Jonas propped his hand against the doorjamb. “Did you love him?”
“I thought so at the time.”
“Are you pining away for him, Deanna?”
She laughed. “Pining?”
At the sound of her quiet laughter, a dam inside Jonas burst and warmth flooded his system. “You’re beautiful when you do that,” he whispered as he lifted his hand and cupped her cheek in his palm.
“What?”
“Laugh. I love to hear you laugh.”
“Jonas, don’t.” She shook her head and covered his hand with her own, but she didn’t remove it. To his way of thinking, it was another step in the right direction.
Jonas dipped his head, slowly, afraid if he moved too fast she’d bolt through the open door. “Are you sure, Deanna?”
Her soft lips parted and Jonas swept in.
2
The instant their lips touched, Deanna’s heart did a little cartwheel. Geez, good-looking only scratched the surface with Jonas. She could also add talented to the list. There was a rather lethal sort of appeal to Jonas that she had the hardest time ignoring. Danger oozed from his every pore. He seemed more animal than man. The image of a leopard sprang to Deanna’s mind. The skillful, quiet way he moved reminded her of a great jungle cat stalking its prey.
Deanna was a breath away from pushing him back when she felt his arms come around her middle, pulling her closer. Too close. His hard body pressed against hers. God, that felt good. Deanna surrendered. Just this once she wanted to taste him. Feel him. To see if he would be as good in real life as in her fantasies. She’d had a lot of them. Putting everything she had into the kiss, Deanna touched the seam of his mouth with her tongue, prodding him to open and let her play. Jonas groaned and tightened his hold. She nipped his lower lip with her teeth, eager for more. He angled his head and dipped his tongue between her lips. Finally, she got her first real taste of the man. She detected a hint of alcohol, but most of all she simply savored Jonas. Hot and masculine. He was like Swiss chocolate, tempting and sweet; Deanna wanted to gorge herself on him.
Jonas rotated his hips, and Deanna felt the hard length of his cock against her stomach. Her pussy throbbed and dampened. She wanted to feel him, deep and hot, filling her. When his hands skimmed over the swell of her bottom, Deanna knew she had to put a stop to things before it was too late. Heck, much more and she’d be too far gone. She’d be begging him to take her.
Pulling back, but still close enough to feel his heavy breathing against her kiss-swollen lips, Deanna whispered, “Enough, Jonas.”
“You want me, and we both know I’m desperate for you,” he growled. “Why stop now? Just when things were getting interesting too.”
Deanna had no answers for him. Her head felt too fuzzy to try to speak with any degree of intelligence. Instead, she attempted to step through the doorway, into her house, where she would be safe from big, hard men bent on turning her into a begging wanton. She needed distance between them. She needed to gain control over her raging hormones.
Jonas’s fingers tugged at the length of her hair. “Uh-uh. You don’t get off that easily, Deanna. We started something here tonight, you and I. The least you can do is give me a reason for leaving me standing here like some schmuck.”
His low voice heated the blood in her veins. He was annoyed with her, and it should’ve cooled her down. The deep rumble so close to her ear only served to make her body burn hotter. Crap, even angry he exuded sex appeal. As if she needed him to wield more power over her!
Deanna turned slowly on her heel, all too aware of the hold he had on her hair. “Yes, we started something, but it was a mistake and I’m rectifying it.”
He loosened his fist a fraction, and his mouth crooked up at the corners. “A damn delicious mistake in my opinion.” He paused before adding, “You shouldn’t tease a man like that, kitten.”
Kitten? She reached a hand up and gently moved his hand out of her hair. “I didn’t initiate the kiss—you did. And I’m not your kitten.”
He chuckled. “You haven’t kissed a lot of men, have you?”
His quiet, tender voice wrapped her in a layer of warmth, but the question slapped at her pride all the same. “Good night, Jonas. Find another corner to hang out on. Give this one a rest.” She quickly turned, afraid she’d lose her nerve, and darted through the door. Unfortunately for Deanna’s dignity, her foot caught on the entry rug and she stumbled. Yelping, she pitched forward. Before she landed on her face, Jonas caught her in his strong arms.
He swept her off her feet and took her into the house, then kicked the door closed behind him. As he stared down at her, his eyes full of mischief, he murmured, “That’s twice you nearly fell. Next time maybe you should wear lower heels.”
Deanna exhaled as embarrassment swamped her. Her face flamed red-hot, and she buried her nose into his black T-shirt. His masculine scent filled her nostrils, which made everything worse. Crap.
“Deanna?”
She squirmed in an attempt to get him to put her down, but he was too determined. His arms were steel bands around her. She lifted her head. Refusing to look at him, she said, “Jonas, please put me down. I feel enough like an idiot as it is.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Did you twist your ankle? Does it hurt?”
“No. Please, I’m fine.”