Chapter Two
The tea break found Lexi back at the front desk, asking the same receptionist to dial AJ Riley’s room. He gave her a quizzical look. “You haven’t seen him?” he asked.
“No.” If she had, she wouldn’t be here right now.
“Oh, I thought… Never mind.” He smiled as though to hide his confusion. “I can try his room. He returned earlier, but I believe he left again.” After a couple of moments, he shook his head. “There’s no response. Would you like to leave a message this time?”
“No.” She sighed. “I don’t suppose he told you what time he’d be back?”
“Most of our guests don’t leave that kind of information with us.”
Of course they didn’t. Still, it was worth asking. “Thank you. I’ll try again later.” She left as frustrated as before.
This time she managed to walk through the lobby without making a complete debacle of herself. Although she subtly scanned the area twice, there was no sign of either Riley or the stranger she’d so delicately bumped into earlier. She chose to ignore the pangs of disappointment that fluttered through her stomach.
Her next attempt at contacting Riley proved to be as successful as the first two, and later that night, she sat at dinner with Leona, feeling disheartened and disillusioned. The sooner she could meet Riley, the sooner she could convince him to donate the hundred thousand so she could start up a project very close to her heart. She’d lived through the exact trauma she hoped to help countless kids deal with.
It was a good program. She’d spent months drawing up the plans, which had approval from both the hospital board and the ward staff. A couple of nurses had even signed up to help. All she needed now was the funding to get it off the ground—and she’d yet to make contact with the most probable source of that funding. The sooner she met with Riley and had the opportunity to convince him to sponsor her program, the sooner she could offer help to those who needed it most.
Her efforts today had come to nothing. Well, nothing except tripping in the lobby and landing with her nose mashed into the spectacular chest of Superhunk.
Not a bad result, all things considered.
“Hello? Earth to Lexi?” Leona waved her hand in front of Lexi’s eyes.
Lexi blinked and grinned. “Sorry, I zoned out on you for a minute there.”
“Yeah, I noticed.”
“I’m obsessing a little.” She looked sheepishly at Leona. “I’ve got to find Riley, Lee. He’s right here, so close I can almost touch him.”
“Don’t you ever get tired of trying to raise money for POWS?” Leona asked, referring to the Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Ward at Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs Hospital, where she worked as a pediatrician and Lexi worked as a social worker. “It’s not even part of your job description.”
“So tired I can hardly limp out of bed some mornings,” Lexi answered. “It’s something I need to do. It’s like I can’t rest until I’ve done my bit to help.”
“Retribution?”
Lexi shrugged. “In a sense. I’ve been there, so I know what it’s like. Now I can use that knowledge to make the journey a little less tough for someone else.”
“Your sister found it tougher,” Leona pointed out. “She had leukemia.”
“That is such a doctor comment to make. You only see the patient’s point of view,” Lexi griped good-naturedly, knowing Leona was teasing her. “Never mind the siblings and the rest of the family who go through the trauma of cancer.”
Leona grinned. “Yeah, doctors. Go figure. Why would we want to focus all our attention on a sick child when there’s a whole family out there who needs some loving care?”
Lexi smiled back. Leona always included the whole family in her treatment plan. As a general rule, doctors weren’t trained to look after the emotional needs of the patient’s family. As a social worker, Lexi was—but she knew she hadn’t done a good enough job. Not yet. When she finished raising money for the sibling program and she could provide better support for the brothers and sisters of children with cancer, then she’d put a little less pressure on herself.
“Lex,” Leona said, her tone more serious, “I think you’re moving too fast on this one. You’ve got too much riding on the program to screw it up. Wait for Wednesday to see Riley. Meet him when you’re more prepared, when you have all your files and information with you.”
“You’re right.” Lexi squirmed in her seat. “It’s just that he’s here, in the same hotel… I can’t wait. I have to see him.”
“You’re being impulsive,” her friend warned. “You know how you tend to say the wrong thing when emotion takes over.”
