Heather handed Sam her food.
“Wait,” Heather whispered as Sam started to leave. She quickly bagged a sandwich, fries, and brownie. “Would you take this to him and tell him I’m really sorry?”
“Sure.”
Sam made her way over to the guys who were eating. They were back to their usual bantering, but as she ate, she couldn’t get the taste of Adrian’s kiss out of her mind. That kiss had really done something to her.
Worse, she kept imagining him as a kid working on a cold Nashville parking lot so his baby sister would have a Christmas tree. It was such an Adrian thing to do.
And she wondered if anyone had ever done such a thing for him. But in her heart, she knew they hadn’t.
Adrian took care of the world while no one took care of him.
Sam cracked open Adrian’s office door. “Hey, I just wanted to let you know that I was leaving.”
He turned around in his chair to face her. “Is it five already?”
“Five-thirty, actually.”
“Oh.” He rose from his chair and shrugged on his leather jacket. “I’ll walk you out.”
“Okay,” she said, her heart pounding as every hormone in her body instantly fired.
There was an awkward silence between them as they walked down the hallway toward the side door where she parked.
“I, um . . . I had something I wanted to ask you,” he said as he opened the door for her.
“Sure,” she said in dread as she led the way across the lot to her car. “If you’re worried about what happened this afternoon, don’t be. I’m not going to tell anyone.”
“Oh, I don’t care about that. I mean, I care about that, but . . . shit,” he breathed. “I never was any good at this. So, I’ll just do what I do best, and blurt it out. Would you like to go to the Christmas party with me?”
Sam smiled as her heart raced even faster. “Yes, I would. But only if you bring the mistletoe.”
His gaze dropped to her lips and she wondered if he was imaging the feel of their kiss like she was.
“Great,” he said. “Pick you up at three?”
“Sounds good. I’ll give you the directions to my house tomorrow.”
“Okay.” He bent his head down like he was going to kiss her again, then he quickly shot back upright. “We’re still at work.”
Adrian watched as she got in her car, and a chill went up his spine that had nothing to do with the cold winter wind and everything to do with her.
She was something else. And he liked it.
She rolled her car window down.
Adrian leaned down to where he could speak to her without someone overhearing them. “You know, I really want to kiss you right now.”
“Me, too.”
Ask her back to your place. It was on the tip of his tongue, but he didn’t dare.
“You better get back in,” she said. “It’s cold out here.”
No, it wasn’t. Not when he was standing so close to her. “Yeah,” he breathed, “You’re probably freezing.”
She reached out and touched his hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Adrian gave a light squeeze to her hand even though what he wanted to do was hold it tight.
Letting go, he walked away from her, and with every step he took, he cursed himself for the stupidity. Why hadn’t he asked her back to his apartment?
But then, he knew. If he had her alone in his place, his hands would be all over her. It was too soon, and the last thing he wanted was to drive her away from him.
He’d never wanted anything in his life the way he wanted Samantha Parker.
Closing his eyes, he did his best to banish the image in his mind of her naked in his arms. The imagined feel of her breath falling across his neck as he lost himself inside her body.
“I want you, Sam,” he breathed as he watched her pull out of the lot. “And one way or another, I’m going to have you.”
CHAPTER THREE
“Sam?”
Sam looked up to see Adrian’s head poking out of his office door. “Yeah?”
“In my office. Now.”
She swallowed at his low, even tone. It sounded strangely like the one he used to crawl all over Scott when Scott did something stupid.
Worse, he’d been avoiding her all day. He hadn’t even gone to lunch with them.
Had she done something wrong?
Nervous, she got up and took the five steps that separated her cube from his office.
As soon as she was inside, he closed the door.
Sam’s heart pounded. This wasn’t good. Adrian never closed his door unless it was time for a major performance talk.
Eyes dark and features grim, he turned toward her.
Sam expected him to tell her to sit, so when he cupped her face in his hands, and pressed her back against his wall, she was stunned.
His breathing ragged, he lowered his head down and captured her lips with his.
And it wasn’t just any kiss. It was scorching and demanding. Every hormone in her body jumped to attention. Closing her eyes, she relished the warm scent of him. The masterful feel of his tongue dancing with hers as his hands roamed over her shoulders and back, down to her hips. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and moaned softly as her desire for him tripled.
He separated her legs with his thigh and cupped her buttocks as he set her down on that taut muscle. Sam groaned at the feeling of him between her legs. Her feet barely touched the floor as he surrounded her with warmth.
Her head light, she throbbed and ached for more of him.
Adrian knew he shouldn’t be doing this, but he hadn’t been able to stand it any longer. All day long, he’d been unable to think about anything other than the fact that she was only five feet away.
She was so intelligent, so much fun.
He wanted to devour her.
Adrian pulled back from the kiss to where he could nibble her lips as he buried his hand in her thick, dark hair. He laved a trail from her lips to her neck where he inhaled her.
He skimmed his hand up from her waist to the side of her breast. At the sound of her murmured pleasure, he felt his control slipping.
He ached for her. Burned for her in a way he’d never burned before and all he could think of was being inside her.
