Page 34 of Here Be Dragons
And that was it for him too. He couldn't help himself, and that tension in his muscles sprang as he leaned over and kissed her. Shane could tell he had startled her and at first, Ava didn't respond. But then her lips softened as she kissed him back and her fingers threaded through his sweaty hair.
This was what he wanted. This is what he had missed for the past month without Ava near him. He had no idea how he ever thought he could've talked himself out of wanting to be with this woman. There were times when he had tried, times when he hoped he would forget her and move on. But right now, he couldn't think of one reason to keep pushing her out of his life.
He pulled away slightly and looked at her, really looked at her, hoping she would give him a sign of how she felt. He could see the lines around her eyes soften, her red lips pull up into a small smile.
"I missed that," he whispered to her.
"Me too."
He leaned back and caught her hand as it slipped from his hair, pushing her palm against his bare chest so she could feel his heartbeat and know the effect she was having on him. And sure, he also did it to show off just how hard his muscles were. He didn't mind doing what he had to to make an impression on Ava. She responded, dragging her fingernails against his skin ever so gently but enough to make him wish he could have his way with her on the coach's desk right now.
Instead, she gave him a small smile and pulled her hand away.
"So is this the kind of thing you do every time an attorney makes you sign a contract?"
He laughed. "No. Usually after I sign a contract, I give my lawyer a new watch."
Ava shrugged. "I wouldn't mind a new watch."
"I can give you more than a new watch," he replied. "Just tell me what you want."
She chuckled and grabbed the papers off the desk to put them in her bag, and it made him snap back to the reality of the whole situation. Ava was in front of him. Somehow, Ava Foster had made her way back into his life and he couldn't let this opportunity go. Not again.
"Ava, I'm serious."
She stopped and her eyes snapped up to his, scanning his face as if she was trying to find some crack or some weakness or something that told her that Shane wasn't being completely truthful. She wasn't going to find any of that.
"I can't walk out another door and leave you behind again," he told her. "I know you're a smart lawyer and you're good at negotiating. I've seen you do it before. So negotiate with me."
"Negotiate with you?"
"Tell me what you want so whatever it is between us can work, and I'll do everything I can to make it happen."
Ava leaned forward and looked in his eyes. "That's not really negotiating then, is it?"
"You can call it whatever you want," he said. "I just want to call you mine. That's all I'm asking for. So tell me your terms so I can make that happen."
She leaned forward and kissed him. It wasn't as desperate as his kiss. It was soft and tender but still seemed to be claiming him for herself. Then she pulled away from him and put on that professional face of hers that Shane recognized as the one she used whenever she was about to go into battle. Oh yeah, she was going to get her win and this would probably be the first time that Shane didn't mind losing.
Ava stood up and straightened out her skirt before leaning over to grab her bag, blatantly flashing that delicious cleavage of hers. Damn, that woman knew exactly what she was doing to him, and she knew he liked it.
"Perhaps we can discuss the details over dinner tonight?" she asked.
"Let's start with that then."
He stood up, his body towering over hers with his skates on, but she wasn't intimidated. Instead, she reached forward, her fingers brushing up against his abs before her hand curled around the top of his hockey pants. He had to close his eyes and breathe deeply to calm his body down. He could not walk back into the locker room looking like the owners' lawyer had wound him up.
"I also wasn't planning on spending the night in town," she said quietly. "Perhaps you could recommend a place for me to stay."
He took a step forward, his body teasingly close to hers without getting too close. "Perhaps we could just skip dinner and go straight to my place?"
She pulled her hand away from him. "See? Negotiating."
"I walked right into that, didn't I?"
"Yep." She smiled up at him, really smiled at him. "Now go get ready so we can get the hell out of here."
"Sure thing."
