Josh parked his truck in front of the address Hayley had texted him. It looked like a four-unit building, historic brick, and Hayley was in Unit 3 which he assumed was an upstairs apartment. He glanced at the second-story windows; there were no lights on, so she was probably still at the Sled Dog.

Josh grabbed the bottle of wine he’d brought from home, locked his truck, and tried the front door. Thankfully, it was open, leading to a shared foyer and stairwell. He sat down on the third step to wait.

He’d be the first thing Hayley would see when she stepped inside.

Hayley, Hayley, he thought. What are you doing to me, woman?

She’d surprised him all day. He was normally a private guy, not one to show much affection in public, but the instant he’d seen Hayley, he wanted to take her in his arms and taste her plump peach lips. He’d wanted to kiss her until he left her breathless—and he had, and she’d let him. In fact, she’d egged him on. Got him all hot and bothered and hard, several times throughout the day. She was a tease in the best possible sense of the word.

He checked his phone. No new texts. He peered out the window into the winter darkness and saw no one.

Come to me, Hayley.

Thirty long minutes passed, during which an elderly neighbor came through the door, wheezing as a result of the walk from his car to the front door. He said hello, and they chatted for a few minutes about the snowstorm heading their way. The neighbor offered to let Josh wait inside his apartment, but Josh assured him he was fine right where he was.

At last, Hayley arrived, flush-faced from her short walk, bundled up in a bulky blue coat and thick, solid boots, carrying the silver heels he’d chosen for her. He jumped up, clasping the bottle of wine in his right hand.

“I’m sorry, I would have picked you up if I knew you were walking,” he said.

“No worries!” Her eyes sparkled. “I walk home alone all the time.”

“How was your night?”

“It was good, but it’s even better now.” She paused and met his gaze. Josh saw the simmering desire in her hazel depths. He felt like grabbing her and ravishing her right then and there.

“Want to go upstairs?” she said, breaking eye contact with what seemed like reluctance. “See my bachelorette pad?”

“Sure. I brought wine.”

She went up the stairs ahead of him in her puffy parka, its outer material swishing as she made her way. He followed behind, ignoring the wide swath of blue in front of him, looking only at the sexy, strappy shoes dangling from her hand. She fumbled with her key, trying to open the door with her gloves still on. He took the key from her and opened the door.

She stepped inside and he followed, eager to see what her apartment looked like. As a paramedic, he was in and out of people’s houses all day and found most of them to be cluttered and untidy and generally displeasing, but hers, it turned out, was an absolute charm. She flicked the light switch by the door, and a living room lamp turned on, issuing a soft glow throughout the cozy space.

“Come on in,” she said. “Welcome to my humble abode.”

From the doorway, he took in the small apartment and thought, Now this is a home. Seeing Hayley’s, he realized his own house was in dire need of updating. Since he’d bought the place, the only major thing he’d done was replace the roof. All his available funds went towards the kennel and the racing. Now, seeing such a comfortable space, he sensed that he and Maggie were both probably suffering a psychic toll, living in a house they’d barely attempted to turn into a home.

He wanted what Hayley had—a place that made you feel good the moment you entered it. Everything coordinated nicely, from her framed prints on the walls to the color of her sofa pillows and throws. There were lots of plants, lots of candles, a fireplace, and a reading nook, complete with a cream-colored leather recliner and a Nora Roberts paperback open face-down on the seat of the chair. The apartment was definitely on the feminine side of things, decor-wise, but it wasn’t frilly.

“This is really nice,” he said. “How long have you lived here?”

“A little more than a year.” Hayley looked around, and he could tell the place brought her honest joy. “It’s my happy place.”

She unzipped her parka and he helped her remove it. As she pulled off her boots, he took off his jacket. There she was again in that sexy emerald dress. He didn’t bother to hide his up-and-down gaze. The way the dress flared at her hips, nipped in at her waist, and clung to her curvaceous breasts made him want to hitch it up, run his hands up her thighs, and explore her sweet secrets.

Hayley took a small step towards him.

The movement galvanized Josh. He wrapped his arms around her and they were kissing, tongues tangling together, his world narrowed to the smell and taste of Hayley. She tasted of cherry and cinnamon and whiskey, and while his body was on fire for her, at the same time he felt settled again, like he was back where he was supposed to be.