She did tend to shoot off her mouth when she got excited, and meeting Riley was definitely something worth getting excited about. He was, after all, the person voted most likely to sponsor her program. So the chances were high she could say something she’d regret. But, c’mon. How could she not seize the moment? How could she let the opportunity to chat with him in an informal setting pass her by?
“I’ve got to make the most of this time, Lee. Destiny’s given me this chance. I’m going to jump at it. Of course, I’ll go to the appointment as well. I’d never cancel that.” Excitement churned in her belly. “Look, I promise I’ll check every word that comes out of my mouth. I will be the paragon of tact and diplomacy, but mark my words. On Wednesday, when I walk into his office, it will not be the first time I meet Mr. Riley. That I promise you.”
…
AJ’s day had been a bitch. What started out as a friendly merger had almost turned into a hostile takeover. So much for talking numbers. The owner of the small company Riley Corporation planned to purchase had gotten cold feet and flat-out refused AJ’s more than generous offer.
Damn fool didn’t have the sense to realize Riley Corporation was the best thing that could have happened to him. In six months, AJ expected to see 100 percent growth in profit, then double that in double the time. Good thing Matt had been there to talk a bit of sense into the bloke, because AJ’s own input today had been less than impressive. He could barely string an intelligible sentence together, let alone argue with anyone.
He’d been all screwed up since he’d caught Lexi Tanner in the lobby this morning. Christ, the effect she had on him. Only a miracle had prevented him from dragging her up to his room right then and there.
Four months earlier, he’d had a similar reaction. He’d attended a fundraising exhibition she’d organized for POWS. Her brother, Daniel Tanner, had been the featured photographer. The minute AJ had walked into the gallery, he’d noticed her. She was hard to miss. She’d pulled his attention with gravitational force, and for the next hour, he’d been aware of her every movement.
Her warm smile had touched a very cold part of his heart. The kindness and caring she’d shown while talking to patients and their families had blown him away. Should a woman like Lexi ever talk to him in the same manner, he suspected it would be his undoing.
During the process of purchasing several of Tanner’s outstanding photographs—a charitable obligation to which he felt emotionally and personally committed—he’d gathered as much information as he could about the social worker. Then he’d left, knowing Lexi symbolized big trouble. She worked in the very field he never wanted to be part of again. He was determined to stay far away.
Unless, of course, he was willing to send himself to hell and back—for a second time. The first time he’d met someone he’d been so drawn to, he’d married her—and tragedy had struck. Following what still felt like a lifetime of heartache and trauma, AJ had vowed never to grow so close to anyone again.
When he’d seen Lexi that first time, instinct had almost overridden his defenses. He’d almost approached her. Common sense and experience had stopped him.
He beeped the remote alarm of the rental car and caught the hotel lift up from the parking garage, almost tasting the double scotch waiting for him in his room.
Fate had different ideas.
The lift stopped at the ground floor, and several people climbed in—including Lexi Tanner and her friend, Dr. Someone or Other. For the second time that day, his body heated to a dangerous level.
Christ, she was gorgeous. Her hair tumbled down her back in a shower of golden curls. Full lips, a slightly tilted nose, and thick black lashes made up a beautiful face. She probably reached around five-eight in heels and had curves in all the right places. Real, womanly curves.
He stared, unable to look away.
As she caught sight of him, she froze. The air between them sizzled and ignited. The woman consumed his senses. She stood so close he caught the scent of her perfume again. It was sweet and sexy, and he’d smelled it the whole day. Some of it must have rubbed off on his jacket when she’d tumbled into his arms.
Words were spoken around him. He didn’t hear them. All his senses focused on her. Lexi apparently experienced the same phenomenon. Only when the doctor nudged her and said aloud, “Nineteen, please, and I’m on five,” did he realize someone had asked her floor number.
A startled-looking Lexi turned to the man in question. She flashed him a smile. “I’m sorry. Nineteen, please.”