“I want you, Sam,” he whispered.
Sam gave him a chiding stare. “I thought I was in trouble.”
Adrian shook his head as he lost himself in those light eyes of hers. “I think I’m the one in trouble. Serious trouble.”
He dipped his head to kiss her again.
His cell phone went off.
Growling, he answered it. “Scott, I’m in the middle of a damn important meeting. Send an e-mail.”
Someone knocked on the door.
“Just a minute,” Adrian snapped, then he brushed her cheek with his fingers, even though what he really wanted to do was lay her down on his desk and alleviate the vicious, throbbing ache in his groin.
Not to mention the one in his heart.
His breathing ragged, he let go of her. “I better let you get back to work.”
She nodded, then kissed him hard on his lips.
The knock sounded again.
She smiled. “Duty calls.”
Sam spent the rest of the day dreaming about that kiss. And as she watched people traipse in and out of Adrian’s office, she felt like cursing. Couldn’t they just leave him in peace?
“Hey!” Randir said as he came around her cube. “It’s snowing really bad outside.”
Sam looked up with a start. “What?”
“Oh, yeah, the roads are freezing.” Randir stuck his head in Adrian’s door. “I’m going home.”
Adrian came out of his office. “Tell everyone to head out.”
Since she lived fifty minutes away, Sam dialed her oldest brother’s cell phone.
“Don’t you dare head home,” Teddy said sternly. “The roads are awful. I had to leave my Blazer at the bottom of the h
ill and walk home. Is there some place in La Vergne you can bunk for the night?”
“I guess. Thanks.” She hung up.
“Why are you still here?” Adrian asked.
“My brother said the roads are frozen solid. Looks like I’ll be spending the night on the cot in the first-aid room.”
Adrian frowned. “You can’t do that.”
Like she had any choice, she thought wistfully. “Sure I can. I have the vending machines and the security guard for company. I’ll be fine.”
“Why don’t you come home with me?” he asked stoically.
Sam hesitated as her heart pounded. If she did that, she had a really good idea what would happen.
But then, how bad would it be to make love to him all night?
She bit her lip in indecision. “I don’t know.”
At the hurt look on his face, she quickly added, “I bet you get stuck here with me. I’m sure the Corvette isn’t any better in this weather than my Honda.”
“I’m not in the Vette. I drove my Bronco in.”
She arched a brow. “I didn’t know you had another car.”
“Yeah. I love the Vette, but she’s temperamental and she hates snow.” He took her jacket off the peg inside her cube and held it open for her. “C’mon. I promise I’ll behave.”
Her stomach knotted in excitement and fear, she shrugged her coat on. “Okay.”
Adrian led her out of the building, across the virtually empty parking lot to an older-model black Bronco and opened the door for her.
After he got in and started the car, Sam sat beside Adrian with her heart in her throat. She was so nervous, she was actually trembling. It’d been a long time since she’d been with a guy. A long time since she’d gone to a guy’s place.
And she’d never loved a man as much as she did Adrian.
Should I make a move on him? Or should I wait for him to do something?
What if he thinks I’m fat? He was so well toned and she was . . . well, fleshy. What if it turned him off?
Good grief, her doubts and fears plagued her silly.
Adrian tried to think of something to say as he drove the ten-minute commute to his apartment.
But he couldn’t.
His hands were actually sweating inside his gloves. He hadn’t taken a girl home with him since college.
Should I make a move on her? Or should I wait for her to do something?
Is it too soon?
He didn’t want to scare her off. He really liked her. And the last thing he wanted was for her to bolt for the door.
But he couldn’t stand the thought of not having her.
By the time he pulled up next to his Corvette, his stomach was absolutely knotted.
“Do you have a roommate?” she asked as he walked her to his door.
“With the hours I keep? No one would put up with me.” He unlocked the door and let her in.
Sam entered the living room, then froze. She’d never seen anything like it in her life.
“Good Lord, it looks like a Circuit City showroom,” she said as her gaze darted over the big-screen TV, three leather recliners, DVD player, double-decker VCR, two computers, and a stereo bigger than her car.
His walls were stark white and completely bare. But at least the whole apartment was amazingly clean and well kept.
“Jeez. Adrian, you live like a bear in an electronic cave.”
He laughed as he locked the door, then set his keys, security badge, and wallet in a bowl on the breakfast counter.
He shrugged his coat off and hung it up in a closet to her left. Sam took hers off and handed it to him.
“Should I ask about the three recliners?”
He shrugged. “Sometimes the guys come over to watch a game.”
“So, why don’t you have a couch?”
He looked offended by the very idea. “I’m not sitting my ass down next to another guy. Jeez, Sam, I thought you were raised with five brothers.”
“Oh, yeah, how could I forget?” she said as she rolled her eyes at him. “The male and his territory.”
He laughed as he gave her a brief tour of his place.
“Do you really need a PlayStation 2, Dreamcast, and Nintendo 64?” she asked. But what really amused her was the small TV next to the big one. She arched a questioning brow.
