she launched herself at him. Her arms went around his waist. Her lips found his, and she kissed him recklessly.
He tasted like a dream come true. She had imagined this moment a million times. Now here she was. Nestled against his hard, warm chest.
Scant moments later, reality intruded with a sickening thud, dragging her back to earth.
Ethan had gone rigid. His lips didn’t move beneath hers. His arms were stiff at his sides.
She staggered backward, her face hot with mortification. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as if she could erase her incredible faux pas. “Oh, damn, I’m sorry. I misread the signals. My bad.”
She was babbling, but she had never been so embarrassed in her life. And so hurt.
Ethan had actually gone white beneath his year-round bronzed skin. “Aria?”
She held out a hand, palm up, staving off any unexpected movement on his part. “Just go. Please. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
The urge to flee was almost overpowering, but they were in her house. What if he tried to follow her? She couldn’t bear it. This was far more dreadful than any reaction she could have envisioned on his part.
Ethan wasn’t attracted to her. She had let a stupid infatuation blind her to that fact.
Tears welled in her eyes, tears she was determined not to shed. A woman could only endure so much humiliation.
He took a step forward. Only one. But she froze. “Go,” she begged. “Don’t make this any worse.”
His jaw was like iron. His eyes blazed with some strong emotion she couldn’t decipher. “Damn, Aria. Give me a minute to catch up. I’ve spent most of my adult life trying to stay away from you. You surprised me. That’s all. Lord, yes, I want you. I’ve wanted you for years. But I’ve always known that touching you would be a mistake.”
Her stomach knotted. “Why?”
He came to her and cupped her face in his hands. “Because once I start, I won’t want to stop. Is that clear enough for you?”
“Oh.”
He kissed her hard, his groan reverberating through both of them. “Are you sure about this?”
She was trembling so hard, she felt sick. “I want you to have sex with me, Ethan.”
There. She’d said it out loud. A confident woman who went after what she wanted.
He cursed beneath his breath, then took her mouth with drugging sensuality. His lips made love to hers. The man was one hell of a kisser. His thumbs caressed her jaw on both sides. Though he kept a relatively chaste distance between them, her body arched toward his, desperately trying to tip the scales in her favor.
When he finally gave in and pulled her close, his unmistakable erection pressed against her belly. He nipped her earlobe with sharp teeth, his breath hot on her neck. “You were a delectable teenager, but you turned into one hell of a woman.”
“You never said anything.”
“Because you weren’t for me.”
“And now?”
“You still aren’t, honey. But if this is really what you want tonight, I’m your man.”
Something about his words bothered her, but she was too distracted to read between the lines. Ethan was looking at her the way she had always dreamed that he would one day.
“Yes,” she whispered.
His chest rose and fell sharply. “Are you protected?”
“Um, no. I haven’t been seeing anyone recently.”
He nodded curtly. “I have two condoms in my wallet.”
Some of the shimmer and shine of the moment wavered. She wasn’t sure what to do next. “Okay.”
His features softened. “You can still change your mind, Aria. I didn’t come over here expecting anything more than a glass of champagne, I swear. I took your invitation at face value.”
“That’s how I meant it,” she muttered. “My recent insanity was an impulse...because I want you.” She paused and swallowed hard. “But not if this is a pity thing. I’m not a charity case.”
He frowned. “Why on earth would I pity you?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. It strikes me as odd that you never made a move on me before tonight.”
He twined a lock of her hair around his finger, his smile enigmatic. “You never asked.”
Well, heck. If she’d known it was that easy, she would have asked a long time ago. “I’m not drunk,” she said firmly. “I’m not even buzzed. I know what I’m doing.”
His wicked grin gave her the shakes. “I’m glad we cleared that up.” He curled an arm around her waist and drew her closer. “I want you to remember every little thing I’m going to do to you,” he whispered, his breath warm against the shell of her ear. “Start to finish. Including the way you’re going to scream my name when I make you come.”
She gaped up at him, barely breathing. No other man of her acquaintance would have the confidence to be so boldly alpha, taking charge of the situation and the moment without apology. Perhaps she should have protested his arrogance, but her legs barely supported her, and breathing took all her focus. Her thighs clenched. Damp heat at her core ached.
“You’re awfully sure of yourself,” she muttered.
His low laugh made gooseflesh rise on her arms where they clung to his neck. “You asked me to have sex with you, sweet thing. Trust me, I won’t let you be disappointed. Even if it takes all night.” He paused, for the first time seeming mildly disconcerted. “Are we taking this upstairs, or do you want to make use of this very nice sofa?”
She swallowed, trying in an insufficient instant to decide how best to proceed. That was the problem with spontaneity. No time for logical decisions. No opportunity to plan. “Here is fine,” she croaked. If things went south, she could always buy a new sofa to erase the memories of this night. Letting Ethan into her bed upstairs would signal an intimacy she wasn’t prepared to accept. Tonight was about closure, right?
Ethan exhaled sharply, as if he was holding himself in check. “Then here it is,” he said gruffly.
He released her and stepped away, slipping his wallet from his back pocket. When he calmly tossed the small strip of condom packets on the coffee table, Aria fixated on it as if it was a tiny bomb just waiting to explode and send her neatly ordered life into a million pieces.
“We could build a fire,” she said. “If you’re cold. The wood is already laid out. And I have matches on the mantel.” Too much babbling, Aria. She sucked in a breath and tried to smile. “Unless we’re going to generate enough heat on our own. What do you think?”