If she smiled at him like that, even once, he’d have her backed up against the wall, her hands pinned at her sides and her chest squashed into his, before she had a chance to take another breath.
“What is with you today?” the doctor asked her. “That is about the fourth time you’ve zoned out on me.”
Lexi glanced back at AJ. The temperature climbed five degrees. He reached for his tie and loosened the knot at the base of his throat. Surely that would help him breathe?
“Sorry, I’m a little sidetracked,” she answered, still staring at him.
A bell rang. “That’s my floor,” her friend said. “I’ll see you at breakfast. Good luck. I hope you find your man.”
The lift began to move again, and when it came to another stop on the next floor, she turned to face him. “Hello.”
He nodded, shifted so someone behind him could get out of the lift, but didn’t look away.
She smiled. “I hoped I’d bump into you again.”
He lifted an eyebrow.
“I wanted to thank you.”
The lift dinged, signaling his floor, but he stood motionless. Her gaze pinned him down. Her eyes were an unexpected stormy grey. This morning, they’d been a deep sapphire blue.
“You saved me from embarrassing myself earlier.” Her cheeks were flushed, her pupils dilated, and the smoky irises oozed emotion. Was that embarrassment…or desire?
Around them, the lift emptied slowly.
“No problem.” Christ, he shouldn’t talk to her. He needed to get his ass the hell out of there.
She caught her lower lip between her teeth and nibbled, accentuating a sexy dimple on her left cheek. The action left him reeling. He shifted again. His body stirred and blood thrummed in his ears.
Slowly releasing her lip, she said, “It was a silly thing to do, tripping like that.” The smile she shot him was warm and inviting.
AJ was thirty-six, yet her expression reduced him to a kid. Need slammed into him, and he knew against his better judgment he had to have her.
He shrugged, hoping he presented a calmness he didn’t feel. “Accidents happen.”
The lift dinged. The doors slid open and closed again. Then there were two of them. Two adults and the audible hum of awareness buzzing between them.
With no rationale to his thoughts, no premeditation to his movements, he did what he had to do. Stepping forward, he pushed a button. The lift ground to a halt somewhere between the seventeenth and eighteenth floors.
What the hell are you doing?
Even the silent question his defenses yelled at him could not penetrate the need to be alone with this woman. He didn’t have an answer. All he knew was he was following his instincts.
Her briefcase slid from her hand, landing on the floor with a soft thud.
Her perfume permeated his senses, clouding his good judgment further.
“The lift…?” She glanced at the control panel and back at him.
He waved away her concern, stepping closer. “Earlier, in the lobby, you touched me.”
“Oh… Uh, yes. For balance, when you caught me.”
“No. After.”
“Ah.” She released a shaky breath. “You mean…like this?” Her hands trembled as she raised them and smoothed her fingers over his shirt, just above his waist.
His stomach muscles contracted involuntarily—like they had in the lobby.
He nodded. “You took me by surprise. I didn’t expect you to do that.”
“And I didn’t expect you to respond,” she said in an awed whisper.
Christ, what had she expected? That she’d brush her hands down his shirt and he’d whistle a merry tune?
“Did you expect me to respond this time?”
“I didn’t expect there to be a this time. Although I’d hoped,” she added quietly.
“And I’m responding this time, too.” AJ wasn’t sure he was making sense, but with his entire life force concentrated in his dick, it was near impossible to hold a rational conversation.
The color in her cheeks deepened. “I can see.”
Of course she could. He had a massive erection. If they’d taken separate lifts, she’d be able to see it. A bead of perspiration trickled between his shoulder blades. He shuddered with the need to touch her.
She must have noticed, because she smiled again. A tempting, womanly smile that played havoc with his self-control.
Damn it. He was the master of control. Control meant predictability, and his life needed to be predictable. He did everything in his power to avoid the unexpected. Unfortunately, experience had taught him some issues couldn’t be manipulated—no matter how hard he tried. But whatever he could influence, he did. Women were no exception to the rule.
