Chapter Three
The woman clutching Nate’s elbow would not stop talking.
He wasn’t listening—he hadn’t wanted to be in this conversation in the first place. But the woman—Sara? Dara? They’d hooked up a few times back in high school, but by the squeal she’d let loose when she’d set eyes on him, he’d have thought they were long-lost, star-crossed lovers.
He nodded and grunted at appropriate intervals, but his attention was fixed across the room on Ellie, who looked as trapped as he felt, caught in a conversation with her mother and her cousin Holly—And Nate remembered Holly. The woman had pursued him relentlessly all through senior year. Well, not just him—she would have been happy with Gavin or Lucas, too. They’d all agreed that they’d rather get their dicks caught in a mousetrap than inside that woman.
As Nate watched, Ellie’s expression turned strained under the attention of her mother and cousin. The brightness that he’d always loved about her drained away, and he couldn’t handle just standing by and watching it.
“Excuse me.” Abruptly he pushed away from Sara-Dara, but before he took a full step, she grasped his elbow.
“Wait!” She smiled in what he imagined was supposed to be a seductive manner as he half-turned back, impatience in every muscle. “Do you want to maybe meet up after this? Relive some old times?” She leaned in closer¸ brushing her breast against his arm.
Man, he should be used to these come-ons by now. For years, he’d even enjoyed them. But he’d grown tired of the game, something he’d been forced to recognize since discovering that Chase was getting married and that he’d be coming face to face with Ellie again.
“I have other plans.” He shrugged off the woman’s touch, feeling a slight pang of guilt as he heard her noise of dismay.
His fingers tightened on the drinks that he still held in his hands—a fruity martini for Ellie and a plain old domestic beer for himself. He would have preferred wine, but the selections had made him shudder. His feelings for Chase’s little sister may not have changed, but his taste buds surely had.
As he approached the small cluster of women, he heard Holly’s voice, unmistakable even after all these years. And a glance told him she was smirking as Mrs. Marshall spoke to her daughter.
“You’ll let Holly help you with your makeup for the wedding, Eleanor.” The older woman pursed her lips as she studied Ellie, who flushed under her mother’s harsh inspection. “I don’t know how many times I’ve told you. It takes more than decent clothing to look polished. Don’t you wear makeup when you see your clients?”
“Patients, Mom. They’re patients.” Ellie sighed, sounding annoyed even from a distance. “Because I’m a doctor, remember?”
“An eye doctor, not a medical doctor.” Mrs. Marshall sniffed. “I still don’t understand why you didn’t go further and become a real doctor, rather than taking the easy way out.”
“I like my profession, mom.”
Good girl, Nate thought, taking a long sip of his beer, fortifying himself. Ellie was a smart, successful professional woman. Who the hell did they think they were, putting her down?
“I’m going to introduce you to someone tonight, Ellie. Since we’re still waiting for your wedding,” Holly interjected, her smile just a touch too bright. “Harry is an ex of mine. He’s a real doctor.”
“I don’t think—”
“You can’t stay single forever. It’s not healthy,” her mother said in agreement.
Nate, on the other hand, vehemently disagreed. If she wasn’t with him, then he was quite happy with Ellie staying single. As long as he was nearby, no other man was going to get near her.
Leave it alone, Nate. Who she dates isn’t your business, he reminded himself. He’d agreed to be her wingman, after all. He frowned at the reminder, pushing those thoughts aside. For now, his mission was to get Ellie away from the women who were doing their best to steal her smile.
“There you are.” Moving quickly, Nate slid through the last throng of people and placed his hand on Ellie’s back. The warmth of the skin there was addictive, and he couldn’t resist rubbing his fingers over her flesh in a small circle.
“Nate!” He’d never seen a woman look more relieved. Damn it, but he liked how real she was. With Ellie there was never any of the phoniness always a part of the women he usually spent time with.
He pressed the martini into her hand, smothering a laugh when she downed half of it in one swallow.
“Mom, Holly, you remember Nate Archer.”
