• • •
It aroused him unbearably, even in his sated state, to see the convulsion of her thr
oat, to witness her taking him into her body while she looked up at him, her beautiful eyes glazed with lust . . . and trust.
Discomfort trickled into his awareness. Her lips were reddened and puffy. He’d been hard on her. As usual. He gently stroked her bee-stung lower lip with the pad of his thumb. Her lips parted. She continued to stare up at him, something in her expression amplifying his guilt.
His need swelled yet again, unexpected and harsh, despite the fact that he’d just come explosively. Made even more uncomfortable by the realization, he took a step back and jerked up his briefs before he reached around her, unfastening the wrist restraint he’d brought with him. He shoved the thin, padded cuff into his pants pocket.
“Are you going to make a habit of this?” he heard her ask quietly.
He glanced up from zipping his pants. Was he behaving coldly again, in the aftermath? His gaze flickered downward to her breasts. They were still exposed, poking out from the lowered cups of her bra. Regret sliced through him. Selfish regret. He wanted to haul her out of the Gazette’s office and take her home. He wanted to lay her on his bed and put his mouth on every inch of her.
“Coming to this bathroom, you mean?” he asked warily.
She nodded. Relief swept through him. She wasn’t referring to him being distant. “Given this time, I just might,” he said, holding her stare as he tucked in his shirt.
Her lush mouth tightened, and he sensed her volatile state. Well, what could he expect, given what he’d just done to her?
Out in the hallway, he heard heels clicking briskly on the tile floor. From the sudden frozen expression on Harper’s face, she’d noticed, too. The footsteps paused outside the door. He leaned and turned up the water pressure on the tap, making a louder white noise. There was a slight pause, and then he heard the steps going down the hall again.
“Maybe you’d like to see me fired from my job?” Harper asked.
“Why would I want that?” he wondered, stepping toward her again. He took her hands and lifted her to a standing position, drawing her against his body.
“So you wouldn’t have to worry about me being a reporter anymore,” she said soberly, looking up at him.
“The only motive I had in coming here,” he said softly, brushing his fingertips over her cheek. “Was seeing you.”
“Wouldn’t it have been easier to call me and ask me to dinner?”
A smile pulled at his lips at her droll tone. Again, he caressed her slightly swollen lower lip.
“You’re right. I didn’t come here to see you. I came here because I had to.”
“Like a compulsion?” she murmured, moving her lips beneath his stroking finger.
“Maybe,” he said, dipping his head. He brushed his mouth over her lips, all too aware of how he’d been so forceful with her earlier. Regretting it.
Wanting to do it all over again.
“Yes,” he amended. “A compulsion.”
“When did you return to Tahoe Shores?” she whispered next to his lips.
“Just now,” he murmured. He plucked at her mouth and drew her closer with his hands at the top of her buttocks. Despite his desire to bring her nearer, she started back and met his stare.
“Just now?”
Undeterred, he leaned down and nipped at her lips again. He didn’t reply until she reciprocated.
“Yes. My driver is in the parking lot, waiting. We came directly here.”
Again, she pulled her head back. He saw the question in her eyes.
“I’m sorry about having to cancel our dinner the other night,” he said, guessing what was behind her unease—or part of it, anyway. “I wouldn’t have done it, unless it was completely necessary.”
She nodded, and pulled out of his embrace. With her back turned to him, she straightened her bunched bra and buttoned her blouse. She smoothed her hands down her hips and thighs, straightening the narrow skirt she wore. “I understand that things come up, Jacob. Honestly. I do.” She turned and faced him. “But you might have called yourself, instead of having Elizabeth do it. It felt very impersonal.”