So why did the curve of her throat make all logic take flight?
Her chest rose and fell unsteadily, pulling his attention to the top of her tailored navy blouse. He glimpsed the full swell of milky skin beneath a wisp of black lace and had to bite back a moan. Her eyes widened in question, but her lips softened invitingly.
Incapable of denying himself a taste, AJ gave in. He sank a hand in her hair, his fist clenching around the silken curls. Ever so slowly, giving her time to pull away if she chose to—half of him hoped she would, while the other half loathed the thought—he drew her closer. His eyes fixed on her full upper lip as it parted from the lower one. The puff of air from her mouth warmed his, and he inhaled it seconds before his lips touched hers.
Then her mouth was on his, applying a subtle, prohibited pressure. His stomach muscles jerked once again as her body curved into him.
Her lips parted beneath his tongue, and he allowed himself a languorous minute of exploration, discovering the smoldering secrets she hid behind those succulent lips. She tasted like dessert, wine, and imported chocolate. Sweet, with a touch of exotic spice. Cinnamon, perhaps.
Control, he reminded himself. Lose control, you lose yourself. He gave no more, holding himself rigid as her body sought to nestle into his.
This had to be someone’s idea of a sick joke. Testing him to see if he could taste her and walk away unscathed.
Impossible. She’d already touched a part of him no one else had reached in years. If she applied even the tiniest amount of effort, she’d be his undoing.
He feared she had the power to overcome every obstacle he threw her way, chip away at his defenses and access the one part of his life he hadn’t shared in a decade.
That couldn’t happen. Pain that deep shouldn’t be shared.
As if sensing his reluctance, her arms crept around his neck and she clung. Her breasts pressed into his chest, the taut nipples a stark contradiction to the soft mounds beneath. She touched the tip of her tongue to his lower lip, compelling him to respond, to give as much as she could take.
For a nanosecond, he slackened his body and stilled his mouth against the erotic dance of her lips. Then four months of need and self-denial took over.
He groaned and hauled her against him, kissing her with the full, deep, wet kiss he’d longed for. Her hot lips curled his toes and flattened his resistance, rendering him powerless. He’d tasted her, and turning back ceased to be an option.
Desire rocketed through him, waking every tiny nerve ending. She moaned, and the sound echoed through the elevator and, unfortunately, through his heart.
He dipped her backward, his arm supporting her lower back, then popped the top buttons of her blouse. He raked a hand down her chest, from the hollow in her neck to the deep V of her bra. The caress sent goose bumps rippling over her skin, and her back curved, propelling those incredible breasts upwards. Dazed by his compulsion to taste them, he teased more buttons open, exposing her bra fully. His lips closed over the soft lace, and he filled his mouth with the tip of a firm breast.
She gasped.
The sound gripped at his balls, so they hung heavy beneath his cock. He suckled her and then nipped.
“Oh God.”
When at last he lifted his head and pulled her upright again, she said not a word, merely stared at him, her eyes brimming with hunger. Without releasing her, he reached out and pressed another button. The lift dinged three times and began to move.
“Your room,” he said and registered vague surprise that he was coherent enough to form the words and that she nodded in agreement. He’d half hoped and half feared she’d refuse him.
…
Desire coursed through Lexi’s body, hastening her steps. He walked so close behind her, his breath stirred the hair on her neck. Her hand trembled as it held her shirt together.
It didn’t matter that she didn’t know his name. It didn’t matter that she’d never seen him before this morning and wouldn’t see him again after this. She wanted him tonight. For one evening of potent, passionate pleasure—even if it was out of character for her.
Perhaps this opportunity would be enough to stave off her loneliness for a while. Sleeping with a stranger was hardly the long-term solution she sought, but a few hours with this sexy man was irresistible.
Primitive lust made her shake as she opened the door to her room.
