“Your aunt told me they’d abandoned you, so I thought I’d do the neighborly thing and give you alift.”
“Oh.Thanks.”
All of a sudden, she sounded more prim and cool and less warm and friendly. What the hell had hesaid?
Declan mentally shook his head as he turned onto the tree-shrouded drive that led up the hill to Shenstone House. He just didn’t understand women. Half the time he didn’t recognize the signals until it was too late, and then when he thought he was reading them right, everything changed. “See any more sign of thatcat?”
Leslie made a short, sudden noise. “Oh. I thought you were going to say ‘ghost.’” She glanced at him. “I haven’t seen either. I hope the cat’s all right. It looked prettybad.”
He couldn’t help a smile. “Got any moretuna?”
She smiled back just as he pulled up to the back door of the house. Her car was sitting there off to the side, and a generous pool of light spilled into the parking area due to a motiondetector.
“Yes, I bought several more cans today, and some cat food too.” She shrugged, looking a little embarrassed about her soft heart. “I figure I’ll see if I can lure him closer to the house, and maybe he’ll become comfortable enough that I can capturehim.”
He turned off the engine, wondering if that was enough of a hint for her to ask himinside.
All at once, he realized how much he wanted to be invited in. But…he wasn’t quite certain how to make ithappen.
“Thanks a lot for the ride,” she said. And the way her voice trailed off made it sound as if she’d been about to say something else, but changed hermind.
Leslie fumbled for her seatbelt. Declan heard the metallic click as it came loose, and it sounded so sharp and final he was certain he was losing hischance.
But then Fateintervened.
Just as Leslie bent toward the floor for her bag, she stopped short. “Ouch,” she said, then reached up with both hands at the far side of her seat’s headrest. “Oh, I’mcaught.”
She was trying to free herself, but her long hair had somehow (thank you, Fate) gotten wrapped around the little plastic knob at the top of her seat that acted as a guide for theseatbelt.
“Let me help,” Declan said, and leaned towardher.
She was tangled quite well. As he worked to free the thick, shiny lock of hair, feeling his way more than actually able to see what he was doing, Declan discovered her hair was silky and soft, and chilly from the cool night air. And it smelled like Leslie, all mingled with the scent of crisp autumn night that still clung to her from herwalk.
He was very close to her—closer than he’d ever been—and her nearness made his big fingers clumsy and his heart race. Her mouth was inches from his cheek, his arm brushed against the front of her down vest—and beneath that was a bulky sweater, and beneaththat,he was acutely aware, were the curves of herbreasts.
“Thanks,” she said when her hair was finally emancipated. Her voice sounded lower than usual, and he swore she sounded a littlebreathy.
“My pleasure,” he said, allowing his fingers to smooth along the recently freed lock of hair to its bluntend.
And then before he could think too much about it, his hand slid around the side of her throat to cup the back of her head, and he used his other hand to leverage himself against the car’s console so he could get close enough to kiss her. And then he movedin.
To his great pleasure, she didn’t resist, didn’t even hesitate. Instead, she turned in her seat—the better to face him—and met his mouth withhers.
Her cold nose bumped his cheek, but the warmth from her lips and the slick heat of her tongue sent a jolt of pleasure through him. He sighed in the back of his throat and eased in closer, kissing her more deeply and thoroughly as he drew in her smell, her taste, the warmth of the attraction sizzling betweenthem.
Leslie’s hand settled on his thigh as she came forward to meet his deep kiss and demanding mouth, and a shock of desire surged through him.Yes, he thought.Oh, damnedyes.
After a heady moment of sleek tangling of tongues and sliding of lips, she pulled back a little suddenly, muttering, “Wait…aren’t you and EmilyDelt—”
“No,” he said firmly, and pulled her back to him, covering her mouth once more. She softened, and made a soft little sound that made him smile with pleasure against her lips. So he worked a little harder to taste and touch and stroke, closer and slower and with deliberation. He wanted more sounds like that, and other ones…louder, more urgentones.
At some point, he eased back to catch his breath, to look at her and remind himself how beautiful she was and how lucky he was to be here with her taste on his lips and his hands warm from her body. She opened her eyes, and though the light was dim—and, damn, the windows were a little fogged up!—he caught her gaze in the near-dark and felt another stab ofwant.
She was a little out of breath too, and he could make out her lips: they were full and moist, parted in a way that looked sexy as hell, and her hat…that adorable hat was askew, ready to slip off the back of herhead.
He wanted to invite himself inside, wanted to get back at it—and more—but he hesitated. That little voice in the back of his mind reminded him:She’s theclient.
But he told it to shut the hell up and instead reached out to fix her hat. “Can’t remember the last time I made out in a car,” he said in a voice much lower thanusual.
