CHAPTER ELEVEN
NOTHING SHORT OF a hurricane could have stopped Tara from kissing Jeff. She opened to him, drawn by a cellular-level need, an unnameable force that made the touch of his lips, the slide of his tongue, the feel of his rough palm cradling her cheek irresistible.
Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe she’d have regrets later, but the look on his face when he talked aboutEvan, the desire in his eyes when he looked at her…
She couldn’t restrain herself any longer. Didn’t want to. Jeff must’ve felt the same because he kept kissing her, nibbling at her lips, angling her head to deepen the kiss until every stroke plucked her nerves from head to toe.
He broke the kiss and tucked her under his chin, his breath coming fast as he stroked her back. “Come back to theRV with me?”
He had to ask? “Yes.”
In one smooth move, he pushed to his feet, bringing them both to standing, grabbed her hand, and tugged her down the path toward the parking lot where he’d managed to wedge the motor home.
She felt two-glasses-of-champagne giddy as she nearly jogged behind him to keep up with his long strides. Without letting go, he urged her inside, locking the door behindhim.
Spinning, he sat on the loveseat and tugged her into the V of his legs as he wrapped his arms around her waist. She went willingly, raking her fingers through his hair, molding her body to his heat.
He buried his face against her neck and held her, inhaling deeply as he pressed his lips to the sensitive skin beneath her ear.
Electricity arced from his mouth to her core, and she gasped,melting under his touch. His fingers blazed a slow path from her shoulders to the backs of her knees as his lips and tongue took a tortuous route across her jaw. She rubbed her thigh against the erection already straining his jeans.
Jeff grunted, jumping to a hot, deep kiss that left her dizzy.
He licked and sucked at her mouth like a man tasting sugar for the first time, his hands workingmagic against her bare skin as he pushed up her sweater and T-shirt past her ribs. Cool air brushed her skin and she raised her arms. He tossed the clothes on the table before covering her breasts with his large hands, slipping his fingertips into the cups of her bra.
Her hips jerked, seeking, aching. She undid the clasp at her back and let her bra fall to the floor. Jeff groaned, smoothinghis hands up and over her shoulders, his mouth latching onto her nipple.
Oh, God.
Tara’s breath hitched and she arched back, biting her lip to keep from crying out, gripping his head so he wouldn’t stop. He had her in thrall, lost to sensation. Heat, suction, the rasp of stubble over her sensitive skin, the reverent caress of his fingers as they stroked down her stomach.
Why had she deniedherself this joy for so long?
He’ll break your heart.
He wouldn’t. Not if she didn’t give it to him. Not if she didn’t expect his in return.
Their attraction was undeniable and electric. Where was the harm in giving in if she knew the outcome from the beginning?
No expectations, no promises. No problem.
Jeff stopped and looked up at her, his lips wet, his eyes dark with hunger temperedby concern, his thumbs idly brushing across her nipples, sparking waves of joy that made her body tingle from head to toe. “Is this ok—”
Before either of them could think too hard, she lowered her head and pressed her mouth to his, wrapping her arms around his neck as she urged him to stand. Without breaking the kiss, he rose to his full height, lifting her with him until she could close herlegs around his waist, carefully avoiding his stitches.
Striding into his tiny bedroom, he laid her gently on the bed and looked down at her. His expression was unreadable, but he couldn’t hide his rapid breathing, flushed cheeks, or the bulge in his pants.
Yet, he did nothing.
Resisting the urge to cover her bare torso, she reached instead for the button of her jeans and slid it free. “Don’tstop now.”
Still, he hesitated. “I don’t want to be like those other guys, but I can’t promise more than this moment.”
Her heart slipped, just a little, but he wasn’t telling her anything she hadn’t already figured out. The fact that he even worried about it made him a hundred times better than any of her previous lovers.
No, not lovers. With the exception of Colin, they’d been nothing butsexual partners. Jeff was already far more.
Sitting up, she moved her fingers tohiswaistband and slowly undid the top button. “You’re nothing like those other guys.” His entire body tensed as she lowered the zipper. “And we both want this.”
