Emma was tempted, but after a few seconds of indecision she shook her head no. With the thoughts she’d had running through her head lately about Shane, she knew a bad idea when she saw it.
“Hmmm…I think I’ll pass on that,” she answered, laughing softly, her humor self-directed.
“Scared?”
She relaxed into the curve of his arm when she caught the very devious twinkle in his eyes.
“Who me? Not even!” she grinned widely up at him, relieved to see the haunting expression from moments before fade from his eyes. “A gal just knows trouble when it smacks her in the face.”
“Is that how you see me, Emma? As trouble?” Although spoken lightly, Emma felt the stiffening of his arm around her waist.
He pulled her around so that they faced each other, his arms still around her waist.
Emma couldn’t look away from him. His piercing gaze pulled at her, sucked her in as though he were trying to see right through her. She drew in a shuddering breath.
“No, I don’t see you that way at all. I see you as a man who’s been through a lot.”
Not quite aware of her actions, Emma reached out and ran her hand softly down the line of his lean cheek, her gaze locked with his.
“One who will protect those he cares about. One who will protect those he doesn’t even know, at any cost. The kind of man I admire.”
Emma spoke so low Shane had to lean down to hear her over the music. Yet the impact from her words were as though she’d shouted them. Her expression was soft and her eyes held a gentle understanding, accepting him for who he was, flaws and all.
He closed his eyes against the sight.
Taking her hand from where it lay against the side of his face, he turned her palm toward his and kissed the center.
He brought a hand up to the nape of her neck, tunneled his fingers through the soft hair at the base of it and brought his mouth down to meet hers.
The minute his mouth lay claim to hers it was as though a fire let loose.
He heard her moan against his mouth as he tugged her closer, until their bodies were flush against each other, the heat of hers pressing intimately against him.
Every moment he’d watched her over the last weeks, every wicked dream he’d woken up to, pushed into his mind. The way he’d imagined she’d feel beneath him… None of his erotic dreams compared to the real thing.
Even with clothes on, he felt every lush curve against his body. Her hands, soft and hesitant at first, brushed across his face, making him stir in his jeans as she leaned into his kiss. There was no one but the two of them at that moment. The noise and people surrounding them faded away.
Her sensual, full lips pressed against his as he played with her mouth, licking his tongue over their fullness, lightly biting the slightly fuller lower rim.
“God, your mouth is addictive,” he murmured against her mouth, breaking the kiss.
Tilting her head to get a better angle, he pressed his tongue past her lips and fully invaded her mouth. Once inside, it was he who groaned this time. The soft, velvet length of her tongue greeted his, wrapping around it and tugging, artfully playing with him.
She wrapped her arms more securely around his neck, tugging his head down closer, inviting him completely in as they explored each other.
Equally greedy for the other’s touch, their kiss went nuclear, becoming a sensual battle of stroking tongues and lips, their mutual hunger exploding in passion.
His underlying hunger rose sharply the longer they kissed. His hand at her waist moved, traveling around the luscious curvature of her waist and cupping her firm, round cheek and squeezed.
She moved her body against his, pressing her breasts into his chest. Shane felt the stab of her nipples against him, in direct parallel to the hardening of his erection aggressively pressing against her soft stomach.
He felt a slight push from behind as someone brushed against them.
It was then that Shane became aware of where they were.
Slowly the noise from the bar broke into the intimacy they’d created, and he released her, resting his forehead against hers briefly before pulling away.
He placed a hand beneath her chin, angling her to look up at him.
The lids of her large eyes were droopy and low, her full lips made even fuller from his kiss, stained red and lush, inviting…begging for him to take them again.
She raised her large eyes to meet his. The stamp of sweet sensuality on her face made his erection harden to painful proportions. “You want to get out of here?”
“Let’s go.”
Chapter 11
Emma came out of the light doze with a start, jumping out of the cooled water, her eyes snapping open.
The knock she’d heard grew louder, and she glanced around, searching for the radio clock she’d placed near the tub.
“God, I must have been tired,” she groaned, noticing the time. It was after midnight and she’d been in the tub for nearly an hour.
Quickly draining the tub, she rose and grabbed the towel on the chair, scrunching up her nose as she glanced down at her prune-like, wrinkled fingers.
After coming back from the club with Shane, she’d had her world turned upside down and sideways, and she still didn’t know what in the hell had happened.
She’d quickly found Jake and gave a rushed explanation that she wasn’t feeling well and needed to leave. When he’d offered to take her home, she assured him she could make it back to the station on her own, encouraging him to enjoy the rest of the night and that she’d already called a cab, which was now waiting for her.
She’d met Shane at the door and followed him outside to his truck. The drive back to the station had been quiet, the conversation forced, at best. The air of expectancy and the tension were so thick her gut had twisted into a series of knots. Finally she’d given up trying to come up with conversation, instead staring out the window as he sped along the nearly deserted streets.
When they’d reached the station he’d dropped her off at her room, saying he would see her in the morning, leaving Emma at her door, bewildered and more than a little frustrated, wondering what had happened.
