Catriona walked into the bar, her nerves dancing sporadically like the northern lights currently overhead. Avery wasn’t behind the bar like she’d expected to find him. She couldn’t remember walking into the Pump House and not see him serving drinks behind the bar.

She stood there dumbfounded over what to do next. Did she grab a booth? Were they having dinner here? That would equal “comfortable.” What if he stood her up? Had he called and canceled and she’d missed it because she couldn’t make up her mind on what to wear? She hated feeling like sixteen again, but Avery had a knack for making her feel that way.

She’d get a drink at the bar. There, that was a good plan, plus a drink would help calm her nerves.

Honoree was behind the bar, multi-tasking by pouring drinks with both hands. She was a little thing, which fooled a lot of people into thinking she was a pushover instead of a powerhouse. Cat had seen her put the giant Swede Leif in his place more than once.

“Hey, Cat,” she greeted. “I’ll be right with you.”

Cat hiked a hip onto the barstool and slipped off her coat. By the time she was settled, Honoree had finished filling orders and placed a coaster in front of her.

“I hear you have a date tonight with the boss.”

Oh boy, the whole town would know soon. She was surprised Avery had told anyone.

“Do you know where he is?”

“He’s in the kitchen checking on your dinner. He said to make you a drink if you showed up before he was done. What’ll you have?”

So, they were having dinner here. She shouldn’t feel disappointed that Avery didn’t want to take her out somewhere. He’d said comfortable, she reminded herself, but it felt like she was meeting a friend for dinner instead of a real date.

“I’ll have a dirty martini with three olives.”

“Gin or vodka?”

“Gin and make it extra dirty.” She didn’t drink much as it tended to go to her head fairly fast, but some liquid courage or numbing might be what she needed tonight.

“I was disappointed to find out that you’re no longer teaching yoga at Heart Springs Enteral,” Honoree said, adding the ingredients to a shaker. “They have some young dip weed teaching now.”

“That would be Randi. I’m surprised they have her taking over my class.” Randi had only recently certified. “I’m sure she’ll get better with practice.”

“A bunch of us are hoping you’ll return.” She expertly poured her shaken martini into a glass, added the olives on a long toothpick, and set it in front of Catriona.

“Actually, once the Mystic Heart is opened, I will be teaching there.”

“Across the street?”

Cat nodded, taking a large swallow of her martini, enjoying how her blood instantly warmed.

“Hot damn, that’s the best news. I’ll share it with the others.”

She finished her drink, had eaten the last olive, and contemplated ordering a second, when Avery showed.

“Why didn’t you tell me she was here?” he addressed Honoree, his eyes not straying from Cat. They did indeed drift south, following the necklace Zoe had made her wear. How was it that her baby sister seemed to have a better handle on the opposite sex than she did?

“You said to make her a drink,” Honoree said.

“And to notify me when she arrived.”

“Well, it’s not like I haven’t been a little busy,” Honoree muttered, turning to fill another order and dismissing Avery.

Cat snickered. The little dynamo wasn’t afraid of Avery either. She vaguely wondered what would make Honoree nervous.

Avery came around the bar and gathered up her coat and purse where she’d set them on the neighboring stool. “You look very nice,” he said, drinking her in in such a way that her blood heated more than from the gin and vermouth she’d consumed.

“Thank you. You look very nice yourself.” He wore blue jeans with a tucked-in, moss-green, button-down shirt that intensified his hazel eyes.

And he’d shaved.

Gone was the dark stubble he was never without, and he smelled better than he looked. The fresh, crisp scent of pine and cedar wafted toward her, and she wanted to nuzzle her nose in the crook of his neck where it would be the strongest. The cut on his cheek wasn’t as red as the day before, but it still gave him a rakish appearance that her hormones seemed to like way too much.

“Shall we?” He held out his hand.

She placed hers in his, charmed by the romantic gesture. “Aren’t we staying here?”

“In a manner of speaking. Come with me.”

He led her through the kitchen of the pub house to a set of stairs located at the back.