Something told her this, them, was right. Whatever happened between them was meant to be. There’d be no regret the next morning, no allusions made to a future together. It would be one night together, and it would be good. Real good.
He followed her in and kicked the door shut. Shrugging off his jacket and tie, he turned and pinned her against the wall. Then he kissed her, the blistering heat of his mouth reducing her to a shivering mass.
Lexi’s knees trembled, her legs refusing to hold her upright any longer. She slid down the wall and tilted her head to find herself eye level with his pelvis. His suit pants clearly outlined his erection. The sight made her mouth water. Leaning forward, she nuzzled her nose into his groin and grazed her teeth over his length, making him shudder.
“Easy,” he said and dropped to his knees. “Let’s make this last.”
He nudged her thighs apart so he knelt between her legs. Angling her face upwards, he took her mouth in another steamy kiss. His lips stole reason, and she melted into him.
Lexi marveled at the trust she was placing in this stranger, especially one so devastatingly gorgeous. Something about him seemed safe. Secure. Perhaps it was the gentleness he’d shown in the lift, giving her ample opportunity to stop him before he kissed her. Or maybe it was the stormy battle that seemed to constantly play out in his eyes, as though he was trying to resist her but couldn’t. Like her, he appeared perplexed by their mutual attraction yet powerless to resist it.
Whatever it was, Lexi knew he wouldn’t hurt her, and the knowledge made her want him more.
When he leaned down to plant sizzling kisses on her throat, she buried her nose in his soft hair. Triggers of awareness shot through her. If his mouth could seduce her without moving past her neck, what could he do when she lay naked beneath him?
Again, his lips found hers. What started as a sweet, heady kiss and a slow exploration of a new pleasure quickly spiraled into a frantic clash of lips, his mouth greedily sucking at hers. The action struck her deep within, and her limbs quivered with pleasure. His hands flicked under her shirt, teasing the sensitive flesh beneath. A cool breeze against her hot skin told her he’d undone the clasp of her bra. He pushed her blouse over her shoulders, but instead of removing it altogether, he caught the sleeves behind her back, snaring her hands, rendering her helpless.
He muttered something unintelligible and dropped his head to her chest. The warm breath on her nipples blew her mind, and she trembled.
“Please,” she whispered hoarsely. “Touch me.”
Fireworks exploded as his lips covered her nipple and he sucked the engorged peak into his mouth.
His mouth tortured her with its practiced touch, his tongue taking her to the edge of sanity and back. By the time he lifted his head to inhale, he’d explored and discovered every inch of her chest.
His actions weren’t those of an anonymous lover. In his arms, she felt cherished. Needed. Secure. And sexy. She moaned mindlessly, and her breath came in short, sharp gulps.
How could someone she’d just met stir such bone-deep emotion?
The frozen flames in his eyes seemed to absorb her reaction to his touch. Once again, his devastating looks struck her dumb. Never mind the hard lines around his mouth and eyes. He took her breath away. There was more to him than the fact that he was the sexiest man on earth. She sensed a depth behind his silence, a wealth of emotion behind his icy gaze.
“I-I need to touch you, too.” Her voice stunned her with its raspiness. Something more than her physiological reaction to him was coming into play. Something more…intense.
A pained expression flashed across his face, and he freed her hands.
Buttons flew across the room as she ripped his shirt open. She was a woman possessed. She had to touch him, had to see him.
Muscle rippled down his chest to his waist. His stomach was hard and flat, and she gawked at his sculpted torso.
A dark smattering of hair dusted his chest, trailed down his belly, and disappeared below his belt. Sweet Lord, she wanted to see what he kept hidden below that belt.
Leaning into him, she placed both hands on his torso and kissed him. She nudged him backward until he lay on the floor and she lay on top of him. Then she touched her tongue to the pulse throbbing at his throat. Salty. She licked lower. Hot. Her mouth settled above his nipple. It was tight and beaded, and he groaned when she kissed it.
Delicious.
