She tasted exactly as he remembered. Delicious. Warm, sweet and seductive. Like melted chocolate. And felt exactly the same in his arms. Soft and curvy and feminine. A perfect fit. The erotic sensation of her tongue rubbing against his drove everything from his mind except for one single word that pounded through him with growing urgency.
More.
But before he could act upon it, she shifted gears again by breaking off their kiss. Splaying her hands against his chest, right over the spot where his heart was frantically trying to play catch-up, she leaned back in the circle of his arms. He noted with some satisfaction that her breathing sounded as labored as his. And she looked as bamboozled as he felt.
Surely some words were called for, but with his liquefied brain still engulfed in a steamy fog of lust, speech was beyond him.
Her palms glided over his chest, shooting another arrow of fiery want directly downward. His hands, which rested on her hips and kept her firmly anchored against him, involuntarily tightened.
“Figured as much,” she said in a voice that sounded like rough velvet.
There was no doubt what she meant-that the heat they’d just generated came as no surprise to her-but damn, he was impressed she could form a coherent sentence. He wasn’t there yet, so he just nodded. At least he thought he nodded. He meant to.
“I was afraid you might have already left. I’m glad you were still here.”
He swallowed twice and managed to find his voice. “Yeah. Me, too.” Damn glad.
But then his gaze searched her face, confirming what he’d thought he’d seen before she’d deep-fried all his synapses. His gut clenched at the sight of her red-rimmed, slightly swollen eyes and coherency returned with a thump. “You’ve been crying.”
“How do you know that?”
He lifted one hand and gently brushed a fingertip under her eye. “Through a wondrous process called ‘sight.’” And given the way she’d greeted him, there was no doubt in his mind that whatever was wrong had to do with her boyfriend. “What happened?”
She gently pushed against his chest and he let her go, watching in silence while she put several feet between them and drew a deep breath. Then she offered him a half smile that didn’t touch her eyes. “You told me that if things didn’t work out with Greg, I should give you a call. Since I was in the neighborhood, I thought I’d stop by instead.”
Just as he’d thought. A breakup with the boyfriend. While he couldn’t deny part of him was glad, he hated to see the evidence that she’d cried. And even as his heart pounded with anticipation, his common sense issued a stern warning to proceed with caution. Clearly she’d had a fight with what’s-his-name. While Adam was glad she’d turned to him and he was happy to offer his friendship, he didn’t relish getting caught in the crossfire and left bleeding should she and the boyfriend make up.
After firmly telling his heart-and his fully aroused hormones-to chill out, he reached out and took her hand then led her toward the corner waiting area where a sofa, two comfy chairs and a coffee table were located. “Let’s sit down for a minute.” After she’d settled herself on the sofa, he pulled up one of the chairs to sit facing her. “Okay, tell me what happened.”
She stared at her hands, which plucked at the handle of her purse. “Do you know the three words you most don’t want to hear while you’re making love?” When he shook his head, she looked up and said, “Honey, I’m home.”
A spurt of white-hot fury roared through Adam. The damn bastard had cheated on her. Not only did that infuriate him, but he could only shake his head in stunned disbelief. How could any guy possibly be so stupid? To have a woman like Mallory then lose her-
Hey, nine years ago you were that stupid guy, his inner voice reminded him.
Well, yeah, he’d been stupid-but out of fear. He sure as hell hadn’t cheated on her. How could any guy who had Mallory in his bed want anyone else?
Reaching out, he clasped both her hands and squeezed. “I’m sorry something so hurtful happened to you, sweetheart.”
“Thanks.” She blew out slow breath. “It was a pretty shocking-and unappealing-sight, let me tell you. And the woman he was with…” She made an exclamation of disgust. “Give me a break. She’s a twenty-year-old lawyer wannabe with badly bleached hair and a boob job that looks as if she used Velcro to stick two cantaloupes to her chest. They’re in luuuuuv.” Her upper lip curled à la Elvis Presley. “You might want to move back. I think I’m gonna hack up a hair ball.”
He brushed the pads of his thumbs over the soft backs of her hands. “I’ll take my chances.”
A sound that resembled a growl rumbled in her throat and she abruptly stood. Her hands slid from his and she paced in front of him. “I won’t bore you with the details, but suffice it to say things weren’t going all that well between me and Greg for the last few months. I blamed most of it on our hectic schedules, although I was coming to realize that we didn’t have as much in common as I’d originally thought. And that those differences were really…irritating. Of course, I wasn’t aware that there were three of us in the equation. I’m certainly glad I found out now as opposed to later.”
“Did you…do you love him?”
She halted and turned to face him. “I wasn’t sure exactly what my feelings were before, but now I am, and the answer is a definite no. But I cared for him. Enough to give the relationship some more time and effort. Still, there was always something lacking between us-especially recently. Of course, any caring I may have had is now well and truly extinguished. I just wish I didn’t have the visual in my head of him and Melon Boobs together.”
She resumed her pacing and he sat quietly, letting her gather her thoughts. Finally she continued, “It’s not that I’m heartbroken. Far from it. I’m actually relieved. But damn it, I’m angry. At him for being such a lying cheat, but mostly at myself for hanging in there way too long. For believing he was the sort of stable, steady, dependable guy I was looking for. For being so stupid.”
He snagged her hand as she walked by him, then rose to stand in front of her, biting down his own anger at the bastard who had made her feel this way. After lightly clasping her by the shoulders, he looked directly into her eyes and said, “You are not stupid, Mallory. You did nothing wrong.”
“I was too trusting.”
“You were lied to. That isn’t in any way a reflection on your character. The fact that you were willing to go the extra mile for a relationship shows the sort of person you are. You’re loyal. You have integrity. And you’re not a quitter.”
Her chin quivered and she gave him a shaky smile. “You’re making me feel much better.”
“I’m glad. But you should feel good. Even though the circumstances were crappy, look at it this way-you were just freed from a relationship that, based on the facts that you feel relieved and didn’t love him, you obviously no longer wanted to be involved in anyway.”
“You’re right. I know. It’s just that it’s so discouraging to be tossed over for someone who looks as if she just breezed into town between Playboy centerfold modeling assignments.”
“There’s absolutely no reason for you to be discouraged. Clearly the guy is an ass. And supremely foolish. And unbelievably blind.”
Unmistakable gratitude flickered in her eyes. “Well, thanks. I appreciate the outrage on my behalf. But jeez, the guy is a thirty-four-year-old Ivy League graduate. You’d think he’d at least have the sense, the taste to dump me for someone who’s old enough to buy her own beer and who has more going for her than an enormous pair of fake knockers.” She heaved a sigh. “But maybe she’s very nice.”
He tucked a stray silky dark curl behind her ear. “Not as nice as you.”