Was he taking her to his apartment? Even when they’d dated before, he’d never taken her to his place. A warning bell sounded in her head.

You don’t want to be alone with him. You won’t be able to trust yourself.

But curiosity got the best of her as it always did. She wanted to see where he lived. A person’s pad said so much about who they were.

Avery opened the door for her and let her precede him inside.

He’d set the scene. Soft Spanish guitar music strummed in the background and he’d left off the overhead lights, using lamps to create a romantic mood.

The apartment was small but no space was wasted. Bookcases took up one wall, with a brown, leather couch placed opposite a fireplace that crackled as flames greedily ate at the logs in the grate. A simple coffee table, an end table made from a wine barrel and a club chair were the only other pieces of furniture.

“You don’t have a TV?” she asked, looking around.

“Not here. I prefer reading over watching TV. Plus, if I want to catch a game or the news, I have plenty of TVs down in the bar.”

“You read? I didn’t mean it to sound like that,” she quickly said. “What do you read?” She badly wanted to peruse his bookshelves.

“A little of everything. But my go-to are mysteries and thrillers.”

“Do you have a favorite author?”

“That would have to be Harlan Coben. I like the humor and witty dialogue he balances with the never-ending action.”

“I haven’t read him.” She’d seen some of his books in Jill’s inventory.

“I’ll loan you one of my favorites, if you’d like.”

“Yes, I’d like that.”

He placed a hand at the small of her back and guided her to the small table set up by the window.

“We’re having dinner here?” The table was set with a white tablecloth, stoneware dishes, and crystal glasses.

“I wanted to be alone with you. That okay?” His eyes studied her, looking for what, she didn’t have clue.

“Did you cook?” she asked instead of answering his question. She didn’t know yet if it was okay or not to be totally alone with Avery. It left her apprehensive and, yet, excited too.

“I asked Leif to prepare something for us. He’s after adding fancier grub to the menu, so we are his guinea pigs tonight. Starting with what I’ve already approved for him to put on the menu.” Avery lifted a metal dome from a plate to reveal appetizers.

“Smoked salmon?” Her mouth watered, and she automatically sat when he pulled out her chair.

“With goat cheese and blackberry jam on toasted sourdough crostini.” He picked one up and pressed it to her lips. “Here, try it.”

She opened her mouth, and he fed her the appetizer. She bit down and a dollop of blackberry jam smeared the corner of her mouth. He wiped the jam off and then brought his finger up to his own mouth and slowly licked it clean.

It was by far the sexiest thing she’d ever experienced.

“Now try the salmon with this.” He uncapped two beer bottles with the Pump House logo and filled her glass.

“You know, I’ve never cared for beer, nothing personal.” She’d really given it a try since Avery brewed beer, but she’d come to the conclusion she just wasn’t a beer kind of girl.

“I know, which is why I’ve been working on this recipe. It’s a fireweed honey pale ale. I want your honest opinion. Don’t sugarcoat it for me.”

The beer had a golden pink cast to it with champagne-like bubbles and a lacy foam head. She brought the glass to her nose expecting to be put off by the beer smell, but the aroma was sweet and floral instead. Taking a hesitant sip, she let the liquid roll around her mouth. It was sweet and crisp with a surprisingly delightful floral finish when she swallowed. “Avery, this is good. Really good.” She took another sip. “I’ve never acquired a taste for beer, as you know, but I could get hooked on this one.”

He smiled and offered her another smoked salmon appetizer. “Now try it with the salmon.”

She did, and flavors exploded in her mouth. She moaned around the mouthful, her eyes closing in pleasure.

“Christ,” he muttered.

She opened her eyes to find him staring down at her, his expression pained. “What?” she asked, concerned.

“That’s the look you had on your face when you came in my arms the other night. That look has haunted me ever since, and I’ve thought of nothing but making you look like that again. I never thought it would be salmon and my fireweed brew that would bring it about.” He framed her face with his rough palms. “I have to get this out of the way.”

