Page 71 of Unbelonging
He returned a minute later and strode to the fireplace. Crouching down with his back to me, he opened the glass doors, struck a match, and tossed it onto a huge stack of wood and kindling, obviously staged for quick ignition.
"Wow, real wood," I said, thinking of the gas logs I'd seen in most of the homes I'd stayed in. "I haven't seen that in a while."
Slowly, he turned toward me. He cocked a single eyebrow.
"I meant, uh, with the fireplace." But my eyes had a mind of their own and flicked briefly to his groin area.
"Yeah?" he said, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
If I were that other girl, I'd make some remark about wanting to seehiswood.
On second thought – I shook my head. That would be the stupidest thing on Earth to say, unless I was starring in a bad porn movie. Next thing, I'd be asking him to deliver my pizzawithsausage.
Oh crap, he'd been asking me a question. What was it?
I blew out a breath. "Um, excuse me?"
Something like amusement danced in his eyes, and I felt a warmth in my face that had nothing to do with the fire, or the vodka for that matter.
Slowly, like a panther stalking his prey, he approached the sofa. "Has anyone told you you're beautiful when you blush?"
"I don't blush," I said.
"Is that so?"
"Well, I don't normally blush," I said.
But the truth was, being around Lawton made me do a lot of things I didn't normally do. If I had my way, that list would be a lot longer before the night was through. "What I need to do now," I said, "is makeyoublush."
He laughed. "You can try."
I reached for his shirt, grabbing a handful of fabric and tugging him toward me. Our lips met in a ragged kiss, and together, we tumbled back onto the large sofa.
We lay side-by-side with our limbs intertwined and our hands on the move. I ran mine over his back, marveling at the coiled mass of muscle that danced beneath my fingertips.
He ran his hands over my shoulders and down to my waist. Through the fabric of my shirt, I felt the strength of his body and the heat of his touch.
Soon, his hands roamed lower, dipping to the seat of my jeans. His fingers skimmed across my ass, still covered in denim. Even so, my pulse jumped, and my breath hitched.
I heard his voice in my ear. "This isn't what I expected."
"Me neither," I said, letting my own hands drift lower. They skimmed past his trim waist and down to his backside. I tried to go slow, but my body wouldn't listen. My fingers trembled, and my hips were starting to move like they had a mind of their own.
Lawton slid his hands upward, past the waist of my jeans, and then edged lower again, slipping his hands under my panties. Skin on skin. My breath was ragged with excitement, and he had barely touched me. He cupped a cheek in each hand and pulled me closer, saying, "I love the way you feel."
Two could play at this game. I slipped my hands into the back of his running pants, feeling his skin against my palms. His ass was rock-hard and smooth under my fingertips.
This felt like a dream, but it was really happening. And it was happening withhim, the guy who'd been starring in my fantasies for days, weeks even. Tonight, he was truly mine, if only for a little while.
I wanted all of him, and I didn't want to wait. Deliberately, I scooted backward and sat up. Meeting his gaze, I gripped the hem of my T-shirt. Slowly, savoring the lust in his eyes, I lifted my shirt upward, watching him as he watched me. And then, with one desperate motion, I yanked the shirt over my head and tossed it on the floor.
Leaning forward, I shimmied out of my jeans, watching as his lips parted and his eyes smoldered.
I smiled. "Now you."
Grinning, he sat back and pulled his T-shirt up over his head. My breath caught as I drank in the sight of those flat, muscular abs, that tattooed torso, his muscular chest, that gorgeous face I'd come to love so well.
I'd never seen anything so magnificent in my whole life as Lawton Rastor half-naked in the firelight. I ran my hands lightly down the front of him, starting at his perfect pecs and working my way down to the waistband of his running pants.