“Indeed.” Mrs. Marshall looked him up and down, lips curled in distaste, and he stared right back, impassively. “How… lovely… that you could make it,” she said, her words clearly at odds with her real feelings.
“Yes, I’m sure you’re thrilled that all of Chase’s oldest friends could be here.” He cast her a benign grin, one that would never let her know her attitude stung.
She’d never forgiven him for coming from the wrong side of the tracks and befriending her son. He could only imagine how she’d feel if he made a move on her daughter. Still, it felt damned good to face the woman after all these years, knowing he’d made a success of himself, a fact even she couldn’t dispute.
He slid the hand touching Ellie’s back up to rest on her shoulder, hugging her to his side. Despite his touch being casual, she stiffened, and her unexpected rejection took him off guard. Ellie had never been embarrassed to be seen with him in the past, and it never dawned on him that she’d have changed.
Had she? Or was he misreading her signals?
“We’re wanted at the bridal party table,” he said, determined to find out.
“Bye, Mom. Holly.” Without a backward glance, Ellie hurried away from the conversation. She tilted her martini glass to her lips as she moved, draining the rest of the liquid, then blinked down at the empty glass in surprise. “Oh. I didn’t mean to drink that so fast.”
“I’d say you deserved it.” Snagging it from her hand, he handed it off to a passing waiter. “Good thing I showed up to rescue you from your family.”
Craning her neck up—man, she was a little thing—she narrowed her eyes up at him. “I can take care of myself.”
“You can. But a little help never hurts.” He smirked down at her.
“True.” She flushed and started to move in the direction of the wedding party table, but he wasn’t ready to let her go.
Her reaction to his public touch niggled at him, wounding him deeply. Placing his hand on her shoulder, he steered her toward an emergency exit that was almost invisible behind one of the lush fabrics covering the wall.
“What are you doing?” Ellie asked. “I thought we were needed at the table.”
“I just said that to get you away from your mom and cousin.” He pushed through the heavy door and they exited the room. The air outside had retained the heat of the summer day, but carried the metallic scent of promised rain.
Nate suddenly craved a wild Washington storm, one that would wash away all the strange, painful, uncertain feelings that accompanied him being back in his hometown. A storm that would set he and Ellie on a clearer path.
He watched as she turned her face up to the sky, inhaling deeply. She’d clearly needed the break as much as he had and he gave her a moment to settle herself.
“Ellie.”
She met his gaze, curiosity in her big blue eyes.
“If you don’t like me touching you, I’d prefer you just say so.” He kept his voice mild, but inside he was feeling anything but. He didn’t want to stop touching her… he wanted his hands on her again and again and again.
“What?” Ellie’s eyes had been closed, but they snapped open at his words. “What on earth gave you the idea that I don’t like you touching me? I mean, why would you think …” That adorable flush stained her cheeks and his words obviously flustered her.
Interesting, he thought. Pushing his insecurities aside – and wasn’t that a kick, Nate Archer having insecurities when it came to women – he moved closer to Ellie. “When I put my arm around you in front of your mother, you stiffened. Why?” He fixed his stare on her face, searching for clues, intrigued by the flush spreading over her skin.
Ellie stared up at him wordlessly for a moment, and he found himself shifting restlessly under her bright stare, frustrated with his inability to read her thoughts.
“Oh, Nate.” She finally spoke and their connection clicked in again, the pull between them honest and real. “Of course I don’t mind you touching me in public. I never cared what my mother thought. I never will.”
He released the breath he hadn’t been aware of holding. She wasn’t ashamed of him, she never had been.
God, he’d been an idiot.
Ellie looked up at him with sky blue eyes. “You know, Nate, you have enough of a reputation with the ladies that I kind of figured you’d be a little less dense than this.” Huffing out an exasperated laugh, she patted him on the shoulder.
Freaking patted him, like he was a puppy – and had she really just called him dense? But she’d done him a favor, breaking not just the tension but his embarrassment at baring his soul and a weakness he’d preferred not to show.
