Digging her fingers into his shoulders, she rubbed herself against him to show just how much she needed more contact. She needed the ultimate contact. She was wild for him. He had made her forget everything but this.
Lacing her fingers through his hair, she relished how good he felt; so big, so strong, his powerful body grinding into hers. He tasted of everything good, and he smelled of hard liquor and hot man. He was a drugging delight with a mouth so firm and sexy she would never get enough of his kisses. His tongue probed the seam of her mouth until she surrendered, and then he mimicked another act that made her moan and ache with need.
“Let’s take a pause.”
Hearing the amusement in his voice, she stepped back. “Is that all you’ve got, Mr. Kent?”
With a growl, he pinned her against the wall. The fire in his eyes excited her. The touch of his hands inflamed her. His kisses tormented her. She was falling fast without a safety net, and for once in her life she didn’t want to be saved.
She pulled back in the nick of time, telling herself firmly, this is Jason Kent, billionaire, a man who will take anything freely given, while you are Kate Black, farmer’s daughter with more sense than to give anything away for free. A down-to-earth attitude toward sex was one thing, but she’d gotten her fingers burned before. She wasn’t going to become Jason Kent’s latest acquisition, or make herself available whenever it suited him.
“I’m hosting this party, and I have to get back. I have guests.” He was blocking her way. She glanced at the door. “Move, please.”
“You’re quite a surprising woman, Ms. Black.”
“And you’re quite a roadblock. Now, move.”
With an amused look, he cleared her way to the door and opened it for her.
“Thank you,” she said briskly, as if she hadn’t been scrambling all over him minutes before. “See you back there...” She turned to give him a look. “You’re not going to run off now that you’re here, are you?”
He laughed. “Even you couldn’t drive me away.”
“Your elf cap is askew, dear,” Lily whispered discreetly when Kate re-joined the party.
“Oh—” She blushed and made the necessary adjustment. “Thanks...”
She checked the rest of her costume to make sure everything was in its rightful place. Everything was, including her straining breasts with nipples standing proudly to attention. Now it just remained to be seen if Jason would come back to the party.
She kept herself busy circling the room to make sure everyone had everything they wanted. She handed out her telephone number to neighbors who might possibly need it at some point. And then, just when she’d given up on him, her spine tingled a warning. She didn’t need to turn around to know he was back. She counted to ten and then swung around. She saw him at once.
Her gaze locked onto his for a couple of seconds, long enough for his heat to flow through her. His hair was ruffled. His stubble was thick and black. He looked like the marauding brigand she’d first thought him. Her hand crept to her neck where his stubble had raked her, then she registered the area around her mouth was sore too. Jason Kent looked as good as it got and, from that initial bad start, he was working the room. She was surprised he’d stayed, and surprised he was so good at it, until she reasoned that Jason Kent couldn’t have made all that money with smarts alone. He knew what made people tick.
He certainly knew what made her tick, Kate reflected with amusement. But did he care? Did Jason Kent care about anyone? She watched him achieve just the right balance of listening and talking. He accomplished both with the same practiced ease. He could certainly turn it on, but was he genuine? This was the same man who had sworn off Christmas, so was tonight just another public relations exercise?
Heat pulsed through her when he glanced her way and winked. That wink was so