Page 36 of Covert Temptation

But it was the way he was looking at her, like he was stripping back her layers, even ones she didn’t even know she had.

“We can go outside,” he said finally.

She looked out the window at the snow-covered fields and the bare trees standing guard over the cold, isolated landscape.

Then she looked at Dante. Pure sexy sin poured into a pair of worn denim and a shirt that looked like it had been washed to softness. Beneath that, she knew firsthand how every inch of his skin felt…and how thoroughly he could use her.

“I’ll pass on that offer.” She stood up, letting the blanket slide off her body, and came face-to-face with him. The man’s size alone would scare the hell out of any enemy. Though he was only here because he thoughtshewas the enemy.

Their gazes locked for a pulsing moment. Something shifted in the depths of his dark eyes, but before she could spot the regret she was bound to find in his gaze, she turned her head sharply and skirted past him.

“I’m going to shower,” she murmured, counting the steps to her bathroom escape.

As she walked away, the chill from outside seemed to follow her.

She’d had Dante—his body, his mouth, his unbroken, intense attention.

And yet the parts of him she wanted most—his trust, his warmth, hiscare—were still locked behind some steel wall she couldn’t scale.

She was so alone.

More than before…because now she knew how it felt to fly free in his arms.

SEVEN

The effects of Dante’s cold shower wore off the instant Kennedy pranced past him, all whispers and curves and the sweet pull of her body he wanted so damn bad.

He watched her disappear down the hallway and into her bedroom before running his hand over his face. When he pulled his hand away, he wouldn’t have been surprised to find it covered in drool after seeing the slippery glide of those hips.

Hell. He never should have given in to his urges last night. He should have asked her to leave his bed.

But the way she’d felt against him, soft and pliant with liquid desire in her eyes, had been his downfall.

He couldn’t crack again. From now on, he was steel. Her teases and that feminine flick of her eyes couldn’t make his walls crumble.

Dropping his hand to his side didn’t dispel the reminder of her silky-smooth skin.

Or her soaking wet pussy.

“Fuck.” He stood there another heartbeat, grappling with the urge to follow Kennedy.

When he lifted his head, his stare rested on the desk. He peered harder at the laptop.

Son of a bitch.

In a few strides, he crossed the room and stared down at the device.

It sat at a slightly skewed angle. Moved an inch to the right.

Did he shut it down? Fuck, he didn’t. He’d been so distracted by Kennedy that he’d jumped up and practically run to theshower, hoping cold water would clear his head and drive away his lust.

At least he had closed out of the open windows, and the software possessed a level of safety that would keep prying eyes from entering the pathways he used.

But he was kicking the hell out of himself for being so lax. Letting down his guard at all—especially with a woman who wasn’t totally cleared of suspicion—was dangerous.

Dropping into the seat, he tapped the trackpad.

The screen blinked to life, revealing a sign-in page.

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