by Trish Wylie
The need to thrust against her was excruciating, but he forced himself to settle for pinning her to the door frame with his body. The desire to palm one of her perfect breasts was agonizing, but he forced himself to settle for a hand on her ribcage. Minutes dissolved into nothing but nipping, licking, and the kind of restless hand exploration that skirted them close to the point of no return. In the end it was the woman who was supposed to be lost in the moment with him who broke the kiss to point out a different kind of danger.
‘Danny …’ she mumbled. ‘Elevator …’
Listening for long enough to hear someone fighting with the cage door, he leaned back in. Knowing that door they had at least another couple of minutes.
But Jo ducked out of the way, her voice thickened by the drugging effect of desire. ‘We’re not the only people who live on this floor.’
‘They live at the opposite end of the hall,’ he replied in a rough voice, which said just as much about the effect desire was having on him. ‘But if it’s doing it for you go ahead and think about getting caught …’
‘You’re bad’, she whispered.
‘I haven’t even got started yet,’ he whispered back.
To prove his point he allowed his hand to slide up her ribcage so the tip of his thumb could brush the underside of her breast. Her kiss-swollen lips immediately parted on an inward, stuttered breath, head turning as she attempted to look down the hall.
‘They can’t see what I’m doing,’ he reassured her.
She looked into his eyes again. ‘Didn’t I say where you’re headed right now is second-date territory?’
Leaning forward, Daniel nudged his nose against the hair at her temple, breathing in lavender-scented shampoo. ‘So when do you want to go out?’
There was a heavy sigh as her hands smoothed across his chest. ‘We can’t go on a date. We can barely manage a civil cup of coffee.’
‘We just need to learn how to communicate better.’
Seemed to Daniel they were making some real headway in that department. He moved his nose to the other side of her temple and took another breath. The lavender wasn’t having a calming effect on his body but the fact she was finding him hard to resist certainly seemed to be doing something to his sense of well-being.
She shook her head. ‘We can’t.’
‘Making an effort not to bite each other’s heads off might be a good place to start.’
‘I meant this.’
‘You don’t mean that,’ he said with conviction.
‘Yes, I do.’
‘No, you don’t.’
‘Yes, I do.’ As he lifted his head she looked up at him from underneath her fringe. ‘Could you stop acting like you know me better than I know myself?’
Considering she was no more able to keep her hands off him than he was to keep his off her, Daniel refused to back down. ‘Would you have crossed the hall and kissed me?’
‘No.’
‘Do you regret that I crossed the hall to kiss you?’ When she avoided his gaze and focused a small frown on his chest, he added, ‘Remember, you suck at lying.’
‘No,’ she confessed reluctantly. ‘I don’t regret it.’
A step in the right direction …
She sighed again. ‘But I should.’
And a step back …
Lifting the hand at her waist, he smoothed a strand of hair off her cheek. ‘Tell me why.’
‘There are at least a dozen reasons why we shouldn’t be doing this.’
‘I had ten on my list.’
She shot him a brief look of frustration. ‘The very fact you even have a list should tell you I’m right.’
‘I’ve been narrowing it down some.’
When she frowned, he brushed his thumb against her breast and felt her body respond to his touch.
‘Danny, stop.’
He leaned in to nuzzle his nose into the hair above her ear. ‘Do I need to remind you what I said about making things difficult for me when I want something?’
‘There’s no room in my life for involvement.’
‘You forget you’re talking to the guy who never stays in one place long enough for it to get complicated.’ He brushed her hair off her shoulder to access her neck.
‘I can’t think when you’re doing that.’
The breathless honesty made his mouth curve into a smile against her skin. ‘Good.’
‘But we need to be sensible for a minute.’ Her hands flattened against his chest and pushed.
Lifting his head so he could look into her eyes, Daniel discovered the kind of steely determination that suggested he wasn’t the only one she was resisting.
‘Give me some space, Daniel. I mean it.’ The use of his full name made him frown.
‘Please.’
A flash of vulnerability combined with the word she had never used around him before made him step back, but only as far as the opposite side of the door frame. Dropping his arms, he pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
‘I’m listening.’
‘Don’t do that,’ she warned with a brief glare.
‘If you want us to communicate better it has to start somewhere.’
‘We were communicating fine until you started overthinking it.’
‘We can’t just jump into bed,’ she protested.
‘No?’
‘No. Because to categorize it as friends with benefits we’d need to be friends in the first place and we’re not.’ When he opened his mouth she shook her head. ‘I’m not done. Even if we were friends, we both know this is complicated.’
Number nine on his list, as it happened. Or was it eight? If it was eight, what was nine? While he tried to remember Jo continued listing the reasons they shouldn’t get involved.
‘Your sister is my best friend and your family—’
‘What happens between us is no one’s business but ours,’ he replied in a tone that wouldn’t accept any argument on the subject. ‘We’re consenting adults.’
‘You’re saying we sneak around and have secret sex?’
‘There’s a lot to recommend that one too.’
‘I can’t lie to your sister.’
‘I didn’t ask you to,’ he said. ‘I’m saying we see where this takes us before we complicate it with outside opinions.’
