female flesh spilled out of her bra top, bells and beads twinkling beneath the lights even as she drew breath. Her skirt—twenty or so gauzy scarfs in saffron and gold—sat low on her hips, showcasing her tiny waist and a glorious expanse of flat belly and golden skin, not to mention the outline of a perfect pair of legs. What intrigued him most was the ruby stone where her navel should be. How the deuce did she keep it there? he wondered. Some pelvic muscular trick?
His body tightened and the familiar rush of adrenaline he experienced before a jump rushed through his veins. Back in Oz two hours and he’d found a living fantasy. It had been a long time. He’d been too busy expanding his latest project and chasing his hunger for extreme sports across the globe to indulge in female company.
He intended to rectify that. Tonight.
He lifted the glass—and her fingers—to his lips and searched her eyes for a response. Framed with heavy mascara and navy eyeliner, they looked huge, and an honest-to-goodness lust flickered in their midnight depths. Spanish eyes, he thought, and from the recesses of his memory flashed another pair of dark eyes. He willed it away, pressed his lips to the flute and swallowed.
He could taste her on the glass. Sweet with a hint of tart. But the champagne… He grimaced in distaste. ‘Champagne should be chilled.’ He pried her fingers from the glass, set iton a passing drinks waiter’s tray and swapped it for a fresh one. ‘Here you go.’
The tips of her fingers brushed his as he handed it to her. ‘Thank you.’
He reached for her free hand. ‘Come on, Little Egypt, let’s find somewhere quieter.’ He led her around the bar, past the crowd to a corner of the room near a large potted philodendron where the noise was less intrusive. He waited for her to pull her veil aside and take that first sip. But she lifted the glass inside the gauze and her face remained that tempting mystery.
He hissed out an almost silent breath of frustration through his teeth. ‘What’s your name?’
She sipped a moment, then said, ‘Shakira.’
The way she said it, smoky and seductive, added fuel to a fire that wasn’t going to be extinguished without some serious action.
‘Okay, Shakira…’ Taking a step closer, he slid his hand beneath her disguise and caught her chin between thumb and forefinger. Tilted her head so he could see what he could of her properly. He heard her little catch of breath and a smooth hand wrapped around his forearm.
‘No.’
Her dark eyes flashed, but he soothed her with a smile and shook his head. ‘It’s okay. We can play it your way.’ So long as we can play. She relaxed her hold and let his thumb trace the plump fullness of her lower lip. Once, twice. He paused as a thought occurred to him. ‘Unless the reason’s a jealous boyfriend somewhere that you’re cheating on?’
He felt her jaw stiffen beneath his fingers. As if she’d been burned before, he thought.
‘I don’t cheat.’
‘Good.’ He couldn’t begin to say how much that pleased him. ‘Neither do I.’
He manoeuvred her so that the foliage shielded them from the majority of party-goers, then leaned in to absorb more of that exotic perfume. Frangipani and summer. It wound through his senses like one of those chiffon scarves covering her legs.
How could such an alluring woman be unattached? Don’t ask questions, just enjoy the ride. He nuzzled her neck, then, encouraged by her response, nipped the fragrant flesh beneath her ear. The little bells on her costume tinkled against the front of his trousers, her beaded bra abraded his chest, her feminine curves felt soft and sensual against his hardening body.
He slid a finger just above the band of her skirt from one pelvic bone to the other over firm, flat belly. Her flesh rippled and quivered beneath his touch, sending molten heat fizzing to his groin.
Her eyes flared with the same hot need that surged through him. He was so turned on, if he wasn’t careful, he’d come right here in front of her, not to mention a roomful of people. He wanted that belly against his. Naked. He wanted her rippling and quivering around him as he pumped into her. And he wanted it now.
With difficulty he stepped back. He knew by her eyes and her elevated breathing that she too resented the loss of contact. That she was as eager—and willing—as he. He grabbed her hand. ‘Let’s get out of here.’
Kate heard a collective gasp somewhere behind her but she felt too weak, too unbalanced, to do anything but allow him to tug her along the hallway beyond the bar. They passed a waitress bearing a tray of tempting hors d’oeuvres, the spicy aroma wafting behind her.
She struggled to keep up with his long strides in her wedge-heeled sandals. Up a narrow flight of stairs. The knowledge of what she was about to do pumped through her veins. She’d never been so physically attracted to anyone on sight before and, yes, Sheri, you only lived once.
He stopped at the second door they came to, produced a key from his pocket. The instant he opened the door, he whirled her inside, plunging them into almost total darkness. She heard the lock click behind him. ‘Now where were we?’ he murmured.
Her eyes adjusted so that she could just make out the broad outline of his shoulders. ‘Right about here.’ She set her hands on his chest. Correction: Shakira set her hands on his chest because Kate Fielding would never do anything so audacious—rubbing her thumbs over the jersey and loving the hot, rock-solid masculine feel of him, leaning in to inhale his scent. She hadn’t been this up close to a man’s body in a long time.
Light from the street cast a faint silvery glow to the room as he reached for her veil. But it was still dark enough to maintain the integrity of her disguise as he unhooked the loop above her ear and pushed the fabric aside.
He was silent a moment as he traced the shape of her face, her nose, her eyebrows. Her lips. ‘You’re gorgeous,’ he said, and pulled her hard up against his body, trapping her hands. ‘Even in the dark, you’re one irresistible woman.’
The awe in the softly spoken words thrilled her, excited her. She could feel the hard ridge of masculine flesh against her belly, his heart pounding against her fingertips, her own heart thundering in her ears.
Strong hands gripped her upper arms as his mouth descended on hers. She heard a long low moan—hers?—then an answering rumble that vibrated against her palms. His lips were dry and firm and very, very skilled.
With no persuasion at all, her lips opened beneath his. His tongue invaded her mouth, plunging inside then withdrawing like a promise of anticipated delights. He tasted good. Coffee and peppermint and something richer, darker. Hotter. When he raised his head, she pulled it down again. She wasn’t nearly ready to let him go.
But he wasn’t going anywhere. His hands moved from her arms to her bare midriff, to her bra—and ended up with a palm-full of brass and tinkles. He inhaled a hiss of impatience and if she hadn’t been so breathless she might have laughed at the sheer incredulity of the whole situation.
Nothing was going to stop him. His fingers curled over the tops of her breasts and swept beneath, then down to find her nipples taut and strained against the fabric. He rolled them between his fingers, sending hot darts of need shooting through her body.
She moaned as an echoing tightness swept
