touch. It had been so very long and felt so very wonderful.
He slid his hand over her belly to the curls between her legs and slipped one finger inside her. A single light, loving touch sent sharp currents to the bundle of nerve endings that wept for him, then she went straight over the edge with a small, strangled cry of pleasure.
Jake held her while she shattered into a million pieces and didn’t let go until she came back together again. Then he reached into the nightstand, pulled out a condom and covered himself. She held out her arms and he came to her, his body covering hers, her body welcoming his as he gently pushed inside.
Then he began to move and their hips found a rhythm almost instantly. She arched toward him, instinctively trying to get closer, deeper. He plunged into her again and again. He drove them both higher and higher until he stilled and the lines and angles of his face went rigid with intensity. He groaned out his pleasure and she held him until the spasms rocking his body ended.
He drew in a long breath and kissed her, softly sweetly.
A kiss that made her heart hurt and stirred up guilt because of what she’d done.
Jake made a quick trip to the bathroom, then hurried back to Hope. Who knew car trouble would turn into a close encounter of the horizontal kind? He was lookingforward to savoring the softness of her body again. Cuddling on a cold night was just what the doctor ordered. And the naked woman in his arms just moments ago was about as close to heaven as he ever expected to get.
He settled into bed beside her, but when he tried to pull her back into his arms she stiffened and slid out of reach. In his version of heaven a woman’s afterglow didn’t usually disappear in a nanosecond.
She was holding the sheet over her breasts and up to her neck as if he hadn’t just kissed almost every square inch of her skin. And he’d had every intention of repeating the experience to taste the parts he’d missed the first time around.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“So many things, so little time.” Her voice was filled with self-loathing.
Regret had surfaced awfully fast and he felt the need to defend himself.
“I didn’t plan for that to happen,” he assured her.
“I know. But that doesn’t erase it.”
“Are you accusing me of something?”
“No. I was just wondering what happened to keeping things between us strictly professional.” When she shook her head ruefully, the light from outside turned her hair to spun gold. “Of course I don’t blame you. I take full responsibility for my actions.”
“That’s not what your eyes are saying.” There was a bruised look on her face and he wanted to erase it. “Talk to me, Hope.”
“Just so you know, I don’t make a habit of this.”
“Neither do I.”
Sleeping with a coworker could be the quickest route to career suicide. This was the first time he’d ever done this. But wanting her the way he had made it impossibleto remember why he was driven to succeed. Now those reasons came flooding back with a vengeance. He wasn’t sure there was enough career success or money in the world to silence the hungry, homeless kid who still lived inside him. The black, empty, helpless feeling grew, reminding him that he couldn’t get complacent.
Not ever.
Without another word, she slid out of bed, then disappeared in the shadows of the room. He could hear her rustling around and figured she was picking up clothes and wouldn’t appreciate him grilling her about what the hell had her panties in a twist. When she disappeared into the bathroom, he got up and dressed in a pair of jeans, then yanked on a shirt that he didn’t bother to button. She still hadn’t emerged, so he went to the media room to wait.
Finally she joined him there and announced, “I have to go.”
“Not so fast.” He moved in front of her. “Talk to me, Hope.”
She turned away and started pacing. “I was married—”
Married? That was a line he
He slid his hand over her belly to the curls between her legs and slipped one finger inside her. A single light, loving touch sent sharp currents to the bundle of nerve endings that wept for him, then she went straight over the edge with a small, strangled cry of pleasure.
Jake held her while she shattered into a million pieces and didn’t let go until she came back together again. Then he reached into the nightstand, pulled out a condom and covered himself. She held out her arms and he came to her, his body covering hers, her body welcoming his as he gently pushed inside.
Then he began to move and their hips found a rhythm almost instantly. She arched toward him, instinctively trying to get closer, deeper. He plunged into her again and again. He drove them both higher and higher until he stilled and the lines and angles of his face went rigid with intensity. He groaned out his pleasure and she held him until the spasms rocking his body ended.
He drew in a long breath and kissed her, softly sweetly.
A kiss that made her heart hurt and stirred up guilt because of what she’d done.
Jake made a quick trip to the bathroom, then hurried back to Hope. Who knew car trouble would turn into a close encounter of the horizontal kind? He was lookingforward to savoring the softness of her body again. Cuddling on a cold night was just what the doctor ordered. And the naked woman in his arms just moments ago was about as close to heaven as he ever expected to get.
He settled into bed beside her, but when he tried to pull her back into his arms she stiffened and slid out of reach. In his version of heaven a woman’s afterglow didn’t usually disappear in a nanosecond.
She was holding the sheet over her breasts and up to her neck as if he hadn’t just kissed almost every square inch of her skin. And he’d had every intention of repeating the experience to taste the parts he’d missed the first time around.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“So many things, so little time.” Her voice was filled with self-loathing.
Regret had surfaced awfully fast and he felt the need to defend himself.
“I didn’t plan for that to happen,” he assured her.
“I know. But that doesn’t erase it.”
“Are you accusing me of something?”
“No. I was just wondering what happened to keeping things between us strictly professional.” When she shook her head ruefully, the light from outside turned her hair to spun gold. “Of course I don’t blame you. I take full responsibility for my actions.”
“That’s not what your eyes are saying.” There was a bruised look on her face and he wanted to erase it. “Talk to me, Hope.”
“Just so you know, I don’t make a habit of this.”
“Neither do I.”
Sleeping with a coworker could be the quickest route to career suicide. This was the first time he’d ever done this. But wanting her the way he had made it impossibleto remember why he was driven to succeed. Now those reasons came flooding back with a vengeance. He wasn’t sure there was enough career success or money in the world to silence the hungry, homeless kid who still lived inside him. The black, empty, helpless feeling grew, reminding him that he couldn’t get complacent.
Not ever.
Without another word, she slid out of bed, then disappeared in the shadows of the room. He could hear her rustling around and figured she was picking up clothes and wouldn’t appreciate him grilling her about what the hell had her panties in a twist. When she disappeared into the bathroom, he got up and dressed in a pair of jeans, then yanked on a shirt that he didn’t bother to button. She still hadn’t emerged, so he went to the media room to wait.
Finally she joined him there and announced, “I have to go.”
“Not so fast.” He moved in front of her. “Talk to me, Hope.”
She turned away and started pacing. “I was married—”
Married? That was a line he
Similar Books