“So we’re all clear now right? Touch me all you want.” Her eyes opened wide at that statement. “I mean … we’re fine.”
They were, he thought, aware that her sudden discomfort and rambling were signs. Damned good signs. Maybe he had been dense when it came to her, but now he wasn’t. Not anymore.
“Anyway, thanks for taking me out here and giving me a second to breathe. Now let’s head back in,” she continued, quickly turning and brushing past him in a sudden rush to get to the door.
He shifted deliberately so that she had to press up against his chest to get by. Her gaze flicked up to meet his, and she sucked in a startled breath. At the same time, her nipples beaded into hard points against his chest, and her lips parted, ready for a kiss, confirming his suspicions.
It wasn’t that Ellie didn’t like him touching her—it was that she did.
The realization, combined with that heady and familiar strawberry scent that seemed to emanate from her very skin, had him hardening uncomfortably against the harsh denim of his jeans.
They stood there for a long moment, lightly pressed together, breath mingling, the air around them thick with unspoken words and longing.
With any other woman, Nate would make his usual slick moves, kiss her and take her to bed. But this was Ellie. The woman he wanted most in the world—the woman who, he was now sure, wanted him back. But she was also the woman he’d thought he could never have because she was special. And she deserved more than perfected moves that meant nothing, so he let her go.
He’d need to approach her differently, he thought, processing the fact that not only was she different to him, but she caused him to act differently as well. It was worth letting the moment pass … for now.
She was worth the wait.
Nate took a moment to breathe a last mouthful of crisp air before he followed her back in, eyes trained on the sway of her body as she hurried across the room to their table, well aware that a distinct and irrevocable shift had just taken place. Before, he’d never considered that he could have Ellie. He’d never been good enough, and he hadn’t wanted to put Chase in the position of having to point that out.
But now that he knew Ellie wanted him too?
Holding onto his determination to keep his distance just became infinitely more difficult.
* * *
Nate arrived at the large circular table designated for the wedding party and caught up with Ellie. He touched her elbow and opened his mouth, planning to tell her that they weren’t done talking. But the words were swallowed in a chorus of hellos from friends he hadn’t seen in years, along with introductions to the others at the table.
“Nate. Son of a bitch.” Gavin pounded him on the back and Nate choked on a mouthful of beer. He glanced up to find the other man grinning, obviously pleased to see him.
Warmth suffused him and he turned away from Ellie to greet his old friend. “Shit, it’s been way too long.”
“Well, we’ve got time to catch up.” Gavin pounded on him again, his heavy thump on his back strong. Ex-soldier strong. “Sit down. Let’s drink,” Gavin said.
He gestured to a seat across the table from Ellie.
Too far. It wasn’t going to work for Nate. “I’d rather sit here.” He winked at his friend, then very deliberately slid into the seat next to Ellie instead.
She reached for her glasses, which of course weren’t there, a sure sign his nearness flustered her. Her reactions was really fucking cute, something that had never appealed to him in anyone but Ellie. And something he would have warned himself against thinking, but that little exchange outside—the realization that she wanted him too—had the alpha beast inside his ribcage pounding on its chest and declaring her as his.
Nate took another long swallow of his beer, listening to Gavin and Lucas with one ear as he eyed Ellie. As he watched, her gaze flickered over his guy friends, assessing them in a purely female way.
Nate narrowed his gaze, well aware of what she was doing—sizing them up for that one-night stand she was so hell-bent on having. And that same alpha beast inside him let out a low growl. She’d leave with Gavin or Lucas for a wild romp over his dead body. He refused to let anyone touch her but him. And oh, how he wanted to touch her. All over. To lay his palms on the sweet curves of her ass, and watch them flush with his mark.
He sobered at the thought. The other reason he ought to keep his distance. What would Ellie think if she knew what he liked when it came to sex? How would this strong, sassy woman feel about submitting in the bedroom? Would she hate him for his needs? The thought had a ball of ice forming in his gut.