‘We both know exactly where it will take us.’
‘Sometimes these things are just a flash in the pan—burn hot, fizzle out fast.’ But as the words left his mouth Daniel knew he didn’t believe them. Once wouldn’t be enough with her, just as one kiss hadn’t been enough. After a second kiss he was ready for a third, a fourth and a fifth; preferably within the next few minutes. He wasn’t looking for a commitment any more than she was. It wasn’t something he could even begin to contemplate until he kicked his subconscious into line. But spending what was left of his short lease with Jo suddenly felt like pretty good therapy to him.
Ignoring the warning in her eyes, he took a step forward. ‘Can’t hurt if we manage to communicate better, can it? If we follow this through to its natural conclusion, it’ll be our decision. I’m not about to send out a mass email so people who know us can add their two cents. If you choose to tell Liv, that’s up to you. Won’t be you my family will come down on when we’re done. It’ll be me and I can handle that.’
‘I won’t be made out to be the victim of seduction.’ She frowned. ‘I’m a big girl. If something happens, it’ll be on equal terms.’
‘Wouldn’t have it any other way.’ He flashed a smile. ‘All I’m doing is laying it out for you.’
She wavered. ‘So we just try to communicate better and see what happens …’
‘Exactly.’
‘Knowing neither of us want to get involved …’
‘You want no strings, I’m your man.’ That she was getting closer to seeing things his way brought his hands out of his pockets. But as he lifted his arms she glanced down.
‘What happened to your hand?’ Frowning, she t
ook it in one of hers to study the damage more closely.
Daniel looked at the red scratches across the joints of his fingers and knuckles as if he’d forgotten they were there. He forgot a lot of things when he was kissing her.
‘Scraped it on a wall,’ he replied.
‘Does it hurt?’
‘No.’ Not in the way she meant.
‘Looks like it hurts,’ she said in a low voice. ‘Don’t you wear gloves when you’re working?’
‘They got in the way.’ It was as much as he was prepared to say on the subject. Turning his wrist, he threaded their fingers together, his free hand sliding under the hem of her blouse to touch the baby soft skin on her flank.
She trembled in response, long lashes growing heavy and another stuttered inward breath hauled through parted lips.
‘I don’t know what changed between us or why, but—’
‘It’s changed,’ she finished. ‘I know.’
‘May as well explore it now it’s here …’
Jo searched his eyes in the same way she had when she woke him up. It made him feel equally exposed, like standing in open ground without cover. Remaining still, he forced himself to endure the onslaught with more courage than last time. Her decision might ultimately rest on whether she found what she was looking for but he couldn’t do much about that.
It was either there or it wasn’t.
‘You know I’m going to ask at some point.’ She lowered her gaze to watch her palm flatten on his chest. She nodded. ‘Just so you’re ready for it next time …’
Daniel doubted he would ever be ready and was about to tell her it was a no-go area when she took a breath and confessed, ‘I can’t believe I’m even contemplating this …’
‘It’s not going anywhere,’ he replied roughly.
‘Hmm …’ She pushed out her lower lip. ‘Not till your lease is up.’
‘Not till my lease is up.’
‘Well, then,’ she said softly as her fingers flexed against his sweater. ‘If you’re going to convince me to go against my better judgment you best get started.’ The hand on his chest slid up around his neck, her gaze focused on his mouth. ‘For the record, it could take a lot of persuasion.’
Daniel’s head lowered. ‘I can do persuasion.’
‘We’ll see …’
CHAPTER SEVEN
‘I always thought creamy vanilla was the ice cream for me, but recently someone persuaded me to try some wild cherry. Oh, my, what have I been missing all these years?’
‘CHEESE slice and a diet soda, please,’ Jo said with a smile before she turned towards Daniel.
‘Stubborn. Now you think of one word to describe me. And be nice.’
He reached a long arm across the heated glass cabinets to pay for their order. ‘Because calling me stubborn was supposed to be a compliment?’
‘You’re saying you aren’t?’
‘I prefer to call it determination.’
‘Admit when you’re wrong a little more often, it could be called determination,’ she allowed, adding an innocent flutter of her lashes when he glanced at her.
‘I can admit when I’m wrong.’
‘Can you do it out loud?’
When he took a long breath, Jo bit her lip to stifle a chuckle. While the back-and-forth between them hadn’t changed all that much, it was less sharp than it had been before. Both of them putting more effort into it helped, as did Daniel’s newfound ability to know when she was teasing him instead of taunting him. But there were times she still wondered how long it could last.
‘Your turn,’ she prompted. It was met with a long enough moment of consideration to merit a sigh. ‘Can’t think of a word that isn’t an insult, can you?’
‘I can think of several words that aren’t insults after the last few days.’ A smile hovered at the corners of his mouth. ‘Move closer and I’ll whisper them to you.’
‘Do I have to remind you why we’re in a public place?’ She waved an encouraging hand between them. ‘Work with me here.’
