His shock vibrated through her, but she did it again, staring into his eyes as she balanced herself on tiptoe by holding onto his arms and kissed him.
He held himself rigid, unmoving, but beneath her fingers she felt the strength of him, and then she felt him tremble.
Tremble.
More. She had to have more, so she touched her tongue to the corner of his mouth, tasting him. “Mmm,” she murmured, and finally, finally, shattered his rigid control. With a rough sound, he hauled her up against him and kissed her, ohmigod kissed her, head bent, mouth fused to hers, tongue sweeping inside her mouth to claim hers…
This was what she’d needed so badly tonight, and all those other nights. If she’d only known what she was missing…But no, that wasn’t right. It was because it was Danny that she felt such a delicious oblivion. Clearly he knew what he was doing. She could lose herself, she could feel it, and he’d keep her safe. She wouldn’t have to think.
Just feel.
Thank God, she thought, and wrapped herself around him, nearly crying in relief, but then she was blinking in surprise because he’d pulled away, supporting her until she nodded, and then dropping his hands from her as if burned, stepping back, averting his face so that she couldn’t see into his eyes.
“Danny?”
He was breathing hard, looking extremely unlike his usual laid-back, easygoing self. “I’m not doing this,” he grounded out. “Not like this. Not in front of a damn restaurant, with you so drunk you can’t stand up straight.”
“I’m not drunk.”
“Plenty wasted, though.”
She staggered back a step and tried to figure out how she’d gone from feeling as if she might explode into orgasm from just a kiss, to wanting to crawl into a hole and die.
Without another word he led her to his truck, waited for her to get in and buckle up, and then came around and got in behind the wheel. The both of them dripping everywhere, he shoved the truck into gear and pulled out into the street.
The night was dark, the highway had no lights. The cab of his truck had a slight glow from the instruments on the dash, but she didn’t need to see him to feel the tension. Hers, certainly. And also his. He was mad, furious even, and yet for that one glorious moment when he’d held her close, she knew he’d been aroused. Even the thought sent a shiver of thrill through her. She’d made him hard. “Why did you come for me?” she whispered.
An oncoming car slashed light over his tense features as he turned to her. “Because you called.”
“But you’re mad at me.”
“One thing has nothing to do with the other.”
Her head was beginning to spin, and with a sound of distress, she put her hand to it.
He swore, then jerked the truck to the side of the road and braked hard.
“I’m not going to get sick in your truck,” she said. “I’m not that drunk. A pity, really, because believe me, the night sucked.”
“I’m not worried about you getting sick. You know how to hold your alcohol. Which isn’t a compliment, by the way.” A raindrop slid down his jaw, plopped onto his chest. His shirt was plastered to his torso. “I can be pissed as hell at you, Deem, and still be there when you need me. I wish you’d get that through your thick skull.”
She couldn’t breathe. She could only draw air into her lungs. “That’s a foolish thing to tell me. It gives me the upper hand.”
His eyes were dark, and extremely solemn as he shook his head. “Actually, what I was hoping it would give you is a sense of…I don’t know. Security.”
Security. Her greatest fantasy, and because it had continually eluded her, also her greatest fear. That he’d so cavalierly throw it around confused her.
And hurt. “You know what? I gotta go.” She fumbled for the door handle, but Danny beat her to it, locking it, waiting until she turned to glare at him.
“Go ahead and be pissed,” he said. “That’ll make us a fine pair.”
“Danny-”
“I’m taking you home,” he grated out. “All the way home.”
“No.” She grappled with the lock, but became both horrified and humiliated to find her hands shaking. Shaking. “Oh, God.” She set her forehead to the glass. “I’m sorry. So sorry. I shouldn’t have let you come for me. Not you.”
Gripping her shoulders, he pulled her around to look at him, his usually soft, melting eyes furious. “Why, because I hate knowing you’re out there every night, all night? Because I hate knowing that one day a phone call in the middle of the night won’t be necessary because you won’t be able to make a phone call?”
Backing away as far as she could, until the door handle dug into her back, she crossed her arms over her chest and hugged herself. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry you had to come out here tonight. I’m sorry I’ve made you mad.” She swallowed, blinked back tears. “I’m sorry I kissed you. I don’t know why I did that, I never do that.”
He frowned. “What does that mean?”
“I don’t like to kiss.”
He looked floored. “What?”
“Nothing. I don’t want to talk about it.” She turned away. “And anyway, this is all your own fault.”
“How the hell do you figure that?”
She looked out the window, staring blindly into the night and uttered the truth for once. “Because you’ve never made a move on me,” she whispered.
He pulled back as if she’d slapped him. She felt his gaze boring into her but she had exhausted herself with that last outburst and didn’t look at him, instead pressed her hot forehead to the cool glass.
The beat of silence stretched out, and in it she wanted to die. Thankfully, without another word, Danny shoved the truck into gear and steered back onto the highway and drove her home.
Which was good, really, because she didn’t want to hear him apologize for not wanting her. She’d had enough humiliation for one night.
When he finally pulled into her driveway, she fumbled with the door, unable to get out quickly enough.
“Dimi-”
“Thank you,” she muttered, and ran out of his truck and into her place before he could do anything stupid. Before she could do anything stupid.
Like beg him to come in.
The San Francisco Regatta Hotel was big and far fancier than Mel would have picked on her own, but the Huttons had insisted that she and Bo join them-so they all climbed into the Huttons’ limo waiting at the airport, and drove to the hotel.
Mel was quite certain the Huttons’s credit card hadn’t groaned and nearly keeled over on the spot at the front desk from the night’s rate. Still muttering about it, she entered her posh, elegant hotel room and stood there feeling a bit like a bull in a china shop. Tossing her duffel bag onto the fancy, silky, perfectly made bed, she took a deep, calming breath.
Which backed up into her throat when she realized two things at once. One, her hotel door hadn’t shut behind her. And two, that was because Bo stood in the opened doorway, watching her.
Damn it, she was still a little shaky from the adrenaline rush of the rough flight. She couldn’t deal with him now, standing there looking disheveled and sexy.
“That was some flying,” he said.
She turned away and told herself that her stomach jangled because she was still shaken. “Yeah, well, that’s what you get for getting on a flight you hadn’t planned on.”
“Can’t plan out your whole life, you know.”
Maybe not, but she’d tried. Planning meant a lot to her. It gave her a sense of routine, and routine was what had gotten her through some incredibly tough times.
He stepped closer. “Sometimes you’ve just got to wing it.”
Such as having sex with him, she supposed. Wild, erotic, earthy, glorious sex during which she knew she’d come with such ease it still blew her mind.
Not fair that he made her yearn and burn, and not just for another orgasm. He made her yearn and burn to be what she’d always secretly wished that she could be: spontaneous, easygoing, and…dare she even think it?…sexy.