He watched, on edge, as she talked to Gavin and Lucas, and when she laughingly dismissed them, turning away, relief filled him from head to toe. And when Ellie looked at him, then flushed and dropped her gaze, an electric current whipped over his skin.
Maybe… just maybe she wouldn’t be as opposed to his sexual preferences as he’d believed.
* * *
The other members of the wedding party were all seated at the same table, and once Ellie had had another drink and chatted a bit with most of them, she relaxed. While some of her family might make this weekend hellish, with these people, she could enjoy and be herself.
“So if I told you that you had a nice body, would you hold it against me?” Gavin Hunter, one of her brother’s groomsmen, settled back in the chair on one side of Ellie, and grinned at her, tilting his beer up to his lips.
“Been sitting on that one long?” Ellie rolled her eyes, but his compliment made her feel good, and she couldn’t help smiling. She gestured to his drink. “And how many of those have you had? That sentence had like twenty words. Don’t you usually settle for two?”
“Got to get through this charade one way or another.” Gavin shrugged and took another sip.
Ellie cast him a sidelong glance, assessing him as a potential candidate for her night. He’d always been a good-looking guy, even back when he thought that having a cigarette hanging out the corner of his mouth equaled irresistible sex appeal. With his rock-solid body, close-cropped hair, and pale green eyes—in a perfect world, he’d be a prime candidate for her currently empty one-night stand list.
Ellie stifled a sigh as she reached for her own drink, shooting down that thought immediately. Lame pickup line aside, she couldn’t muster up more than a whisper of attraction for him, and she knew exactly why – the man sitting on her other side.
Nate leaned in so close that Ellie could feel his warm breath the back of her neck. “Does Chase know you’re saying things like that to his baby sister?” he asked Gavin.
He spoke mildly, but when he placed his hand on Ellie’s shoulder and squeezed, the sensation of his fingers pressing into her skin felt… Well, it felt like he was marking her. And she couldn’t lie, it made her breath come a little faster and her pulse quicken.
“And why do you care, old buddy, old pal?” Gavin grinned before thumping his empty beer bottle down on the table. “Nate and Ellie, sitting in a tree…”
She rolled her eyes at his childish behavior. “Gavin, grow up,” she muttered, though her cheeks flamed in heated embarrassment.
She ought to be used to this old rhyme directed at her. Back in high school, when she’d actually had a crush on Nate, her brother had teased her mercilessly, as had Gavin and Lucas, and she hoped no one remembered or brought that up tonight.
She waited for Nate to react but he remained silent. Remembering their interaction outside, her heart pounded against her ribcage.
Gavin, who was obviously already a few steps past tipsy and on his way to drunk, pushed away from the table, presumably to get another. The chatter from the rest of the group—Lucas, another groomsman, and two bridesmaids who’d introduced themselves as Kate and Harper, along with Harper’s much older date—was loud. Almost enough to cover the sudden, heavy silence from the man seated on her left side.
“So he’s being ridiculous, huh?” she asked Nate, needing something to break the tension after Gavin’s teasing.
Bracing herself, she twisted in her seat to look at Nate. The mixture of emotions she found in his expression—definite heat, a touch of tenderness and a bit of possession—were startling and more than a little confusing. Because earlier when she thought for sure he’d lean in and kiss her, he’d backed off. She didn’t know what to make of his hot and cold behavior. And she wasn’t going to figure it out in the middle of a crowd.
“I’m going to get another drink,” she said, needing a break. She started to rise from her chair, and suddenly his fingers were at the small of her back again—and oh, she liked the way he touched her there.
Slowly, she sank back down into her seat.
“I don’t like Gavin hitting on you,” Nate said, a bit of dark surprise in his husky words.
“I didn’t like it either,” she admitted. Gavin wasn’t the one she wanted flirting with her.
In fact, there was only one man here tonight who made her blood sing—and he was staring at her, the corners of his lips curling up and a storm swirling in his eyes.
She’d never dreamt that Nate might actually be interested in her. And though she’d never been particularly adept at flirting, she’d have to be blind to miss the heat he was throwing out.