After the way he’d opened up to her…and, God, the way the man had kissed her, she had been fully prepared for…
She shook her head. She didn’t understand him. Period.
One thing she did know was that his on-again, off-again treatment was getting real old, real fast. She sighed, pushing the depressing thoughts away, and rose from the bath.
She swiped an oversize towel from the hook and brushed it over her body before donning the flimsy robe near the hook, slipping her arms through the sleeves.
“I’m coming, I’m coming!” Not bothering to try and locate her slippers, she hurried from the bathroom while cinching the ties to the robe tightly around her naked body.
She opened the door a fraction, peeking through. Standing on the other side of the door was Shane, his broad back facing her. For a minute she was tempted to slam the door shut. Her emotions—or her libido, for that matter—couldn’t take another dose of Shane Westwood tonight.
“I, uh, just got out of the bathtub. And it’s late…is this important?” she asked, ready to close the door.
At the sound of her voice he turned, facing her. His eyes went to her mouth. Emma felt the heat instantly flame in her cheeks. Against her will, she felt her nipples surge, beading against the thin fabric of her robe.
She knew he couldn’t see her well through the small crack, yet she clutched the lapels of her robe, bringing the ends tight against her throat.
“I know. I won’t take much of your time. Can I please come in, Emma?”
Wary, she paused, before nodding her head and opening the door for him to come inside.
When Shane walked in, his gaze swept around the small room before he finally turned and faced her.
“Look, I came here to apologize. I can’t explain what happens to me whenever I’m around you. It’s like I
become an entirely different person. I—” He stopped, at a loss for what to say next.
He took a step closer to her and stopped when she stepped back.
“Can we start over?”
Earlier tonight, he’d disclosed things he never had with anyone else to her. She’d gotten got inside his head more than anyone, and he was still trying to figure out how.
He felt like a rookie on his first live fire mission whenever he was around her. Ready, but his gut tied in knots.
He moved closer, until he was less than a foot from her. This time she didn’t retreat.
His gaze hungrily brushed over her body. Her smooth, rich chocolate-colored skin glistened with dew from her recent bath, the dark color beautiful against the flaming-red robe she wore.
The amber glow from the small lamp on her bedside table highlighted her, clearly outlining her perfect, nearly naked body. His body hardened to a nearly painful degree when he noticed her dark nipples jut beneath the robe, poking against the thin fabric.
His lust for her was getting out of control. He reached out and brushed the backs of his fingertips over one satin-covered breast, over the nipple that extended, growing harder beneath his fingers. As though in a trance, he leaned down and covered her breast with his mouth through the silky material.
She exhaled a long, sweet sound that blew over his senses like warm rain as he pulled her tight little nub into his mouth. Through the thin, silky fabric, he felt her nipple, hard against his tongue. He finally released it and had to steady her as she swayed on her feet.
“Shane…” His name came out low and husky. He dragged his gaze away from her perfect breasts and sought her eyes.
“God, you’re beautiful.”
Her lips parted and her tongue swept over the full bottom rim. Shane dragged her unresisting body close and felt the steady thump of her racing heartbeat against his chest. He leaned down, running the side of his face against her neck. Her scent, a unique feminine mixture of soap and flowers and woman, assaulted his nostrils, surrounding him.
He pulled away, brought his hand to her face, stroking the soft skin of her cheek, his fingers trailing down the line of her throat. He stopped at the lapels of her robe. He held her gaze, the two of them locked in a sensual web, the air around them growing thick, heady, palpable with lust and need.
One finger toyed back and forth across the soft, smooth skin at the crest of her breasts before he retraced his path—his hand snaking around her neck, his fingers tunneling into her hair—and lowered his head. A whispery breath of need escaped her partially opened lips seconds before their lips touched.
With a low groan, Shane pulled her tight, molding her sweet curves to his. His hands moved down her body, past her waist and over her rounded hips before skimming the silk-covered surface of her behind.
Impatiently, he placed his hands beneath her robe, pushing it to the side and exposing her, his hand moving past the skimpy material of her panties and cupping one round, firm cheek.
He swirled his tongue around her welcoming mouth before hollowing it and lapping it against hers. A sharp, aching hunger for her rose, sharp and immediate. He stroked the satiny skin of her bottom as he explored the slick heat of her willing mouth. She released a whimpering cry that echoed within his mouth.
His erection strained against his jeans, growing thicker, harder, the longer they kissed. When he felt her nipples tighten and spike beneath the skimpy robe, felt her frantic tugging on the back of his head to draw him nearer, he pulled away.
He rested his forehead against hers, both of their breathing labored.
“No…wha…what?” Emma cried, wrapping her arms tighter around his neck, trying to pull his head back down to hers.
He opened his mouth and covered hers, briefly licking the seam, end to end, tugging on her luscious full lips, before pulling away again. Her minty breath mingled with his and he groaned huskily and spoke against her mouth.
