d been hyperventilating over earlier.
“Because I know what’s happening,” she answered honestly.
“And what is that?”
“You want me in your bed.” Why not put it out there?
“Yes, I do,” he admitted.
“Well, then, you should know that it isn’t going to happen,” she said, her voice slightly breathless.
“I take that as a challenge,” he told her with a smile, pushing his hips against hers and letting her feel that he was already aroused.
Her blood heated, her body softened, and her knees grew weak. This man’s voice was seductive and his body was hard. She could see why he was so confident in succeeding.
“Take it any way you want, Tanner, just as long as you know it’s never going to happen,” she said, and she twisted out of his arms. If she decided to play games with this man, he’d be the only winner.
“Mmm, I’d love to take you any way I want. I have lots of ways I’ve been planning on taking you,” he said, deliberately misinterpreting her words.
Gosh, he was making her melt. Would it really be so bad to allow herself some pleasure? No, it wouldn’t. The way she’d feel the next morning was what she dreaded. She’d never been one of those women who could give her body freely. There had to be something beyond simple sensation — there had to be emotions involved.
Leaning back into him, she initiated the kiss, allowing herself to drink in his taste for several moments. She could feel that he was surprised, but he didn’t waste any time in pulling her even more closely against him as he ravished her mouth.
When she felt herself falling over the edge of sanity, she pushed off against his chest.
“I just wanted another taste,” she said, then tugged against his hold.
Why was she disappointed when he let her go easily? This was what she wanted, she reminded herself.
“Have a great night, Tanner,” she said, before walking to his door and opening it. He followed her slowly and watched while she unlocked her door and went inside.
The last thing she saw before firmly shutting the door between them was the fire leaping from his eyes. He was sending her a clear message: This is in no way finished.
Chapter Eight
Oh, yeah, I’ll tell you something I think you’ll understand…
That was it! He must be in a freaking time slip, thrown back decades to a silly period when even four grown men sang stupid songs about holding hands.
The whole thing was just weird. He’d started to walk Kyla to and from the mall over the past few days — what if she got followed again? And when they came back on the third day, somehow his hand sought hers and they ended up with entwined fingers. What the hell?
That was a new one for him. Who held hands anymore except maybe old married people? What was the point? OK, there was a pulse nearby, so maybe if you pushed at it cleverly, it would serve some automotive function and send a babe you wanted into overdrive. He’d have to check that out on the Web.
But sex hadn’t been what he was thinking when he lost his hand-holding virginity as a grown man in his thirties. For some reason, he couldn’t seem to tear his gaze away from their joined fingers, and couldn’t ignore how right it felt.
This woman, a woman, he reminded himself, whom he barely knew, was starting to dominate his thoughts, even in his sleep. She was quickly getting underneath his skin, and, oddly enough, that didn’t terrify him as much as it should.
He should have been running from her as fast as he could, but instead, he found himself seeking her out, offering his help, and enjoying nothing more than her company. So far, all she’d allow him to do was kiss her.
Hell, he hadn’t even managed to get the woman’s shirt off yet, and still, he felt content. He’d never worked so hard before to close a deal, and certainly had never enjoyed spending so much time in a woman’s presence.
He grew bored with a date after taking her out once or twice. Maybe his fascination stemmed from the fact that he hadn’t bedded her yet.
That had to be it. It really was time that he stop this juvenile madness. He had real work to do. Time to grow up.
And yet, as he returned from speaking to his attorney, who claimed to be doing all he could to get Tanner an early release from this absurd punishment, he found himself standing in front of her door instead of his own.
As the smell of fresh-baked cookies drifted out to him, his fist lifted and knocked on her door, almost against his will.
He should go home, but…hell. He knew it was futile even to think that thought. He wanted to see her, wanted to pull her in close for another kiss — even if that’s all he was going to get from her.
“I missed you today,” he said when the door opened and she appeared, looking scrumptious enough for him to take a bite.
Her hair was tied back, a few escaped tendrils lying softly against her face, and she had flour smeared across her nose and forehead. Wearing an apron that was also covered in flour and which said, Cooks do it hotter, she looked better than if she’d been standing before him in the finest lingerie.
Yeah, he had it bad.
“Invite me in?”
She replied with a lift of her eyebrow and a slight smile on her lips as she waited for him to continue.
“I want to taste your…cookies,” he said with a wolfish smile.
Some women might have gotten huffy. Not her. Kyla laughed and, much to his surprise, opened her door wider so he could step through. Another thing he loved about her, the fact that she could take what he dished out, and even give it back most of the time.
“You look so pathetic standing there with drool on your chin; how could I possibly send you away without getting…a taste?”
His heart rate jumping up by at least fifty beats per minute, Tanner couldn’t stand it any longer. He cornered her in the kitchen and, without giving her time to resist, pulled her against him as he lowered his head. He had to taste her before he died of hunger.
