about-face? Better to switch tactics and settle than go into negotiations with a weak case. And it seemed this captivating woman weakened his body, his mind and his resolve.
He kept his hands and his stare on her, sliding his grip from her swaying hips to her slim waist as they moved in unison to the thumping beat. Her hands reached for his forearms, fingertips just shy of gripping. She closed her eyes, tilted her head back and lost herself to the music, as completely and perfectly as she lost herself to her pleasure.
His hands snaked to the small of her back and he hauled her tight up against him, the small gasp she made and the excitement in the eyes she snapped open spurring him on. His erection pressed into her soft belly. She knew the effect she had on him, one he hadn’t been able to conceal since day one.
She gripped his shoulders, her bottom lip trapped between her teeth as she swayed against him, all sensual movements and lust-drunk eyes. They danced for half a track, heated stares locked, bodies bumping and hands lingering like the most exquisite form of tactile torture.
Fuck this. Fuck the club. If he didn’t get inside her soon, he’d need another cold shower. And he was done with pale imitation. He held the real thing here in his arms. If she’d been a property acquisition, he’d have already closed the deal.
Ash bent close, his lips caressing her delicate ear. The cascade of fine tremors down her neck slammed steel through his spine. But before he could utter one word of his argument, she turned her head so her lips grazed his.
Her stare lifted to his and then dipped back to his mouth.
His fingertips pressed into her waist. ‘You suggested we work this out. We’ll do it in my bed.’
She leaned back, eyebrows lifted.
‘We will?’
He shrugged. ‘Or yours, or the couch or wherever. As long as it involves me inside you.’ He lifted a tendril of hair from her neck and wrapped it around his index finger.
‘I thought you only did one night?’
He could no more explain his about-turn than he could walk away. It was an astounding turn of events for a man used to making verbal arguments and teasing out favourable deals for a living.
He gripped her bare shoulder, his fingers gliding over her shoulder blade.
‘I’m making an exception. And there’s something of an experience gap to rectify, so I’m told.’ His thumb caressed the dip above her collarbone, setting off more tiny shivers.
She pursed her lips, as if giving the matter some serious thought. Fuck, if he’d had any issue with his ego he’d be snivelling at her pretty feet by now. But he hadn’t become one of New York’s top attorneys by misjudging the opposition’s intentions. She wanted this as badly as he did. He hadn’t changed his stance on relationships, but they could still have a good time.
‘Tell me what I need to hear,’ he whispered.
‘Just sex.’ She wavered, her lip trapped under her teeth for a moment.
He nodded, her confirmation music to his ears. ‘I agree.’ He pressed his thumb to her bottom lip, tugging it free from her bite. The only thought in his mind—how quickly he could replace her teeth with his—drowned out all else.
Essie stepped closer until the length of her body pressed to his, her nipples grazing his chest, the heat between her legs scorching his thigh.
He tilted her chin up, his eyes dancing with hers. ‘I’m not the guy for you if it’s a relationship you’re after.’ He couldn’t reiterate that enough, especially considering her past and her profession. Now more than ever he wasn’t relationship material.
She dipped her chin, capturing his thumb with her pouty lips and sucking on the pad. She tongued his digit and then released him with a pop.
‘I’m not interested in a relationship. And if I were, you’d be the last man I’d consider.’
Ash bit back a groan and rubbed his erection into the soft mound of her belly.
‘So we agree. You chalk up a few more...notches on your casual sex bedpost. We fuck this out of our systems. Then we walk away.’
She lifted onto her tiptoes and he bent lower to meet her halfway. Her lips feathered his neck as she whispered, ‘We keep it fun—when the fun stops, we stop.’
She peeled back, challenge blazing in her mesmeric stare.
‘I can do fun.’ Only this time he’d take his time, savour every sexy inch of her, glut himself until he was spent and sated and his head straightened out.
A single nod. ‘What about the tour of the club?’
‘I’ve seen enough.’ His fingers curled over her hips, the silky fabric of her dress bunching in his grip. The way his body coiled to the point of bursting, he could tear the damn dress in two.
He’d never brokered a more fulfilling merger and, as with the best deals, everyone would get what they wanted. He rolled his shoulders and followed her from the dance floor.
As if it had been painted in luminous orange paint across the ground, he was about to cross a line he’d long ago vowed out of bounds. But damn if he didn’t want to throw on a pair of sneakers and sprint over, hell for leather.
ESSIE PAUSED AT the foot of the stairs leading to the VIP booths, dragging Ash to an abrupt halt. His brow dipped and he faced her, clasping both her hands between them.
‘Second thoughts?’ He cupped her cheek, pushing back wild wisps of hair from her hot face.
It’s just sex. Fun.
She fought the wave of trembles that doused her from head to toe and shook her head, and then tilted it in the direction of the bouncer guarding the upper balcony.
‘Lucas said we had a VIP booth.’ She caught her lip between her teeth. Her breath stalled as she waited for Ash to get on the same page. Every inch of her craved him. Slickness coated her inner thighs, her core clenched in anticipation and her nipples chafed against her dress with every rapid breath she took. She’d never make it back to the hotel before flinging herself on him and demanding what he’d held out on for so long.
‘I’ve never experienced sex in a public place... That could be...fun.’ She tilted her head, her fluttering heart knocking against her ribs. They’d either consummate this new agreement in the back of the limo Ash had hired to drive them to and from the club tonight, or they’d do it here, in the privacy of the VIP area of this chic, sophisticated club. She held her breath. When had she become such a risk-taking exhibitionist? What was he doing to her, this sexy but closed-off man, who at first glance seemed to have it all?
Ash’s eyes scorched her. ‘You want me to fuck you here? Upstairs?’
She nibbled the inside of her cheek, her flush hopefully hidden by the alternating dim and flash of neon lights. He’d suggested she broaden her horizons, something that worked for her out-of-control libido. What better