“Thanks for the photo you texted,” he murmured as he kissed her cheek, her neck, her eyelids.

Smiling, she pulled back to look at him. “Did you know it’s called an angel kiss when you kiss someone’s eyelids?”

He kissed her eyelids again.

“Maybe you’re my angel,” she said softly.

“What I plan to do with you tonight, Hayley, has more of the devil in me. You’ve got me all worked up.” Josh kissed her more deeply and let his hands roam across her back, feeling the body-gripping fabric of her dress. He took her hands and stepped back to admire it. Damn, but she had curves in all the right places. “Tell me—was the dress a hit?”

“The dress was a hit,” she said.

“Good. I’m sure you got plenty of male attention.” He felt it again, that painful flash of jealousy at the thought of other men flirting with Hayley. Asking her out. Dating her. Being granted the privilege to sleep in her bed. Still, he had to know. “Did you meet anyone interesting?”

She tilted her head to one side and gave him a small smile. “Let’s have some of that wine. I’ll get the glasses, and would you get the corkscrew from that drawer right there?”

Dammit, that means she did, Josh thought. Otherwise, she would have just said no. It surprised him how much he hated the fact.

Hayley entered her small kitchen, which was open to the living room with a counter separating it. As she pulled two large wine glasses from the cupboard next to the refrigerator, Josh opened the drawer she’d indicated and got the wine opener. A rich aroma of blackcurrant burst from the bottle of Bordeaux when he opened it. His brother Jack had given him the bottle the previous Christmas, and Jack was a wine snob, so Josh trusted it would be good. He poured them each a generous glass and handed one to her.

“Make a toast, Hayley.”

She smiled at the request and raised her glass. “Thank you for spending the day with me. Your dating coach skills so far make me wonder if I should hire you to work for my business!”

He clinked her glass. “And I’d like to thank you for sending me the very naughty picture you sent earlier. It was most appreciated.”

She winked at him, a sexy-sweet gesture that she pulled off to perfection. Then she sipped the wine. “Mmm. This tastes expensive.”

“I’ve been saving it for a special occasion,” Josh said.

“I’m glad this qualifies.” Hayley picked up a remote control from the kitchen bar, pressed a button, and flames ignited in her electric fireplace. Then she reached for her handbag. “I forgot to check the last couple messages you sent me.” Her smile was mischievous as she pulled out her phone. “Are they going to make me blush?”

“Not like the ones you sent me.”

His last two texts had been quite ordinary, actually. I’m heading over now, one said, while the other announced his arrival. Still, he liked watching her read his words.

He moved behind her as he sipped the elegant, full-bodied Bordeaux, thinking maybe Jack was onto something with his hunt for good wine. It made all the difference. A good wine was like a great kiss. It melted on his tongue and then the flavor evolved, deepened, as it spread throughout his mouth. It was a wine to be savored, as was his night with Hayley. He pulled her curvaceous backside against him.

“Mmm,” she murmured, tilting her head slightly back against his shoulder.

“Scroll up so I can see the picture you sent,” he said softly into her ear. “It was so hot.”

When she pressed her soft ass into his erection, teasing him, he moved his hand down between her legs and held it there, pressing gently against the fabric of her dress. Her breath caught and she stood perfectly still.

“What are you waiting for?” he murmured. “I said show me the picture.”

She complied, and there it was again, her shapely legs in those thigh-high stockings. Her silver heels had fuck-me written all over them. Her stockings were held up by lace bands, and Josh felt his way down her dress to them, outlining them through the fabric.

“What else are you wearing underneath this dress?”

“Only one way to find out, Josh.”

* * *

Hayley moaned against Josh’s mouth as he kissed her and stroked her softly. She wanted out of her dress. Needed him out of his clothes, too. Her craving to feel his skin against her own was nearly unbearable. But as much as she wanted to rush, there was beauty in the buildup. She was more aroused than she’d ever been in her life.

“Are you wearing a garter belt?” he murmured, his breath hot in her ear and his fingers expertly setting her desire on fire. She couldn’t help but let out another moan.

“Find out,” she said.

Hayley lifted her hair and held it to the side so it wouldn’t get caught in the zipper of her dress, and then half-turned around. Josh took the zipper, and she tingled with the anticipation of being naked before him, but he paused before beginning to drive it downward.