“Sometimes I play games while I’m watching the big TV,” he said as if there were nothing unusual about it.
Sam smiled, until she glanced down at one of the chairs. Then she sobered. “You know, Adrian, you’re quite a guy.”
He gave her a puzzled frown.
“There’s not many men who let their underwear watch TV while they’re at work,” she said, glancing to the pair in the seat of the chair closest to the window.
“Oh, jeez,” he moaned as he grabbed them and rushed to the laundry room in the kitchen.
“I’m sorry,” she said as she followed after him. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I think it’s funny. Besides, I used to have to do my brothers’ laundry, and all I have to say is—”
He turned around at the same time she took a step forward. They collided.
Adrian’s breath left his chest as soon as her breasts touched his arm. She looked up at him with her lips parted and before he could stop himself, he took advantage of it.
Sam wrapped her arms around his shoulders as she kissed him with all the passion and love flowing through her. And in that moment, she knew what was about to happen between them.
This was the moment she’d spent the last year dreaming of.
Scared and excited, she couldn’t wait.
Adrian deepened his kiss as his hands roamed freely over her back, pressing her closer to him. Growling low in his throat, he pulled back from her lips and buried his mouth against her neck.
Sam hissed in pleasure as his hot tongue, lips, and teeth nibbled and suckled her. Chills swept through her entire body as her breasts tingled in response to his expert, masculine touch. Heat pooled itself into an aching throb between her legs.
The scent of leather and Old Spice tormented her unmercifully. Gracious, how she wanted this man.
No one had ever made her feel the way he did. Desirable. Beautiful.
And best of all, needed.
Tonight, she would show her love to him. Tonight, she would hold nothing back and she would hope for a time when perhaps he might love her in return.
Adrian’s vision dulled as he inhaled the warm, sweet scent of her skin. And he wanted more of her.
He wanted all of her.
That need foremost on his mind, he ran his hand over her breast, and squeezed it gently. He moaned at the softness, and at the feel of her hardened nipple through her Santa sweater.
To his amazement, Sam answered the caress with one of her own as she reached down between their bodies and cupped him in her hand, through his jeans. Adrian growled as she stroked him, teased him, making his entire body quiver and burn for her.
She was bold with her caresses, and more than generous with her lips.
His body on fire, Adrian returned to her mouth as she unbuttoned his jeans, then slid her hand beneath the elastic band of his briefs to take him into her hand.
He sucked his breath in sharply between his teeth as he hardened to the point of pain.
“You are a big man,” she whispered against his lips as she gently stroked his shaft.
“You’re the only one who does that to me,” he whispered. He ran his hands under her sweater, over her smooth, soft skin, to the back of her bra where he released the catch.
His breath caught as her breasts spilled out of the satin bra and into his hands. He reveled in the feel of those taut nipples in his palms and he couldn’t wait to taste them. To run his tongue over the tiny ridges as he breathed her scent in.
Her soft flesh filled his hands past capacity and he loved it.
Then, she untucked his shirt and ran her hands over his chest and back, clutching at him in a way that made him dizzy.
The damned phone rang.
“Do you need to answer it?” she said breathlessly.
“To hell with it.”
“What if it’s work?”
“To hell with it.”
She laughed.
He heard his answering machine pick up.
“Adrian?”
He flinched as he heard his mother’s nasal, Southern drawl.
“Adrian, this is Mom. Are you there? If you are, pick up, honey. I need to talk to you.”
His hormones instantly iced by the sound of his mother’s voice, he pulled back. “I better answer it or she’ll call every ten minutes from now on and start beeping me.”
Devastated by the interruption, Sam licked her lips and tried to pull herself together as Adrian left her and picked up the cordless phone from the counter. He tucked his shirt back in and buttoned his pants.
“Hi, Mom,” he said coolly as he left the kitchen, then went to his bedroom, and closed the door while Sam straightened her own clothes.
“Adrian, where have you been? I’ve been calling for an hour.”
Sam went over to his answering machine to turn it off so that she wouldn’t overhear their conversation, but it had so many unmarked buttons, she didn’t know which one to press.
“I was at work.”
“I wish you’d give me your work number. I need to be able to get a hold of you when something comes up.”
“What do you need now, Mom?”
“I need you to come over and salt my driveway, so that I won’t get stuck here tomorrow.”
“Jesus, Mom, it’s a forty-minute drive and the roads are iced over.”
“I know, that’s why I need you to come over, right now.”
Sam frowned at his mother’s insistence.
“Mom, I can’t. I’m busy.”
His mother gave a dramatic sigh. “Busy doing what? Playing with your stupid computers again? All I ask is a little, tiny favor and this is the thanks I get. Do you know, I was in labor for thirty-six hours with you? I almost died giving birth.”
“Yes, Mom, I know.”
“Don’t you take that tone with me, young man. I gave my life to you kids, and the least you can do is take care of me in my old age.”
“You’re only forty-seven.”
“Don’t you dare get smart with me. It’s not like you have anything better to do. God forbid you should actually date and marry someone, and give me a grandchild.”
Naughty or Nice? Page 13