Without warning, a hand clamped down on her shoulder, interrupting her thoughts and causing her to jump.
“Evening, folks.” Her brother grinned down at them, interrupting and breaking the moment. “I’m so happy you’re here! You all came!”
She pushed aside the little hum of her interaction with Nate and turned to her brother. “Of course we came.” Ellie looked past Chase to where Meredith stood beside him, and they shared a mutual eye roll. “I’m your sister, remember? And these are your best friends? Where else would we be?”
“I know. But…” Chase exhaled deeply, then cast a look down at Nate, whose own expression seemed a little… tight. “I knew you’d come, Ellie. But Nate… I’m really glad you’re here.”
Why would Chase doubt that Nate would come? Before she could ask, Meredith pulled Chase along with her to greet the other bridesmaids. Ellie shrugged off the odd encounter as she watched Chase and Meredith settle into their seats.
Despite the fact that he was a little bit tipsy, Chase doted on his bride. The expressions on the couple’s faces made Ellie sigh a bit inside as she watched. She was happy enough being single—she’d never been the type to feel like she needed a man to complete her. But even with Miles, she’d missed the companionship that came with having someone real and true by her side.
And she’d be a big fat liar if she didn’t cop to missing sex. Oh she’d had sex with Miles. Nice sex. But she’d wanted hot, panty-melting sex. The kind she’d never experienced before. The kind a guy she desired badly could give her.
She cast a sidelong glance at Nate to find him watching her in return. The heat in his stare stoked the low flames already burning in her belly. She wanted him. And she was kind of getting the idea that he wanted her too—though she had no illusions that it would be for anything more than one night. His reputation assured her of that. But one night was all she needed to scratch the itch, right?
“I’m going to make a toast!” Chase banged his butter knife against his water glass, hard enough that Meredith winced and took it away from her fiancé, laughing.
“Easy, hon.” She placed a hand on Chase’s shoulder, and the look he cast her was so… just so full, that Ellie felt her heart swell.
She wanted that, too. Someday.
Chase got to his feet, not seeming to notice that Meredith had placed his water glass in his hand instead of the wine, which made Ellie giggle. “Everybody listen up!”
“Aren’t we supposed to be toasting you?” Lucas leaned back in his chair and grinned.
Ellie glanced around the table, catching Meredith’s sister Harper as she cast him an annoyed glance. But then Chase found his butter knife and knocked on his glass again, forcing Ellie’s attention back to her brother.
“Meredith and I are so happy that everyone could make it tonight.” Chase beamed around the table, reaching down at the same time to run a hand tenderly down Meredith’s cheek. “All the people we care about are here. But I especially want to give a shout-out to my three best friends.”
Beside her, Ellie felt Nate shift in his seat. Turning to look at him, she found his face set in unreadable lines.
“Luke, Gavin, Nate. You guys know why I thought you might not come.” Chase took a sip of his drink, drunk and happy enough to still not notice that it was water instead of wine. “But I’m so happy that you came to support me anyway. No matter what we told ourselves when we were kids—Meredith is the real deal. So here’s to the friends who are like my brothers.”
“What is he talking about?” Mystified, Ellie pinned Nate with a puzzled glance as Chase sat back down.
Nate paused, mouth pinched tight, and she waited for an explanation. Finally he shook his head, and when he stilled, his features had smoothed out again. “He… was worried that we … wouldn’t approve of Meredith.”
“Why not?” Ellie shot back, instantly defensive of her soon to be sister-in-law. “She’s fantastic. And perfect for Chase.”
“It’s a long story.” Nate groaned, and when he again looked at Ellie, the look was assessing. The naked heat in his stare would have made her knees buckle if she hadn’t already been seated.
She leaned forward, just a bit, leaning in for… well, for what, she wasn’t entirely certain but by the look in his gaze … he was going to kiss her. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest.
“Ellie.” His warm breath fluttered over her mouth.
Was he going to kiss her?
No. He couldn’t. She couldn’t. Chase would kill them both.
She didn’t care.