Kyla didn’t hesitate; she lifted her flour-covered hands and clasped his head, kissing him back with a hunger of her own. It was almost as if they were both breaking a long, torturous fast.
Driven almost mad with his desire for her, Tanner lifted her up, sitting her up on the counter and quickly scooting between her thighs, pulling her forward and cradling her sweet, hot core between his legs.
He leaned in, needing her to know how desperate he was for her.
She tugged on his hair and pressed against him, both of them groaning as their tongues danced. Tanner ran his hand down her back, slipping his fingers beneath the hem of her shirt and moving upward.
Silk.
That’s what her skin felt like — pure silk. He moved his hand up, caressing the fine muscles of her back, splaying his fingers wide against her flesh.
As she groaned into his mouth, he leaned back just a bit and moved his hand around her rib cage, his thumb brushing the underside of her breast.
Yes!
Without further hesitation he cupped the luscious mound, feeling her soft skin through the tiny lace bra she was wearing.
Perfect.
She was absolutely perfect, fitting just right in the palm of his hand. He wanted the fabric out of his way, wanted to taste the sweet peaks of her breasts, needed her to be lying beneath him.
He reached down, preparing to pull her shirt over her head, when a loud beeping startled him. Kyla edged away, staring at him sightlessly.
“I’m sorry. That got out of hand,” she whispered.
Tanner found himself leaning against the counter, his body throbbing as he looked at the space she’d been filling only moments before. Turning, he saw her hands shaking as s
he pulled a hot pan from the oven and set it on the stovetop.
“Why don’t you just turn off the oven so we can continue what we started?” he said, coming up behind her and running his hands down her sides to rest on her hips.
She shuddered in his arms, then bent forward and gripped the front of the stove. Tanner took the opportunity to trail his mouth down the curve of her neck.
“I can’t,” she said, wriggling out of his embrace and turning around to look at him.
“I don’t understand,” he said. He wasn’t going to let her off the hook without an explanation.
“I don’t want to have sex, Tanner.” She couldn’t be any clearer than that. “If you want to leave, I understand.”
At first, he had to contend with the slightest edge of irritation. She was lying. It was more than obvious that she did indeed want to have sex. Why was she fighting him so hard? It wasn’t as if either one of them was a virgin.
When two people felt a mutual attraction, shouldn’t they just do what their bodies were meant to do? Get naked and get it on.
“Yes, you do,” he finally replied when the silence had stretched on for too long.
“No. I know you probably think I’m nothing but a tease, but I don’t want to have sex. I just…” She trailed off as if she didn’t know what she wanted.
That was easy. He knew what she wanted. He could think for the both of them.
He leaned against her, taking her chin with his fingers and lifting her head so she was forced to look at him. “If you want to wait a while longer, I’ll wait.”
He was shocked when those words exited his mouth. That had not been what he’d intended to say. But when an also shocked but grateful expression entered her eyes, he knew he’d done the right thing.
He leaned down and kissed her chastely, and then backed up. He absolutely couldn’t keep touching her right now or he would quickly have her back up on the counter.
“I brought wine,” he said, going back to the counter, where he’d hastily set the bottle his assistant had brought to him at his request. Kyla looked a little unsure, but after a couple of seconds, she went to her cupboard and pulled out two glasses.
“I don’t have fancy wineglasses, but I’m sure it will taste the same no matter what we drink it from,” she said with a self-conscious giggle.
“Of course it will,” he said, though some experts claimed that the shape of the glass could influence wine’s flavor and aroma. No need to point that out. “What can I do to help?” he asked after he poured the wine. He leaned against the counter as she began taking the cookies off the pan and setting them on wax paper.
“You can move to the other side of the counter and stay out of the way so I can finish up in here.”
With a grin, Tanner grabbed a couple of the fresh cookies, taking a big bite from one and groaning his approval. “Oh, this is good,” he said once he’d swallowed, then popped the rest of the cookie in his mouth.
He saw the delight in her eyes at his compliment, and though she scolded him, telling him to quit eating all the cookies, she placed a glass of milk in front of him to wash them down. Cookies and wine just didn’t have the same flair as cookies and milk.
After Tanner gobbled down half a dozen cookies, the two of them moved into her living room and he joined her on the couch to watch a Christmas movie she had waiting in her DVD player.
“This is my favorite one,” she said, and It’s a Wonderful Life began playing.
“I have never understood why everyone loves this movie so much. His life is completely destroyed,” he countered.
“Oh, that’s the point. He has to see what effects taking his life would have on those he loves to truly appreciate the good of what he has,” she argued.
Although Tanner disagreed with her interpretation and still hated the film, he shut up and watched the movie with her.
As it continued to play, he moved closer, draped his arm around her and began stroking her back, his eyes focused on the TV.
She was a bit stiff at first, but soon relaxed, raising her hand to rest on his chest as she snuggled deeper against him and sighed at parts of the movie she particularly liked.
