boss at this time of night and they were going to settle down for a quiet drink together. She needed to be fresh and alert tomorrow. Perhaps it had been a mistake coming here. Maybe she ought to have gone straight to her room and to bed.
And in the end it was the coffee that proved to be her undoing. As she sat opposite Blake in a deep comfortable chair, nervously aware that his eyes never left her, Kara’s hand trembled as she took a sip of her drink and some of the hot liquid spilled down the front of her dress.
Instantly Blake jumped up, took the cup from her, and began dabbing his handkerchief on the stain. It was a much too intimate gesture, and Kara’s heart began to thud painfully against her ribcage—especially when he draped his arm around her shoulders to hold her steady. ‘It’s all right, Blake, it’s nothing. I—’
Her words were cut off when his eyes met hers, when she saw the dark hunger in them, when all the breath seemed to leave her body.
‘Forgive me—I have to do this,’ he said, his voice rougher than she had ever heard it. And she swiftly realised that he wasn’t talking about the damp mark on her dress, but something far more intimate.
And, amazingly, this time her lips were ready for his. The rhythm of her heart altered and she closed her eyes. Why fight the inevitable? All evening she had been far too aware of Blake to not want to experience his kiss again.
Blake quickly realised that what he had intended as a gentle kiss, not wanting to frighten her, or rush her into anything that she was still not ready for, was swiftly turning into something else. Kara’s lips had parted on a sigh that suggested secret desire, and when he cautiously deepened the kiss, when he felt her response, when she kissed him back with a hunger that took him by surprise, he was unable to stop himself.
Fire built between them as their tongues entwined and danced and tasted and explored, as he nibbled her lower lip and she did the same to him. Every pulse in his body threatened to explode. And he knew that it would take every ounce of self-control to put her away from him afterwards.
Kara found it difficult to breathe; she could not understand what was happening to her. How could she allow Blake to kiss her like this? How could she want his kiss when she had always hated men with a vengeance? The lure had been building from day one, and the taster she’d had yesterday had woken something inside her, but even so …
Cautiously she risked looking at him, and her breath caught in her throat when she saw the raw desire in his eyes—gone in an instant, shielded from her gaze. If any man had looked at her like that in the past she would have run a mile, but she knew without a shadow of doubtthat Blake would never pressure her into anything that she was not ready for.
And the fact was—and this was as much of a surprise to her as it would be to Blake—she actually wanted him to make love to her.
She closed her eyes again, allowing the moment to seep into her mind, into her bones, into her heart, feeling an unaccustomed ache in the lower regions of her stomach. If Blake ended the kiss now she would feel bereft. She would have had a taste of heaven snatched away from her as quickly as it had arisen.
Of their own volition her arms snaked around him, trapping him, her body urging itself against his raw masculine hardness. It shocked and excited her at the same time. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever envisaged that she would be in a situation like this.
The wild throb of his heart beating against her own told her without words that excitement ran through his veins too, and that he was also deeply affected by what was happening.
Why, she asked herself, when for nearly a year she had worked for this man without ever feeling anything, was this happening now? No, that was wrong. She
had
been aware of him; how could any woman not be? But her fears were such that she had allowed her thoughts no purchase.
Now
And in the end it was the coffee that proved to be her undoing. As she sat opposite Blake in a deep comfortable chair, nervously aware that his eyes never left her, Kara’s hand trembled as she took a sip of her drink and some of the hot liquid spilled down the front of her dress.
Instantly Blake jumped up, took the cup from her, and began dabbing his handkerchief on the stain. It was a much too intimate gesture, and Kara’s heart began to thud painfully against her ribcage—especially when he draped his arm around her shoulders to hold her steady. ‘It’s all right, Blake, it’s nothing. I—’
Her words were cut off when his eyes met hers, when she saw the dark hunger in them, when all the breath seemed to leave her body.
‘Forgive me—I have to do this,’ he said, his voice rougher than she had ever heard it. And she swiftly realised that he wasn’t talking about the damp mark on her dress, but something far more intimate.
And, amazingly, this time her lips were ready for his. The rhythm of her heart altered and she closed her eyes. Why fight the inevitable? All evening she had been far too aware of Blake to not want to experience his kiss again.
Blake quickly realised that what he had intended as a gentle kiss, not wanting to frighten her, or rush her into anything that she was still not ready for, was swiftly turning into something else. Kara’s lips had parted on a sigh that suggested secret desire, and when he cautiously deepened the kiss, when he felt her response, when she kissed him back with a hunger that took him by surprise, he was unable to stop himself.
Fire built between them as their tongues entwined and danced and tasted and explored, as he nibbled her lower lip and she did the same to him. Every pulse in his body threatened to explode. And he knew that it would take every ounce of self-control to put her away from him afterwards.
Kara found it difficult to breathe; she could not understand what was happening to her. How could she allow Blake to kiss her like this? How could she want his kiss when she had always hated men with a vengeance? The lure had been building from day one, and the taster she’d had yesterday had woken something inside her, but even so …
Cautiously she risked looking at him, and her breath caught in her throat when she saw the raw desire in his eyes—gone in an instant, shielded from her gaze. If any man had looked at her like that in the past she would have run a mile, but she knew without a shadow of doubtthat Blake would never pressure her into anything that she was not ready for.
And the fact was—and this was as much of a surprise to her as it would be to Blake—she actually wanted him to make love to her.
She closed her eyes again, allowing the moment to seep into her mind, into her bones, into her heart, feeling an unaccustomed ache in the lower regions of her stomach. If Blake ended the kiss now she would feel bereft. She would have had a taste of heaven snatched away from her as quickly as it had arisen.
Of their own volition her arms snaked around him, trapping him, her body urging itself against his raw masculine hardness. It shocked and excited her at the same time. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever envisaged that she would be in a situation like this.
The wild throb of his heart beating against her own told her without words that excitement ran through his veins too, and that he was also deeply affected by what was happening.
Why, she asked herself, when for nearly a year she had worked for this man without ever feeling anything, was this happening now? No, that was wrong. She
had
been aware of him; how could any woman not be? But her fears were such that she had allowed her thoughts no purchase.
Now
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