She shimmied down to run her tongue over the grooves between each muscle, reveling in the reflexive contracting of his stomach. When his chest rose and fell as unevenly as her own, and she thought she might die if she didn’t explore more of his hard body, she unfastened his belt and pants. His cock jumped beneath her hands. She pulled back the waistband of his boxers, exposing the head of his dick.
She licked her lips greedily.
“Christ, woman.” He lay still.
Their eyes caught and held. His were dark, etched with hunger. Not a single trace of the coldness she’d seen in them earlier remained, only a flame of desire burning through the blue depths.
Exhilaration overcame her, making her dizzy. His resistance had melted away. Lexi dipped her head, and a throaty growl erupted from his chest.
She licked at the pearly bead on the tip of his cock, swirled her tongue around, and filled her mouth with his salty, male tang. His hands found her hair, and the roots strained against her scalp as he reflexively tugged at her curls. She pushed at his pants until he shifted his hips and kicked off his shoes and the rest of his clothes, exposing slim hips, a thick, hard erection and long, muscular legs.
An unexpected surge of emotion washed over her as she took in his nude form. She swallowed hard. This was supposed to be a night of gratuitous sex, nothing more. So why did something akin to affection well in her chest?
Giving herself a mental shake, she wrapped her hand around his shaft and lifted it slightly. From the tip of his cock, down his shaft, and over his balls, she licked, making her way over every delectable inch. He mumbled nonsensically, at which point she opened her lips wide and sucked him in.
His control snapped. Before she knew it, he’d flipped her over. She lay on her back with him on top of her.
“I’m only human.” He kissed her, hard. “I can take…just so much teasing.” He tugged at her skirt, pulled it up around her hips, and his hand found her panties. “So wet,” he rumbled.
He nudged the lacy thong aside to expose her hidden folds. They were slick from anticipation, and she moaned as he skimmed his fingers over them.
“Like that?” He slid her panties down, and she shifted and kicked them off. Ever so lightly, he touched her clit.
“God, yes.” She’d have cried out his name, only she didn’t know it.
He glided his finger into her hot, wet slit. “Good. Now let’s see how much you can take.” He slipped his finger out again.
Her breath came in short, sharp spurts as he repeated the movements in rhythmic sensuality.
Oh. My. God.
Lexi opened her mouth to tell him how amazing it felt, but he pushed deep inside her and bit her nipple. The only sound she emitted was a loud groan.
His tongue soothed her breast, easing the erotic sting, and his hand conducted an orchestra of sensation deep within. He edged downwards until his mouth was directly above her groin. Hot breath whispered between her legs, and she shuddered.
When he darted out his tongue and licked her, he slid a second finger in.
Oh. Sweet. Lord.
Oh. Sweet. Stranger.
His mouth devoured her. His deep strokes within compounded the tension. He was good—so damn good her orgasm took her by surprise, sweeping through her with the force of a tornado.
She convulsed in ecstasy, writhing on the floor beneath his wickedly talented tongue.
Lexi was still reeling when he reached up and kissed her mouth. Her taste lingered on his lips, and her groin clenched in reaction. She shook from the aftermath of her orgasm, but emptiness seized her. Something was missing.
That something nudged her upper thigh.
She shifted so the head of his cock brushed her swollen lips. Her legs bent instinctively as she prepared to take him in.
“Wait.” He groaned as she rubbed her clit against him, need flooding through her.
She couldn’t wait another second. She wanted him inside, now.
“We…need a…condom.”
God. Yes, they did. In her pleasure-swamped state, she’d forgotten all about protection. Thank God one of them was rational enough to remember.
As he rifled through his pants and wallet, she dipped her hand down. He was taking too damn long. Her eyes closed as she touched herself.
Her swollen bud responded instantly. She stroked, imagining her hand was his. As good as it felt, it wasn’t enough. She delved between her lips and moaned. It was good. But still not good enough.
“Jesus.”