He kissed her, his lips brushing over hers, feather light at first, then harder, more demanding as though he couldn’t help himself. She parted her lips, and he groaned, his tongue diving deep into her mouth. She tasted fireweed honey on his tongue and kissed him back. Heat roared through her, igniting a low fire in her belly. His hand slid to her neck and he arched her head back giving him deeper access.

He possessed her with the kiss. Her soul sighed, and her heart pounded fast in agreement. Goose-bumps raced down her spine, over her shoulders, and down to bead her nipples into hard points. She wanted to press her body against his, but with him kissing her in this position, leaning over her, her head arched back, she was his captive in the chair.

Tearing his mouth free, he rested his forehead against hers. “God, you taste so damn good. I could have you for dinner.”

Then why don’t you?

She bit back the words before they flew out of her mouth. It’s too soon, the rational part of her brain piped in—the part of her who’d insisted she wear the plain, white, cotton underwear.

On an oath, Avery released her, grabbed his own beer, and drank right from the bottle, his throat convulsing with the hard swallows. He then walked into the small galley kitchen, grabbed a dish towel, and took a cast iron pan out of the oven, setting it in the middle of the table on a ceramic trivet. They didn’t speak as he spooned a tomato, cucumber, avocado salad with feta cheese and capers from a bowl onto her plate following that with the pan-seared halibut with pesto and pine nuts from the sizzling pan he’d taken from the oven.

The food was delicious but in a weird sadistic way so was the sexual tension humming between them. It made her feel more alive and on edge than at any other time she could remember.

Avery watched her eat, his eyes hooded, and she squirmed in her chair. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“It’s a pleasure watching you eat.”

“Aren’t you enjoying the food?”

“Not as much as being with you like this.”

The tension thickened, and she knew she was in danger of asking him to take her to bed. Before that happened, there were things that needed clarification. “What did you mean yesterday? When you asked me to dinner, you said that staying away from me wasn’t working, and you wanted to start over.”

“Exactly that.” He picked at the halibut as if this thread of conversation made him uncomfortable.

“I’m going to need a little more explanation. You hurt me last time. I don’t want to feel like that again.”

He winced. “I never meant to hurt you, Cat, but if you’re after guarantees, I can’t give them to you. I also can no longer deny how much I want you.”

While his reluctant confession sparked something inside her, she still needed more assurances. “Where do you see this going?”

“I’m not good with seeing or planning into the future. Could we take whatever this is one day at a time?”

He was excellent at planning the future. The success of his business spoke to that, but she understood that taking what was between them one day at a time seemed wise, given their history.

“Okay, I can agree to that.”

A slow, satisfied smile splayed over his lips. He stood and he held his hand out to her.

Nervous, shaking a little, she placed hers in his. “I didn’t come here to sleep with you,” she stated.

“But you’re going to anyway.” He tugged, pulling her body in close to his.

“That’s pretty presumptuous of you.”

“All you have to do is say no. Please don’t say no.” He waited a beat, which was all the time he obviously would allow her. When she didn’t say anything, his mouth crushed hers, hungry and desperate, drinking in her answering moan.

She swayed against him, her knees buckling, and he swooped her up into his arms.

“What are you doing?” She clutched at his shoulders. No man had ever carried her before. It was disconcerting to be cradled like this with no solid footing.

“Don’t be obtuse.” He carried her into his bedroom, tossed her on the bed, and followed her down. She didn’t even get a good look at the room before his mouth captured hers again and his hands went to work on the tie of her top.

“I’ve wanted to unwrap you the moment I saw you sitting in the bar tonight. This top, with its gaping neckline, has teased me cruelly through dinner. Did you plan that?”

She hadn’t, but Zoe must have known this would happen, that the top would drive Avery to the breaking point? Her little sister had some explaining to do—mainly how she knew so much about the workings of the male mind.

“You said to wear something comfortable,” she answered on a gasp as he bared her to his burning gaze.

His gaze raked her in, taking in the black lace cupping her breasts, his eyes hot and dangerous. A wild sound vibrated up his throat causing his voice to go dark and husky. “This doesn’t look comfortable.”