When the movie ended, Tanner looked down and noticed she was so relaxed that she’d fallen asleep in his arms.
Carefully cradling her to him, he lifted her in his arms and proceeded down her hallway to what was obviously her bedroom.
He managed to pull back what looked like a handmade quilt while still holding her, and then laid her down on the soft sheets. Covering her up, he stared down at her face, so beautiful and at peace.
Turning and walking from the room, he switched off her lights and made sure her front door was locked before leaving. Now this was scary. In only a week, this woman had become more than just a conquest to him.
The question was, what did he want to do about that?
When he stepped back inside his apartment, feeling pretty great, suddenly his foot slipped out from beneath him and Tanner went flying into the air, a resounding oof coming from his lungs as he landed. He was on his back in at least two inches of water.
If he’d been paying attention, he would have noticed the water leaking out into the hallway.
Jumping up, feeling the ache running through his back, he sloshed his way through the water into his kitchen, where he could hear the distinct sound of gushing water.
Opening the cupboard below the sink, he was immediately sprayed in the face as he found himself staring at a burst water pipe.
He was drenched by the time he located the shutoff valve, and the language he was using about this building and all its problems wouldn’t have gone over well with the kiddies at the mall. This was hell, pure damnation, and suddenly the rest of the week seemed more like a year.
Picking up his phone, he woke his assistant up and demanded a plumber. This was going to cost him a fortune. Because of the judge’s orders, now that he had to repair the pipes in his apartment, it looked as if the entire building would be getting new ones.
When he called the police to explain that he needed to change apartments, they were less than sympathetic, offering to bring him a pair of hip waders. Slamming down the phone, Tanner sloshed to his room, his good mood long forgotten as he prepared himself for a “holiday” week without comfort or joy.
Chapter Nine
Only a day to go in his previously rodent-infested, leaky-piped, freezing-cold building. OK, it was still freezing cold, but so what?
Tanner smiled as he found himself humming Christmas carols. He was done for the day, the mall closing early so the employees could celebrate with their families on Christmas Eve, and he’d donned his Santa suit for the last time.
With gleeful delight, he tossed the stupid suit into the costume return at the mall, giving it an extra little shove just to say good riddance, and he walked from the mall with a smile.
Kyla hadn’t been there working. Lucky girl. It had made the time drag by for him, though. It was his last night with her and he wanted to make it count.
She hadn’t said what her plans for Christmas Eve were, but since she had no family that she’d spoken of, he was hoping the two of them could spend it together. He’d ordered a nice catered dinner, which would arrive in a couple of hours.
The two of them could eat an exquisite meal, then cuddle up on the couch and watch another cheesy Christmas flick. This time she wouldn’t fall asleep, because he’d be treating her to all of his best moves.
It was time they consummated their relationship. It had been building to the boiling point over the last two weeks and he was more than ready to feel the magic the two of them were sure to make. In fact, it was his last chance to round the bases. Once he left this building, he wouldn’t be back.
The thought sent an odd pang through him, but one he chose to ignore. Sure, he’d been getting a bit sappy about this particular woman, but people in extreme circumstances tended to act against their character.
This wasn’t his life.
He was happy with who he was outside of this alternate reality, living in his penthouse apartment, working day and night, and attending events in a tuxedo with champagne and caviar instead of beer and hot wings.
This existence was beneath him. He didn’t consider himself a snob; he was just a man who had worked hard and liked the finer things in life. There was nothing wrong with that. OK, he conceded, he did have a wealthy family, and he did seem to have the Midas touch.
He stepped out into the hallway, and Kyla ran smack dab into his chest, nearly falling back on her tush in her hurry.
“Oh, sorry,” she gasped before looking up and discovering who it was. “Hey, Tanner. Sorry, I don’t have time to chat. I’m running late,” she said as she attempted to get past him.
“Where are you going?” he asked, resolutely blocking her path.
“I have plans tonight,” she offered vaguely.
“What plans?” he asked suspiciously. This was supposed to be their night together. She couldn’t possibly be seeing another man. He would know. They’d been together practically every minute for the past two weeks — well, at least the past week and a half, after he’d gotten through the thick wall she’d built between them after their first meeting.
“I just have plans.” She looked down, refusing to meet his gaze.
Instant jealousy slammed into his gut. Maybe she was seeing another man.
“I thought we’d have dinner together tonight. I ordered it in.”
Her eyebrows rose. “You ordered Christmas dinner? Aren’t you supposed to slave over a hot stove all day for a holiday meal?”
“I don’t cook,” he said as he tried to turn her around.
“Yeah, my dad attempted to help my mom once or twice in the kitchen, but it was a disaster, she said. Whenever he tried to again, she would end up chasing him away, telling him he would mess everything up,” Kyla said, a melancholy smile on her lips.
“Besides, isn’t it better to have a nice meal without being exhausted from cooking all day and night?” he asked, trying to tempt her into changing her mind.
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