She opened her eyes. He stared at her, frozen. His cock was half sheathed in a condom. She pulled her finger out, only to slide it in again. Her carnal behavior shocked and excited her. She was fucking herself in front of him, and the more she did the faster his breath came.
It was good, but…
“Not enough,” she panted.
He was on top of her. Her arms were pinned at her sides, and he was driving into her. His thick, beautiful cock pushing into her, stretching her, filling her. Completing her.
Lexi screamed as he filled her to the hilt. She was beyond caring about her unrestrained and uninhibited behavior. All she cared about was him, driving her past reality and into a realm where sensation alone existed.
Shivers burst into full-blown raptures; her muscles clamped down around him and she came again. Waves of delight rolled through her for a second incredible time, and Lexi spun away in a cloud of delectable bliss.
Sanity returned slowly as the tremors ebbed away. His eyes were squeezed shut, his body rigid and his shoulders taut with the effort of remaining still.
She wrapped her legs around his waist and rolled her hips.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he fought to keep her movements in check. Lexi rolled her hips again.
With a fierce groan, her beautiful stranger let go of his restraint. He pulled out and thrust back in again, hard and fast, over and over. Coming so close on the heels of her orgasm, the friction against her inner walls sent her over the top. She cried out at the mad sensations swirling through her. It was too much. She’d never experienced anything like it before. She was too sensitive, she couldn’t…
Oh, God, yes, she could. She was going to.
Again.
Only this time, she was determined not to come alone. She clenched her muscles around him, and he cried out in response.
“Lexi,” he gasped and gave up all pretense of control. He plunged into her repeatedly, his movements wild and uninhibited, and she met him thrust for thrust. He filled her and enticed her and wowed her, and the tension built, stretching higher and higher and tighter and tighter until it snapped.
As her body gave way to the third and most powerful set of spasms yet, he gave one last thrust, his body stiffened, and he cried out her name and joined her as she tilted over the edge of reason and into a whirlpool of pleasure.
…
AJ lay in Lexi’s bed longer than he should have. Her head rested on his shoulder, and her breast was squashed against his chest. After the night they’d shared, wanting her again should have been a physical impossibility. His dick disagreed. The first stirrings of arousal prickled his belly.
He suppressed a groan and carefully, so as not to wake her, disentangled his body from hers. Slipping from the sheets tortured him. His heart objected immediately—unexpected pangs of regret tightened his ribs.
Christ, what had he done?
Broken his own cardinal rule, that’s what. He’d slept with the woman he’d vowed to keep at a distance. The woman he feared had the ability to break through his barriers and access his secret.
On a day-to-day basis, Lexi dealt with the circumstances almost identical to the tragedy he sought to bury in the depth of his fractured heart. How could he spend any more time with her and hope to keep his past to himself? Talking about it, sharing it with others, shredded his control. And without his control, he was powerless to stave off the despair and heartache.
He might have done a piss-poor job of stitching himself back together after Timmy’s funeral, but at least the stitches had held. He’d learned to function again. Breathe again. If so much as one stitch tore, he wasn’t sure he’d have the strength to survive the pain a second time.
He dressed quickly, knowing if he remained naked, desire would beat down his need for control. He’d caress her exposed breast, kiss her into wakefulness, and lose himself once more in her bewitching charms.
The sun peeked through the curtains. Time to leave. At least under cover of night he could pretend their encounter had been meaningless. Facing her in the clear light of day would be too much of a risk.
He’d put his heart on the line once before, and the experience had destroyed him. If he never again allowed himself the weakness of emotion, he’d be fine. But there was something about Lexi that threatened to evoke powerful emotions in him. Given half a chance, he’d let her in. She’d tunnel her way into his life and into his past, and she’d make him feel…something.
The very idea scared him shitless.
His shirt hung open—the only button still attached dangled on a thread. He shrugged on his jacket and mentally coerced his growing erection down. Shit, thinking about their night got him hot.
It was a damn good thing he’d never see her again.