She had to care. They were sitting right across the table from her brother.
Embarrassed heat suffused her skin, her own breath came out heavy as she straightened, certain her feelings must be obvious to everyone around them.
“Wait.” It almost killed her to do it, but she pulled back from Nate.
He blinked at that single word, then slowly, as if waking from a trance, he shook his head, that guardedness returning to his gaze. “I’m sorry. That was… inappropriate.”
He reached for his beer, which Ellie noted was empty and rose to his feet. “I’m going to get another drink,” he said in a cool voice. “Would you like one?”
She immediately thought of their conversation outside, and realized what he’d read in her withdrawal. She waited for him to look back at her; when he didn’t, she grabbed his hand. “Nate.”
He met her gaze with his colder one.
“Remember what I said outside? I don’t care who sees you touching me.” She waited for what felt like forever for her meaning to sink in. “Just… maybe not at my brother’s rehearsal dinner? While he’s sitting right there?”
Nate cocked his head to one side, and in that moment, as his stare raked over her, she felt as though he could see through her, read every nuance of her intense feelings.
Finally he nodded, the corners of his lips turning up in the barest hint of a smile. “I’ll be right back.”
Her pulse thundered as she watched him walk away from the table.
Wow. Just… wow. She’d come here tonight hoping for a one-night stand. Hot guys were everywhere tonight. And, she thought as she looked down and discreetly adjusted her dress, her boobs looked damn good. It would probably be smarter not to put her heart on the line, to find someone else.
But this thing between her and Nate, whatever it was, ensured nobody else would do. It was Nate. Or no one.
Fidgety in Nate’s absence, she decided to head to the washroom for a quick makeup check, only to be stopped when someone sank into the seat that Nate had just vacated.
“Hi,” her new companion said, sending her a flirtatious smile.
“Um, hello.”
She regarded him in return, slightly puzzled.
He looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn’t quite place him. He bore more than a passing resemblance to John Mayer. Boy next door, with an edge. He was dressed in a gray suit that hinted at a nice body, and when he shifted in his seat, the whiff of cologne that reached her nose was pleasing.
“You must be Ellie. I’m Harry.” The man offered a hand, casting her a shy but sexy smile and she found that she couldn’t help but smile in return.
“I’m sorry, but do I know you?”
“Your cousin Holly said she mentioned me?”
“Oh! Yes.” In that earlier conversation, where Ellie’s attention had been focused on Nate.
And when a look over her shoulder told her that Nate was deep in conversation with Sara Stone, who Ellie distinctly remembered was one of his high school exes, she experienced a heavy pang of annoyance.
She knew Nate would come back. But damn it, she wanted him now.
Shifting in her seat so that she didn’t have to look at Sara flirting with Nate, she focused her attention on Harry. He really was quite attractive. He seemed well-groomed, and the smile on his face said he was eager to please. Compared to the heat Nate’s smile generated or the tingles his touch on her back set off, though, she felt less than nothing. But, surrounded by her family, she had no choice but to be polite.
“Um, you’re the doctor, right?” she asked him.
“I hear that I could say the same to you.” Harry smiled, clearly more at ease now that the conversation had been initiated. “Optometry, is it?”
And not a single mention of the fact that her family didn’t see her as a real doctor. Well, that was nice.
She didn’t want nice. She wanted tall, dark and dangerous.
“Ellie.” A fresh martini appeared in front of her, accompanied by that rough voice that made her tingle. “Here’s your drink.”
“Nate.” She looked up, and as soon as her eyes met his, she felt it—that slap of heat. “Care to introduce us?” he asked, glaring at Harry.
Ellie blinked. “Yes. Nate, this is Harry. Harry, Nate.”
Harry stood and smiled, offering his hand, but the smile slipped off his face at the ferocity of Nate’s expression.
“Nathan Archer,” Nate said in a low growl.
“I’ve followed your career, it’s been very impressive,” Harry said, attempting to make polite conversation.
“Thank you.”
“My cousin introduced us.” She stood, unable to stop herself from moving closer to Nate. “Harry is a doctor.”
