His Most Wanted by Sandra Jones Page A

help.” She skirted around him, intending to open the door for him to leave, but he caught her elbow.
    â€œCora—”
    His grip was loose, but he captivated her with the appeal in his gaze and the tender stroke of his thumb on her arm.
    â€œWhat?” She fell under the spell of his azure gaze as his touch sent a ripple of pleasure deep within her.
    â€œI really would like another night with you. One I can remember.”
    She swallowed. “I usually don’t take customers.”
    â€œBut you made an exception last night, and I’m glad. You’re quite beautiful.” He stepped closer, a sly smile creating a dimple in his cheek. “Here’s an idea. I won’t pay you. It’s that simple.”
    The nerve! Her spine stiffened. “C-can I say no…now that you’re sheriff?”
    The brilliant light behind his eyes dimmed a fraction. “Of course. If that’s what you want.”
    â€œIt’s nothing personal. Just my policy.”
    He frowned. “I’ve never hated whiskey more in my life. Did I at least get my money’s worth?” His gaze bore into hers as if trying to unlock his memory, and she felt his scrutiny the same as if it were his touch…intimate, disquieting.
    â€œOf course,” she cooed, bracing a hand on his other arm. The hardness of his biceps sent her thoughts skittering to other parts of his body, wondering if he was as hard elsewhere.
    He glanced at her mouth. “I don’t even remember kissing you. Did you enjoy kissing me?”
    She couldn’t resist looking at his mouth, so near now as he stood over her. His lips were smooth beneath the black scruff of his stubble, and she was overwhelmed with a sudden desire to run the tip of her tongue across them.
    Her cheeks scalded.
    He made an amused sound in his throat. “Would you allow me one more kiss so I might jar my memory?”
    Conceding seemed too easy. She’d had plenty of kisses in her life, some stolen, others bought and paid for. Never in all her twenty-six years had she ever kissed a man because she simply wanted to, and suddenly there was nothing she wanted more than this stranger’s mouth touching hers. She wondered what it might feel like having the lips of such a good-looking rogue against hers. The fact that he had more experience than she did seemed obvious and somehow intriguing.
    Oh, just one brief kiss to fill her curiosity.
    â€œOnly one,” she murmured. “Then you go.”
    The corners of his mouth curved upward, and he leaned down.
    His fingertips touched her chin, tilting her to the angle he seemed to desire, then he lowered his mouth to hers. She closed her eyes to enjoy the sensation. His warm lips were gentle, caressing, not too demanding, and she became aware of his other hand spanning her side, fingers holding her still.
    â€œWas it like this?” he whispered, and his whiskers teased her mouth until all her sensations seemed to center there.
    â€œMmm hmm.” She put a hand between them, resting it against his chest. His heartbeat was a steady drum against her palm.
    â€œAre you sure I didn’t kiss you more like this?” He kissed her top lip, then her bottom. The tip of his tongue traced the line between them, seeking entry.
    Heaven help her, she had to hurry and get rid of the man, but she couldn’t stop herself from opening for his plunder. He swept his tongue across hers, and she moved closer, widening for him. He suckled her into his heat, drawing her tight against the length of his solid body. And, yes, every inch of him was harder than she’d imagined.
    Madness. Surely it was recklessness too, but she was no longer her safe, business-minded self. In this wild moment, she was just a woman with desires of her own, enjoying the passion of a worldly man who wanted her in return.
    Easing back, he turned her head gently with his fingertips, gaining access to her cheek where he kissed her.