“If we don’t stop now, Emma, I don’t think I can. And as much as I want to pick you up and do all kinds of carnal things to this sexy body of yours—” He stopped, drawing in a deep breath. “I don’t want you to think I’m trying to manipulate you, trying to—” He closed his eyes. “I just don’t want to screw this up. I—”
When she placed a hand over his lips, his eyes opened to see her staring up at him.
“You’re not manipulating me. I know exactly what I’m doing. I know exactly what I want.”
He drew in a harsh breath when her small hand reached between their bodies to stroke the front of his pants, cupping his bulge through the thick fabric of his jeans.
“And what I want is you. Now.”
Shane knew there was no way in hell he could walk away from her. He’d tried chivalry. He had tried dropping her off back at her place alone. Hell, he had even just tried to give Emma another chance to call it quits before this whole thing got started. But she didn’t, and they were both in for a long night.
Chapter 12
As she stared up at him, the lids of her eyes were low and sultry while her focused fingers molded themselves around his shaft. His gaze was drawn to her lips, full, red and swollen from his kisses, begging for him to touch them, to kiss her until their gasps were so intertwined that they breathed as one.
Growing uncomfortably thick in his jeans, Shane knew if he didn’t get away from her soon he’d have her on the bed, spread out, with him between her legs in two seconds flat.
“Are you sure?” he asked, and held his breath.
When he felt her nod of assent, he wasted no time. After quickly removing his jeans and shirt, throwing them on the floor next to the bed, he lifted her in his arms. Carrying her the short distance, he lowered her on the bed before gently letting her down, covering her body with his.
He placed his hands on either side of her face, lowered his mouth and kissed her, groaning when her tongue eagerly reached out to meet his, inviting him inside.
Emma moaned into his mouth her body on fire, as he ground against her, the tip of his naked shaft hot and hard against her thigh. She ground right back against him, welcoming him, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him even closer.
When she felt a dewy, sticky moisture on her thigh, a measure of sanity prevailed, and she placed her hand against his chest.
“What?” he asked huskily, running his mouth along her jaw.
She groaned when his tongue snaked out and licked the area his lips had caressed. But again she placed a restraining hand against his chest, moving him away.
“Protection…” She blew out a frustrated breath. She wanted him as badly as he wanted her. But she couldn’t make love to him without protection.
“I—I’m sorry Shane. But, I can’t. Not without—” Her words were cut off by his lips on hers. He pulled away, a sheepish look on his face.
“It’s okay. God, I can’t believe I almost forgot.”
Shane couldn’t believe he’d been seconds away from pushing into her, with no thought to her protection.
Not once—from the time he’d even been sexually involved with a woman until now—had that ever happened. Damn…he’d think about the significance of that later.
Right now, he needed to take care of her so they could pick up where they left off.
He moved away, snatching his jeans from the floor near the bed. He removed the foil-wrapped package and tossed the jeans to the side, ripping into the foil with his teeth and glancing over at her.
For a quick second he paused, wondering what she thought of him, condom in his wallet, as though this were something he did regularly. He was by no means a saint, yet he was discriminate in who he had sex with. He didn’t have to wonder long, because soon Emma’s hand reached out, covering both his hand and his erection. He paused, glancing over at her.
“Let me,” she said, using her soft hand to gently push his away, taking over the job for him.
Emma lay on the bed, her body tingling, needy, on fire, wanting…needing to feel him ba
ck on her, covering her with his body. He’d made short work out of removing his clothes; jeans dispatched swiftly, shirt pulled over his head, shoes kicked off, and she had gasped when he turned, showing her what he was working with.
She’d suspected he was well endowed. She could tell from the hint of bulge discernible beneath his workout clothes. But dear God. She had no idea he would be this…beautiful.
His shaft resembled a perfectly sculpted piece of art. Smooth, the color was a shade darker than the rest of his body. Such a beautiful piece of masculinity.
She drew in a shaky breath.
It was so beautiful she needed to touch it. Had to touch it. Had to know what it felt like beneath her hands. Outline it with her fingers…
She pushed up onto her knees on the bed, and his surprised eyes met hers.
Emma pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as she pushed his hand away. Taking the condom away from him, she placed it on the bed beside her and grasped his penis.
He drew in a shuddering breath when her fingers brushed over him, feathering along the thick, dark vein that ran beneath his shaft, from the top of the smooth mushroom head to the stem and back again.
She wiped away a dewy bead from the tip with the pad of a finger. She glanced up at him from beneath lowered lashes, a small smile tipping the edges of her lips up as she noted the fine tremor of his hands, clenched at his sides.
She circled the thick length between her fingers, scoring his shaft before carefully grasping his heavy sac that hung like ripe plums behind his shaft.
When he groaned, she raised her eyes to meet his.
“God, Emma…baby…if you keep touching me like that, this won’t last long,” the words sounded strangled coming from his throat.
She grinned, allowing the heavy orbs to fall from her hand, lifting the condom from the bed beside her.
“May I?” she asked, raising her eyes to meet his. When he groaned this time, she laughed lightly, enjoying the way her touch affected him.
Hot to Touch (Kimani Romance) Page 7