“The thing is, there’s more than one way to find out, and I like you in that dress.” With his free hand, he pulled a counter stool closer and patted it. “Here. Put your foot up here on the footrest.”

She then noticed her silver heels on the floor, where she’d set them when she came in.

“Ooh, my shoes!” she said, reaching for them. “Didn’t I promise to wear my sexy new shoes?”

“That’s right.” Josh took them from her and got on one knee to put them on, and Hayley felt like a sexy Cinderella with her very own Prince Charming.

A thrilling awareness pulsed through her as he lifted her dress just high enough to see the top of her thigh-high stockings and kissed her bare skin above where the stocking cut off.

“No garter belt,” he declared, and her sensation of arousal intensified as he kissed his way up the inside of her leg.

“Josh,” she murmured, half-pleading, holding onto the barstool for support, as she was more than a little weak in the knees. Keep going, she thought.

His hand ran up her other leg, fingers sliding across her bare skin. He stood up then, but his hand stayed on her thigh, and he stroked closer to the fabric of her black lace underwear. Her dress was getting in the way, so she hitched it up with one hand, aching for him to feel how wet he’d made her.

“Touch me,” she said breathlessly, arching her back. “Please touch me, Josh. Feel how much I want you.”

She gasped as he reached beneath her panties and touched her most tender place.

“Oh, Josh!” As she spread her legs further apart, he slid two fingers inside her. She began to move in primitive rhythm against his hand.

“I’ve been wanting this all day,” she said. “You were all I could think about.” She’d thought about him far too much, in fact, and hadn’t meant to admit it aloud. But the exquisite sensations his hand was generating were like a potent truth serum, opening her like a book.

“Are you going to come for me, Hayley?” He stroked deeper, with more urgency. “I want to feel you explode against me.”

His other arm pressed her close, and as she leaned her forehead against his, she heard how ragged his breathing was, how turned on he was.

“You’re so good, Josh,” she said, kissing him deeply. “I knew you’d be so good.”

“Come for me.” He fingered her deeply, pulsing into her, and moved his other hand to cover her breast, massaging through her dress. “I know you want to come for me.”

“I need you inside me. Please.”

“Not yet.”

The firm command of his tone, combined with the relentless pleasure of his touch, sent Hayley gasping forward, her orgasm now inevitable. Waves of unbelievable ecstasy thundered through her. She bucked hard against his hand as she came, clutching him against her, breathing his name like a prayer.

* * *

Josh loved how Hayley said his name, as if no one else would do. He felt every pulse of her muscles as she came against his hand, holding her close until she was trembling, so wet and ready for him.

“Josh … oh …”

He helped her off the chair, supporting her liquid-warm body, then he brushed away the hair covering the zipper of her dress and kissed her neck.

“I’m not even close to done with you,” he said, and she gave him a throaty little laugh in eager response.

Going slow was sweet agony. His cock was rock hard and ready, but he knew the value of drawing it out. He unzipped her dress and removed it deliberately, helping her free one arm and then the other. When he pulled the dress down to her waist, she reached around and unclasped her bra, letting it slip to the floor, followed by the dress. Then she turned around, clad only in a black lace thong, black thigh-high stockings, and the silver heels.

Josh’s throat went dry with arousal at the sight of her bare breasts.

“You,” he said, taking her in, “are a thing of beauty.”

Although he was desperate to hold those magnificent breasts, play with them, put his mouth on them, he took a moment to bend over and pick up her dress. He smoothed the wrinkles out of it and laid it across the counter.

Hayley smiled.

“Now,” he said, “where were we?”

* * *

Still shaky from the power of her first orgasm, Hayley trembled even more to see the intensity in Josh’s brown eyes, the hunger and the lust. He was going to take her and have her, and it was only a matter of time. Not taking his eyes off hers, he removed his watch and set it on the counter. How that was erotic, Hayley didn’t know, but it was. It spoke of control. Of deliberateness. Of a man who knew what he was doing.

He unbuttoned the top few buttons of his flannel shirt, untucked it, and unbuttoned the rest of the way. She wanted to slide her hands beneath the fabric of the shirt and begin to learn his body, but his eyes told her to stay where she was and simply watch.