Looking Nate right in the eye, she cocked her head, arched an eyebrow. Dared him without words to make the next move, to declare himself as more than her wingman for the night.
He grinned and heat shot straight through her. He wrapped an arm around Ellie’s waist, the feel of his fingers digging protectively into her skin causing electricity to flow through her body. Every inch of her responded to his possessive hold and the look of ownership on his face.
Alpha men had never really been her thing—at least, the men she dated certainly didn’t fall into that category. But having Nate go all macho caveman over her? She needed a tall glass of ice water. Maybe a fan. She’d never admit it out loud, but if he wanted to grab her hair and drag her back to his cave, she wouldn’t put up much of a fuss.
Harry looked from Ellie to Nate, then back to Ellie again, before taking a step back. “Well. It was nice to meet you, Ellie. I think I’ll be getting back to my table.”
“Nice to meet you,” she murmured.
“Right.” Harry cast her an uncomfortable smile before walking away. The second he was out of earshot, Ellie leaned into Nate.
“And what was that, hmm, wingman? I think you might have just cock-blocked me.” She’d never been much good at flirting, but this thing with Nate was like a force of its own, carrying her along in its wake.
“Damn straight I did.” Nate closed the space between them. Cast a surreptitious glance around their table, eased back just a bit. “If anyone is going to have his hands on you, Ellie, it’s going to be me.”
Ellie fought shivers that took hold of her body and yes, her emotions, leading her to acknowledge that yes, she was going to pay for this moment at the end of the weekend. When Nate walked away.
Right now? She didn’t care.
He slid his hand from her waist to her lower back, pulling her in closer and she shivered, her body trembling in delight.
“This isn’t a good idea, me holding you like this,” Nate muttered.
“No, it’s not,” she said softly. The buzz of voices surrounded them, but she couldn’t see anyone or hear anything else, her world entirely focused on Nate.
“If you knew what I wanted from you, you’d be disgusted.”
Her pulse stuttered at the raw admission. He wanted her. All she had to do was meet him halfway.
But that comment … “Are you talking about the kinky stuff?”
Surprise painted his face before dark interest dawned. “Explain.”
She squirmed under his gaze. “Well, the tabloids. There have been articles about you … about things that you like. In the… bedroom.” And she’d be lying through her teeth if she said that those articles hadn’t fueled her curiosity, hadn’t powered more than one hot, sweaty, sexy dream.
He cleared his throat. “And if you knew what those things entailed, you’d run. You’d be smart to.” He dipped his head, his breath warm against her ear, his voice harsh. “I like my sex hard and hot, Ellie.”
Ellie wasn’t sure what a hot flash felt like, but she was pretty sure that his words had just given her one. She grew dizzy listening to his words, knowing that at the end of this conversation she’d have Nate.
“Perfect for my one-night stand,” she said, biting her bottom lip, her breath catching in her throat.
“Blondie,” he said on a low growl, with a smile so wolfish and seductive she could almost believe he wanted to take a giant bite out of her, and her heart slammed hard against her ribcage.
But behind that grin was a seriousness that told her he wouldn’t touch her unless he was absolutely sure about what she wanted. “Think about what you’re saying.”
“I’ve thought about it for years. I’ve thought about you.” She swallowed after forcing the words out. “This is what I want.”
His expression darkened, and he laced his fingers through hers, tugging her up. “Come dance with me. Take time to be sure.”
She didn’t have to think about this, she already knew. She wanted… oh, she knew what she wanted. The dampness between her thighs, and the way her heart pounded hard in her chest, made her need perfectly clear.
But this was Nate. Dangerous, delicious Nate who would take what she gave … and be gone in the morning. That’s why she had to take his advice, and think.
It was easy to say she was okay with a one-night stand. Another to go through with it when the man in question was the answer to all her dreams. But if she wanted Nate, she had to accept his terms.
And if knowing he’d be gone in the morning made her feel hollow inside… well, she was a big girl. She’d deal with her emotions when the time came.