Her throat works as she swallows. “I’m ... not sure what you mean.”
“Yes, you are.” I set my coffee down, take hers from her hands, and place it beside mine. “We can pretend we’re just having a pleasant weekend. Polite conversation. Proper distance. Or…” I close the distance between us until my face is just inches from hers. “We can stop dancing around what’s happening here.”
Her eyes darken, pupils dilating. “And what exactly is happening here?”
“You tell me.” I dip my head closer, my voice dropping to a murmur. “Your heart rate picks up when I’m near you. You watch my mouth when I speak. Last night in this kitchen, you wanted me to kiss you.”
“Did I?” She backs up, bumping against the counter edge. “You’re very sure of yourself.”
“I’m sure of what I see.” I rest my hands on the counter on either side of her, caging her in “And what I feel.
I even saw you rubbing your thighs together. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me you don’t feel it, too.”
“Mr. Ward?—”
“Ronan,” I say. “You called me Ronan last night.”
“Ronan.” My name in her mouth is sin itself, and it makes my cock harder than a crowbar. “This will complicate things.”
“Why?” I lean in until our foreheads nearly touch. “We’re attracted to each other. The question isn’t whether the attraction exists. The question is what we do about it.”
She lifts her chin, defiance flashing in those soft blue eyes. “And if I say nothing?”
“Then nothing happens.” I push away from the counter, giving her space, no matter how it kills me to do so. “I meant what I said at the auction. You’re not obligated to do anything. My bid bought your company, not your body.”
Redness creeps along her cheeks and neck. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me for basic human decency.”
She laughs, a bright sound that hits me in the chest. “You’d be surprised how rare that can be.”
“I wouldn’t, actually.” The thought of anyone treating her as less than precious makes something dark unfurl inside me. “But while we’re being honest, I want you, Rayne. I’ve wanted you since the moment I saw you. And I think you want me, too. Stop pretending you don’t feel it.”
Her cheeks flush crimson. “I never said I didn’t feel ... something.”
“Something,” I echo, amused.
“You’re hot, criminally so. I’d have to be blind not to notice.” She’s flustered now, words tumbling out faster, and her eyes dart to the walls, the chairs, looking anywhere but me. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to jump into bed with you just because you paid for a weekend date.”
“No.” I reach out, tracing the line of her jaw with my thumb. She shivers but doesn’t pull away. “I expect you’d need better reasons than that.”
“L-like what?”
“Like the fact that when I touch you” —I brush my fingers down her neck, feeling her pulse leap beneath my touch— “your whole body responds. Like the fact that you’ve been thinking about kissing me since last night. Like the fact that right now, you’re wondering what my mouth would feel like on yours. On your neck. Between your thighs.”
Her breath catches. “You think you know what I want?”
“I know what I want to give you.”
A tremor runs through her. Her tongue darts out to wet her lips. “And what’s that?”
“Everything.”
I wait. Ball in her court. I’ve made my desire clear, but the next move is hers.
For a moment, she’s perfectly still, caught between running and surrendering. Then she reaches up, curls her fingers into the front of my shirt, and pulls me down to her.
Well, fuck.
