The darkness in his eyes and the furrow of his brow suggested he was prepared to cross a line and one he could never return from. I wasn’t certain how I felt about that.
Every time he brushed his knuckles across my face, the explosion of tingles was uncontrollable. I’d never experienced such a rush from being close to a man. It was exciting. And crazy. And breathtaking.
He didn’t stop there, crushing the weight of his body against mine, his grip on my face more possessive than ever before. The way his eyes darted back and forth across mine as he lowered his head kept me in suspended animation. I was no longer certain I was even breathing.
His lips brushed across mine and I crunched my fingers around his shirt. With his breath fiery hot and the flutter of my heart, the world simply faded away. As soon as I tilted my head so our lips were pressed together, he made a sudden move, dipping me not once but twice.
The blast of music suddenly broke through the haze of lust. I’d be damned if he wasn’t twirling me around, dancing in perfect beat to the rhythm. It was impossible to keep from laughing. Here I’d thought nothing about him could surprise me.
When he dipped me again, he held me suspended. Now his heated gaze was completely dominating. I kind of liked this side of him. Playful yet controlling.
He kept his lips hovering where they were, leaving me exasperated and completely and desperately in need.
When he chuckled in his dark and demanding tone, I slipped my fingers through the opening in his shirt. He gripped my hand immediately, pulling it free before purposely sliding both down his side to his groin.
“Mmm… What do you have in mind, big boy?”
“Would it surprise you if I said nothing good?”
“Not even a little bit.”
His laugh was surprising and even though his eyes continued registering extreme heat, he pushed me away. When he wagged his finger in front of me, I stomped my foot. “You’re a bad girl. You still need punishment. We’ll take care of that when we return home.”
Home. He made the word sound so inviting.
I took a giant stride away. “You told me I was one of the good girls.”
“I was wrong. Now, unless you’d prefer that I punish you in front of all these fine customers, I suggest you finish your wine and we get out of here. Now I can add cheater to the list of reasons to punish you.”
“Party pooper.”
“That’s what my buddies call me.”
Grabbing my wine, I rolled my eyes. “I think I’ll like this group of guys. Such interesting adventures you’ve been on together.”
“You were snooping in my man cave.” He used his deep baritone, pretending to be a Neanderthal.
“I was. Since you tell me very little about yourself, I had to fight fire with fire. Maybe I’ll talk to your buddies behind your back.”
“Be careful, little girl. They might like you a little too much. That would lead to acts of uncontrollable violence.” He tossed several twenties on the table, arching an eyebrow as if testing me again.
“Now that I’d love to see.” Before I finished the few sips, I dragged my tongue around the rim of the glass.
“Such a tease. I’ll need to take care of that as well.”
“I hope you do.”
As soon as he led me from the restaurant, his personality switched to the man I’d met the first time, one of control and complete awareness. I’d seen the outline of the gun in his jacket pocket. Whether he’d wanted to talk about the situation at dinner or not, he’d continually scanned the customers as they’d come and gone. He’d even insisted on a seat where he could see the picture window allowing for a perfect view of the sidewalk and a portion of the busy street.
While I’d always loved the darkness night brought, tonight was different. There was an eerie feeling, not only from the humidity clinging to my dress or the oppressive dampness in the air, but something more sinister.
As if the boogeyman was right around the corner.
And not just a storm that could brewing in the horizon.
He hurried me to the parking lot, insisting he open my door, peering inside when he did. There was no mistaking when hesuddenly disappeared from view. He was checking under the car to see if a bomb had been placed.
Even when it appeared he was satisfied, he scanned the parking lot a second time.
