Hope Smolders by Jaci Burton Page B

see my car, don’t come and arrest us, okay?”
    Jane watched as his lips curved. He looked at her.
    “No, we’re not going to be skinny-dipping, moron.”
    Jane stifled a laugh.
    “Yeah, see you at the gym.”
    He clicked off. “Feel better now?”
    “Yes. I guess it pays to have friends in high places.”
    “Sometimes it does.”
    The lake was beautiful tonight. The moon cast its silvery glow over the lake, the water so still Jane was sure she could walk on it. The night was peaceful, just the two of them wandering around there. And because she trusted Will to keep her safe, she was content to walk along the path at the edge of the lake with him. He led her to a picnic bench near the water, then set her on top of it, climbing over the seat so he could nestle his body against hers.
    The only sounds were the crickets and the occasional locust. Otherwise, it was so quiet she could hear the wild slam of her heart beating double-time against her chest. Having Will close to her like this sent her breathing off-kilter. And when he threaded his fingers through her hair and brushed his lips against hers, she remembered just how long it had been since she’d felt this sense of anticipation, this wild abandon and sharp desire that threatened to steal her breath away.
    Too damn long. She lightly raked her nails up and down his forearms, rewarded with his responding groan. He moved in between her legs and deepened the kiss, pulling her against him, wrapping an arm around her to drag her closer so their bodies fit together. Not exactly the most modest of positions since she had a skirt on, but frankly she didn’t much care. She craved the contact of his body against hers, his tongue sliding inside to lick against hers. She heard a soft moan—hers, as his hand roamed down her back and settled against her butt. She wished they weren’t in such a public place, because the closer he got, the more she realized that he was hard and she was damp, and if they had been at her place, she could get him naked and they could be having sex.
    They drew apart, and she was decidedly happy that he was dragging in ragged breaths. “This—was a really bad idea.”
    Confused, she looked up at him. “Which part?”
    “The taking you to the lake part. I have a raging hard-on and I really want to lay you out on this picnic table, get you naked, and kiss you all over. And that
would
get me arrested.”
    She couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah. I’m not real fond of being naked in public. Let’s go to my place and get naked in private.”
    He scooped her off the table in record time and set her on her feet, then grabbed her hand. The walk back to the car was not the leisurely stroll they’d taken before, though Will did grab her several times and plant seriously hot, deep kisses on her that left her dizzy and so turned on she was beginning to rethink the whole naked in the park thing.
    They finally made it back to his car, both of them out of breath. She buckled her seat belt, then looked over at Will, and at his very noticeable erection straining against his jeans.
    “Maybe we should just do it in the car,” she said.
    He gripped the steering wheel, then looked over at her, pinning her with a look of pure animal hunger that seared her. “Don’t tease me like that because I just might take you up on that suggestion.”
    She swallowed, her throat so dry it felt like sand had settled permanently in it. “Drive fast. Okay, not so fast that you’re breaking any speed limits and your friend Luke has to pull you over and delay things. But let’s get to my place in kind of a hurry, okay?”
    “Yeah. Gotcha.” He started the car and pulled out, screeching the tires just a bit as he roared out of the park. He kept it just above the legal limit, his hands tense on the steering wheel the entire time.
    She figured by the time they got back to her house,common sense would have prevailed and she’d have cooled down a bit.
    Not so much. She’d