His fingers traced the line of the lace. Suddenly he sat up, straddling her, and pulled her into a sitting position. He swiped off her top and tossed it aside, and then dragged the straps of her bra down her arms, anchoring them in place. Freeing her breasts from the restraining cups, he pulled the bra down farther, immobilizing her. Next, his lips closed over one pebbled nipple while his fingers plucked and teased the other. His mouth was hot—so hot—as his tongue twirled her nipple. She cried out when he clamped down and sucked hard.

Excitement, dark and edgy, flared low in her belly. Her head fell back on a gasp, and she badly wanted to touch him, learn what drove him to distraction like he was driving her. She couldn’t think, could only feel as he lavished attention from one breast to the other.

He released her and gazed deep in her eyes. A satisfied smile appearing when he found whatever he’d been searching for. Not breaking eye contact, he eased his shirt from his pants in deliberate, unrushed movements.

She raised her hands to help, and he shook his head. “It’s not a good idea for you to touch me right now.”

“But I want—”

“Trust me,” he interrupted, yanking the shirt off and throwing it somewhere to land unheeded on the floor, revealing an impressively muscled chest, arms, and abdomen. Muscles like his weren’t created in a gym, they were honed to sharpness on the ice.

“Lay down,” he commanded.

Surprising herself, she did as she was told. Her bra kept her arms restrained to her sides, the tight fabric pushing up her bare breasts to his heated gaze.

“God, you are beautiful.”

Climbing off her, he stood at the end of the bed. Without preamble, he slid off her boots, and then unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans. Hooking his fingers around the waistband, he stripped them from her with one yank, leaving her in the flimsy slip of her panties. A groan escaped him as he stared at her displayed on his bed.

He reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a condom securing the wrapper in his teeth. He removed his jeans, taking his boxers with them, leaving him gorgeously naked in front of her, his erection jutting forward large and proud. Ripping open the condom, he sheathed himself and then placed a knee on the mattress, climbing up her body. Running a hand over her leg to her hip, he traveled up her body until they were breastbone to hipbone.

Everything about him was hard, his mouth as he took hers again, his hands as they grasped her breasts, his body as it pressed hers into the mattress.

She went molten and couldn’t help writhing her hips under him, trying to ease the ache that begged to be possessed, to be taken by him. She’d never felt this way with any other man. Granted, there hadn’t been many, but being with those other few had never brought her to this level of mindlessness. He could do anything to her right now, ask anything of her, and she’d gladly give it.

He broke the kiss and stared down at her, and by the predatory glint in his eyes, he knew it too.

He’d more than stripped her of her clothes, he’d stripped her down to her soul. It scared her, heightening the sensations coursing through her bloodstream, causing her heart to pound so hard, it would surely kill her.

“I’ve got to have you,” he rasped out, kneeing her legs apart to make room for him to settle between them. “I’ll take more time next time.”

Desire coiled and tightened low in her belly at his words. More time? Any more of this delicious torture and she didn’t think she would survive it. She moaned and twisted desperately beneath him, telling him with her body what she couldn’t express with words.

He’d stolen her voice along with her heart.

Taking her hips in his hands, he angled them to receive his heavy thrust. A cry escaped her as he drove all the way home, stealing her breath. She gasped, trying to breathe. He was so much—too much—filling her, consuming her. He held himself there, his eyes shut tight as though he were in pain, blessedly giving her body time to adjust to the invasion of his.

Then he began to move, and her world as she knew it ceased to exist. Everything revolved around him and the sensations he drove to the surface with each thrust of his powerful body. He was relentless as he pounded into her.

Mewing sounds escaped her, and her head rolled side-to-side on the pillow. Pleasure built upon pleasure, and it sharpened until it became almost painful. Her release hit her hard, and she screamed his name, the name becoming a chant—a prayer—on her lips. The climax hit her like an avalanche, tumbling fast and fierce, an unstoppable force that left her dizzy and limp, fighting for breath.

He didn’t stop, refusing to allow her mercy as he drove her up that peak again, his thumb finding the center of her sex and stroking it until she capitulated again, and this time he plummeted over the abyss with her, shouting her name.