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scene of her in that bed across the room flashed through her mind. And he was there in that bed with her, hovering over her, making any resistance melt away.
    A loud bang below had her jumping back out of his arms, drawing in a deep breath. She suppressed an inner shiver when she met his heated gaze, and she knew if given the chance he would pull her back in his arms and kiss her again, even take it to another level. Lord help her, but she needed to get out of there.
    “I need to leave. Now,” she said in a strained voice.
    As if he understood, he nodded. “All right.”
    Taking her hand in his, he led her out of the room and toward the elevator. Lucky for her the doors opened the moment he pressed the button, and she quickly stepped inside.
    When she saw he was about to join her, she said quickly, “You don’t have to ride down with me.”
    The smile he gave her made her breath catch. “I know, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Regardless of what you might think, I can be a gentleman,” he said, pushing a button for the lower floor.
    Instead of speaking, she just nodded. She would be sure to add gentleman beneath good kisser on her list of his many attributes. Though she tried to ignore him once the elevator closed, he stood against the wall staring at her like he wanted to cross the space separating them and devour her.
    She released a deep breath when the elevator stopped and the door swooshed open. She quickly stepped out and headed for the exit door. It was then that she heard the music. The band had started playing and the slow tune they were performing was one of her favorites. She unconsciously slowed her pace.
    “Let’s have at least one dance before you leave,” Terrence whispered close to her ear as he took her hand in his.
    She nodded, and within seconds he led her toward the dance floor. Heat surged through her the moment he pulled her into his arms. A frisson of sensual awareness invaded her entire being and the air surrounding them seemed supercharged. As if they had a mind of their own, her arms wrapped around him the same way his embraced her. She closed her eyes and placed her head on his chest despite thinking that she really needed to leave, go back to the safety of her home, and that dancing with him this way was too risky. But then, being held in his arms felt good, and like always when they were this close, she could feel her body responding to the pure masculinity of him. His muscles felt hard and firm beneath her fingers and she felt herself pressed even more tightly against him. Then her mind began wondering again.She wondered how it would feel to have his skin beneath her fingertips, how the texture of it would taste on her tongue.
    “Sherri.”
    It took her a full minute to realize he had called her name. She looked up into the darkness of his eyes, desire lining his pupils. “Yes?”
    “I was dead serious when I invited you to spend the night,” he leaned down and whispered huskily.
    She considered his invitation, really considered it. Although it had been a long time since she’d been involved in a physical relationship with a man, she still wasn’t ready to give herself to him so fully and completely. Because of Ben, she was going out of her way to safeguard her heart from further hurt and pain, and she believed an affair with Terrence would lead to just that.
    The song had ended, but they were still standing in the middle of the dance floor. “Come, let’s sit over here,” he said, leading her to one of the tables near the windows.
    “We want the same thing, Sherri,” he said when they were seated. “I think you know that.”
    She glanced over at him. “I want more from a relationship than just the physical. I’ll never settle for just that again, Terrence.”
    He nodded. “And a physical relationship is all I can ever offer a woman.”
    Sherri stared at him for a few moments before slowly standing. Her words held finality when she spoke. “Then it would never