If all it took to remove any remaining doubts from her mind were the constant reminders of why they were trying to communicate better, they’d have been eating in. Knowing what she did of his wicked streak, quite possibly off each other’s bodies. But since the night they had their elevator argument, Jo had been ignoring the small voice inside her head: the one that still thought where they were headed was a huge mistake. When he wasn’t there it was louder. Then she would lie in the darkness, hear him on the other side of the wall, and the only thing she could think about when she saw him again was making him feel better. Granted, it made her feel better too, but it still hadn’t silenced the voice.
‘Fearless.’
She blinked. ‘What?’
‘You wanted a word I’d use to describe you.’ Taking their order with a nod of thanks, he turned towards the door. ‘There you go.’
‘That’s how you see me?’
‘What’s wrong with it?’
Apart from the fact he couldn’t be more wrong? ‘It’s a compliment,’ she replied.
‘Underestimating me again?’ Holding the door open, Daniel lowered his voice as she walked past him. ‘Being bad isn’t the only thing I’m good at.’
Jo ignored the hum of delight whispering over her body when she thought about how very good he was at being bad. She could hold a conversation with him without thinking about sex every five minutes. She darn well could!
‘No one’s fearless,’ she announced. ‘Everyone’s afraid of something; by overcoming it they earn the word brave.’
He adjusted his longer stride to hers when they hit the sidewalk. ‘What are you afraid of?’
‘Oh, no,’ she laughed. ‘I’m not falling for that one. I say spiders, you’ll start a collection.’
‘Might consider one of those big hairy guys you keep in a glass case. I heard they’re a low-maintenance pet.’ He smiled when she shuddered.
‘One word wasn’t enough to begin with. If I had two I’d have said fearless and wary.’
‘Isn’t that an oxymoron?’
‘You think I don’t know what that means.’
‘Word-of-the-day calendars can be very educational.’
‘I have another one: manicured and mischievous.’
‘Careful, Danny.’ She smiled. ‘It’s starting to sound like you’ve put some thought into this before today.’
‘Tornado in high heels, that’s another one …’
Despite the fact she liked everything he’d come up with so far, Jo tutted. ‘Little too far over the word-count now.’
‘Your turn again. And after you laid stubborn on me, try harder. I might bruise easier than you think.’
When they stopped at a crossing she took her time picking another word. Had to be careful his ego didn’t engulf Texas and try to take over the world, didn’t she? Mentally crossing out everything pre-communicate-better-days too—which might take a while—she gently swayed the skirt that lent itself to the motion. Theme of the day was vintage and the black and white striped fifties dress was the most ‘her’ she had felt since she started the challenge. It was a much-needed reminder of what her life had been like before everything changed so fast it felt as if her feet had barely touched the ground.
‘Can’t stop doing that, can you?’ he asked.
‘Doing what?’
‘The thing you’re doing with your skirt.’
Rocking her hips a little more, she brightened.
‘Is it bothering you?’
‘No. Just wondered if you knew you were doing it.’
She shrugged. ‘It’s a fun dress.’
‘And now I’m wondering if you still leave out cookies and a glass of milk for the jolly fat guy in red.’
Despite the obvious amusement in his eyes, Jo felt the need to defend what for her was an ethos for life. ‘If you don’t make time for fun every now and again the big, bad things can be harder to take.’
‘Are you saying I don’t know h
ow to have fun?’
From the well of memories she had chosen to forget she sought one that associated Daniel with the kind of fun things she attached to his three brothers. She had dozens of memories of them tossing a football and joshing around but Daniel, not so much. What did he do with his time apart from work, a daily run and utilizing every tool in the seduction toolbox to turn her into a boneless heap of wanton woman?
‘Define your idea of “fun” for me,’ she demanded as they entered Washington Square Park and she looked up at the iconic arch modelled after the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
If he asked she would tell him eating lunch close to its shadow was one of her favorite fun things to do, especially on a day like the one they were experiencing. Spiffed up to its former glory, with a backdrop of clear blue sky. She’d stare up at it and imagine she was sitting by the original.
She made the same vow every time she saw it: Soon.
Since she was moving up the magazine’s shortlist each year, she felt closer than ever to fulfilling the promise.
When she looked at Daniel and found innuendo glinting in his eyes, she felt the usual response skim through her veins and tighten her abdomen. But that wasn’t what she’d meant. ‘I mean outside of adult fun. What do you do to relax when you’re not working?’
‘Run, train, gym time; long hours dedicated to maintaining the level of fitness you finally got round to noticing …’
He cut loose his infamous smile, on her.
Wow. That thing really did pack a punch up close.
She had forgotten that. But since the memory of the last time he unleashed it on her was buried so deep there must have been a very good reason for forgetting it, Jo decided not to go digging. ‘Toss a football in the park, play practical jokes on the guys in your unit or meet up with friends for a beer …’ She lifted her brows. ‘When’s the last time you did anything like that?’
‘We tossed a football in camp when I was overseas. Not much else to do when we weren’t being shot at.’
She didn’t get how he could be so blasé about his time there when it was obvious whatever happened still tortured him. The subject of his nightmares was one they’d avoided but maybe … in the bright light of day … while they were getting along better …
