Page 41 of Gift-Wrapped in a Kilt

She would be. This instant.

"We do it my way," she said, rocking back until his shaft grazed her backside, "or not at all."

The infuriating man laughed and slapped her erse. "Not how it works, babe. If you wanted a submissive man, you shouldn't have hooked up with me."

She opened her mouth to snap a scathing retort but never got the chance.

He flipped her over, and she fell to the mattress with awhumpand a bounce. "I get it. You don't want to look at me while we make love, so you can pretend it's nothing but hot sex. I'm not letting you do that."

"You are the most domineering, stubborn, impossible —"

He flopped onto the bed beside her and rolled her toward him until they lay face to face on their sides. One thickly corded arm imprisoned her like an iron bar around her waist. Their position forced her to gaze straight into his simmering, honey-brown eyes, and the heat of him penetrated her skin to warm her on the inside too. His breaths tickled her face, his erection prodded her hip.

"You'll never convince me," he said, his voice soft and tender, "that a sex-only encounter, with no intimacy, will satisfy you. I know my girl, and she's got to have a deeper connection."

Fear. It iced through her, spreading at lightning speed, freezing her muscles so she couldn't move or speak. He was right, and they both knew it. But she could not give in to what the foolish part of her wanted even after the things he'd done and said to her.

She couldn't summon the will to stop him.

He swept his hand down over her bottom and onto her thigh, drawing her leg over his hip.

Cool air teased her swollen, drenched flesh.

Jamie swallowed against a lump in her throat.

With his hand lingering on her thigh, Gavin studied her face. His brows cinched into a tight rivet over his nose. "You're afraid of feeling close to me, aren't you?"

She nodded once.

"Christ." He pulled his hand away from her leg to cup her face. "Am I pushing you to do something you don't really want? I thought you were just being pigheaded." He brushed his fingertips over her cheek. "But if I'm making you feel pressured…"

The anguish in his voice and on his face stabbed a pang through her chest. He truly worried he'd coerced her into this. Maybe she had wanted to take control of the situation, and maybe she had valid reasons for it, but if he'd pressured her she would've walked out the door long before he tossed her onto the bed.

She'd made him feel he'd done something wrong, that she didn't want this.

"No, Gavin," she said, "you have never pressured me to do anything. I have been pigheaded because of what's gone on between us. I always want you. I wish I could keep a distance between us, but it's not possible. This one time, we could do it your way."

"Are you sure?"

"I am." She couldn't tear her focus away from his earnest gaze and the pain revealed in his eyes. Yes, this one time…

She hooked her leg around his ass.

He pushed inside her, slowly, delicately, consuming her inch by inch, every sensation heightened by the deliberateness of his movements and the intensity of the emotions they'd shared seconds ago. They made love at a languid pace, reveling in the closeness and mounting pleasure that bonded them in every moment, in every way. She entwined her arms around his neck, wrists crossed behind his head, her fingers in his hair, and she let the joy of coupling with him sweep away everything else. For now, for this moment, nothing else mattered.

They came together, in perfect sync, their cries and moans echoing through the room. It wasn't the most intense orgasm she'd ever had, but it meant so much more than all the others.

Whatever problems they had, whether they wound up together or apart, she knew one thing with complete certainty.

Gavin Douglas loved her.

Chapter Sixteen

Gavin claimed Jamie's hand, despite the annoyed slant of her lips when he did it, and led her out of the bedroom. She'd slipped into her raincoat again and tugged her high heels on. Her hair was mussed in that post-coital way he loved. He guided her through the living room and out the front door, ignoring Iain's raised eyebrows as they passed by the Scot reclining on the sofa. Gavin eased the door shut. When Jamie moved to walk away, he laid a hand on her arm to stay her.

She aimed a quizzical look at him.

He cradled her face in both hands and kissed her sweetly. Not his forte, but for this woman, he would do anything. Hecoulddo anything. She imbued him with a certainty no possibility was out of bounds as long as they were together.

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