Shirt removed, he hung it on the back of the other stool, and as he eased his shoes off with his feet, Hayley took note of his wide chest, his chiseled arms, his taut and athletic physique. She could see every ridge of every muscle and knew that didn’t happen by accident or circumstance. It took deliberate effort, a discipline she lacked. What a turn-on. He had a thin covering of brown chest hair, the perfect amount.

“If you ever leave firefighting, you could have a career as a male model,” she said.

“I’ll keep it in mind. Should I keep going?”

“You should keep going. Can I undo your belt?”

“No,” he said. “You just watch.”

“But I want my turn touching you.”

“You’ll get your turn.”

He unbuckled his belt and slid it through the waistband of his jeans. The soft whoosh sound of the friction of the leather sent a new quiver of desire through Hayley’s body. As he unbuttoned his jeans and unzipped them, she held her breath, eager to see his swollen cock burst forth, seeking her out.

“Ohhhh,” she said when she saw it, thick and hard and long. “You’re gorgeous.”

She wanted to fall to her knees and take him in her mouth. They were a few feet apart still, and she’d been patient, but enough was enough. She stepped to him, and he pulled her close. She wrapped her hand around his cock.

“So hot,” she whispered. “So hot and hard.”

He exhaled as if he’d been holding his breath for hours. “See how I burn for you?”

She suckled his earlobe and he groaned as she introduced the tip of his cock to her silken inner thighs, wrapping one leg around him. He ran his hands over her stockings and then over her bare ass, but it wasn’t enough for her. Her damn thong was in the way, and as he yanked it away from her, she ached to have him inside her, even for a second.

“You’re perfect, Josh.” She pulled him toward her and pressed the tip inside her. “Doesn’t that feel so good?”

He made a primal noise of agreement. She drew him a little further inside. Her folds enveloped over his thick shaft, and she wanted him deeper inside her. Needed him deeper inside her.

“On your back, please,” she told him and kissed him deeply as she guided him to the ground, to the bear skin rug that had never been used before for this purpose but in the moment, was perfect.

Slipping off the intrusive panties, she straddled him and took him in, all the way, as deep as possible. They locked eyes and the intimacy was a jolt to her very core.

* * *

Josh took one of Hayley’s breasts in his mouth as she moved slowly up and down his shaft. With his tongue he teased her breast in rhythm. Her whispered, growing moans told him she could orgasm at any time, and so he moved his hands to her hips and set her on a course he liked. She pressed her hands against his chest to brace herself, and he couldn’t take his eyes off her breasts, gorgeous and wild as she rode him to her pleasure, sliding up and down, slowly at first and then building to an urgency.

Her breath grew erratic, shallow, her face flushed in the firelight. He knew she was close. He wanted to take charge. To flip her on her back and spread her legs wide and pound into her. But her smile was dreamy and her eyes were closed in rapture, and so instead he lifted his hips and thrust against her as hard as he could from his position beneath her. She cried out and linked her fingers through his, pressing tightly into his palms as her rhythm hastened.

“Come again for me,” he ordered.

“I want to do this all night long.”

“We will,” he said. “But I’ve needed to come for hours, ever since you sent that picture, and I’ll come right when you do. So let yourself go, Hayley. Show me what you’ve got.”

It was all the permission she needed. Her movements turned frenzied as she rode him this way and that, faster and higher, and he thrust into her as deep as he could. With each thrust, she cried out in pleasure until finally she dug her nails into his shoulders and gave one final cry as her body shuddered in deep orgasm. She was hot and tight and wet, and when she tightened herself around his cock, he couldn’t hold on any longer and he, too, exploded in pleasure.

“Oh, Josh,” she said as she collapsed onto him. He moved his hands to her ass and gripped it, keeping her pressed into him. “I didn’t even know where I was half the time.”

“You’re right here on your lovely bear skin rug.” He leaned onto one elbow and brushed her hair off her forehead and kissed her. It was a kiss of thanks and of coupling and of completion. “You’re officially a vixen,” he said. “That was amazing.”

I’m in trouble, he thought as he watched her close her eyes and breathe him in. He kissed the top of her head and then closed his eyes and did the same, breathing in her special scent, pretending they could stay in the moment forever.

He was calm now, and at peace, not pent-up like he so often felt these days. There might be lone wolves out there on the outskirts of town, but he wasn’t one of them, not that night.

He was with Hayley, and being with her felt like coming home.