A Coral Kiss by Jayne Ann Krentz Page A

in her mind until her dying day.
    The essence of him was unique, very male, captivating and even comforting. There was honest sweat, clean soap and musky sensuality all mixed together. Amy relaxed and leaned against him.
    "Much better," Jed said in a voice made lazy with the beginnings of desire. "Stop chasing around in circles in your head and let me hold you for a while."
    "Your leg—"
    "Feels wonderful."
    "Your ribs—"
    "Have never felt better."
    Amy choked on a muffled exclamation that was almost a shaky laugh. "I'll bet."
    "Believe me," he said, "I know what I'm doing."
    He eased her down onto the tumbled sheets and blankets that Amy had used to make the couch into a bed. She looked up at him, her amusement gone as she felt the rising heat in him. He settled himself alongside her, his injured leg lightly touching her leg. There was a tautness in him now that told its own ancient story.

    "Why do you always look at me like that when you know I want to touch you?" Jed asked, letting his hand rest on the first button of her flannel gown. The gesture was unthreaten-ing but almost excruciatingly intimate.
    "How do I look at you?" Her bewilderment was plain in her eyes. He felt very big lying next to her like this. His shoulders blocked out the sight of the coals in the hearth.
    He shrugged one broad shoulder. "I'm not sure how to explain it. It's as if you're a little afraid of me."
    "I'm not afraid of you."
    "Wary, then. Cautious. Uncertain. Hell, I don't know. It's just something I see in your eyes when I get too close. Hiding a lover from me? Afraid I'll find out you've got something going on the side when I'm out of town?"
    "Would it bother you if I did?"
    He leaned down to nip half playfully at the curve of her throat. When he raised his head again his eyes were unreadable. "It wouldn't be any of my business, would it?"
    "No."
    He groaned and undid the buttons of the flannel gown. Amy drew in her breath as his hand moved under the fabric. His fingers found the tip of her breast. "It wouldn't be any of my business, but it would drive me out of my mind."
    "Jed?" Amy caught his face between her palms, trying to read his expression in the shadows.
    He gave her a strange half smile. "I realized that when I called you from L.A. I thought, what if she's not alone tonight? What if she's with someone else?"
    "Started worrying about who would pick you up at the airport?" she demanded, her nervous attempt at humor making her voice a little uneven. She was violently aware of the warmth of his palm as it rested over her small breast.
    "There's a sadistic teasing streak in you, Amy Slater." His hazel eyes gleamed with a fresh surge of desire as his mouth closed over hers.
    Amy felt the touch of his tongue along the edge of her lower lip. His desire was still under control. If she asked him to stop, he would undoubtedly do so. Now was the time to call a halt if she intended to keep the relationship confined to a safe, undemanding friendship.
    But his strength was already enveloping her, promising safety and excitement and perhaps a means of release for some of the lingering tension induced by the nightmare. Amy sighed and put both arms around his neck. She closed her eyes and for the first time in the three months she had known him, began to let herself respond to the driving need she sensed in Jed.
    The flame of desire she had grown accustomed to seeing in his eyes when Jed returned from a trip was burning as brightly as ever tonight. It hadn't disappeared. It had only been held in abeyance for a while because of his injuries and the medication.

    Excitement flowed through her as her body reacted to Jed's powerful urgency. She clung to him more tightly, grateful for the way the hot emotion pushed aside the tattered remnants of the nightmare. He used his rough, blunt fingertips to gently draw forth one nipple.
    "You may be a little cautious at first, but I think that when you give yourself, it will be completely. My God, you don't