Kellie Flannigan hadn’t been kissed in over a year. Her entire body was quaking to be had by the man who was set on using her to win a bet. Her thoughts went to the dark side for a while as he made her moan and groan with his touch and his talented mouth. What else could he do with that tongue, she thought?

What would it really hurt to let him do to her what he wanted to? She needed sex, didn’t she? It had been a long time, who would blame her for giving into the man?

He was an Adonis with a knack for love-making, Kel could tell. So what if he was going to love her and leave her?

His mouth left hers, trailing kisses up her neck then he whispered in her ear, “You feel like home to me, kitten.”

The Irish anger ran through her, making her head take over where her libido was letting her down. He was a liar!

Kel decided to see just how far the man would go to get what he wanted from her. “Home. Ethan?” she murmured as she ran he legs around him and arched her body up to his. “Tell me about home.”

His teeth grazed her neck then he said, “Home, my love. You’re making a home for you inside my heart.”

Fury filled her, but she kept that under wraps as she said, “Your heart, Ethan? So soon?”

When he pulled his hot mouth off her neck to look into her eyes, she hated the fact he could seem so damn sincere as he said, “My heart is pounding like it never has before. You’re bringing out more in me than anyone ever has. Can’t you feel the sparks that are shooting between us?”

She could feel that too. Only she was pretty sure hers were coming from a lack of sex in the last year. “I do feel them, Ethan. My sweet knight in shining armor.” Kel took his handsome face between her hands and pulled him in for another kiss.

It wasn’t in her nature to be such a liar. She was already feeling somewhat remorseful for what she was doing to the guy. As she let her body move the way it wanted to, she kept her head straight. Well, she tried to anyway. Now and then as his kiss and touch took over, she’d lose her thoughts about how Ethan was a man who was using her to win a stupid bet. But she’d regain her sense soon after.

Kellie Flannigan would never be hurt the way she’d been again!

It occurred to her to give Ethan a shot at being a decent human being. She pulled her mouth away from his as she looked intensely into his eyes. “Ethan, you should know that I’ve been alone for a little over a year. My fiancé of two years left me, suddenly. He told me he wasn’t ready to get married.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Ethan said, and he meant it.

“Then he married another woman in just a matter of months. So, you see, he was ready to get married, just not to me. And the pain I felt and still feel is a thing I’d rather not have. Do you understand me?”

Ethan looked at Kel for a long moment before figuring out what he thought she wanted to hear. “I know your pain, Kel. I do. But you can’t stop living and loving because of what he did to you. If you want to know what I think, I believe he was a damn fool. But honestly, I’m glad he left ya. If he hadn’t, I’d never been able to taste you like this. And that would’ve been a damn shame.”

Kel couldn’t believe how easily he let those words slip off his forked tongue. The man was a snake. An evil snake!

Her heart was pounding with anger but Ethan thought it was desire and passion that had her heart beating so loudly, he could hear it. He kissed her again, sure that soon he’d be able to make his move that would win him the bet.

Kel was having a difficult time controlling her temper. She was aggressively raking her nails over his back. Even with his shirt on, she was pretty damn sure she was leaving marks all over him. Then she went one step further, wrenching her mouth away from his then biting, sucking, and kissing his neck until a beautiful purple mark was left.

Secretly, Kel hoped Ethan had a girlfriend who’d be pissed at him for what he’d done. There would be no hiding the fact he’d been with another woman. And she was happy he’d be in for a fight. If Ethan had a real woman in his life.

Her curiosity was peaked, so she asked, “Can you be honest with me, Ethan?” She ran her hand over his five o’clock shadowed face.

“Sure, my love,” he said as he took her hand and kissed her palm.

“Do you have anyone in your life? You know, a woman?” She searched his eyes for any evidence that he was telling her the truth.

“There’s no woman in my life, Kel. I’m a free man. I can do what I want with whomever I want,” he licked her palm, making her body shiver.

His swollen male appendage pressed against her sweet spot, making it pulse with more want for him than she’d ever had for anyone before. She knew she could have him. If only for one time but it seemed like it’d be worth it. “Do you want me?” she asked him.

His eyes sparkled as he answered her, “I do. Do you want me, Kel?”

She smiled a devious smile. “I do. But is this only for one night, Ethan?”

A brief blankness made up his expression then it swiftly went into a sweet smile. “Not if you want more than that.”

Could she believe him? Could he be telling her the truth? Would he stick around or give her his number?

“Really?” she found herself asking, even though she knew she shouldn’t believe him. But she so wanted to.

Ethan was everything Kel had ever wanted in a man. He was all man and knew how to push her sexual buttons. She loved his body, his smile, his eyes. He spoke in a way she found interesting and enjoyable. He was, what seemed to be, the complete package.

She wondered if things had been different. If there’d been no bet, would Ethan still have sought her out?

He kissed each one of her fingertips as he answered her, “Really, Kel. Tonight doesn’t have to be a one-time thing for you and I.” He meant it too. The bet wasn’t about having sex then leaving the woman. It was just about who got laid first. He could keep things going with Kel if he wanted to.

The fact was, Kel was stirring him in ways no other ever had. Why would he stop seeing her?

The way she gazed into his eyes told him she was a bit worried about what he’d said. He knew she’d been deeply hurt by what her jackass of a fiancé had done to her. He had no want to hurt her. As a matter of fact, he wanted to get to know the woman he held in his arms. She was the beauty to his beast, that was certain.

“Ethan, how can I trust you?” Kel asked him. “How can I be sure you’re telling me the truth and not just telling me what you think I want to hear?”

He reached into his pocket and took out his cell. “Give me your phone.”

Kel didn’t have her phone with her. It was in her purse, behind the bar. “I don’t have it on me.”

“Tell me what your number is then,” Ethan said and opened up his contact list. He typed in her name and waited for her answer.

“555-677-5599,” she told him, giving him her real phone number.

“Your address?” he asked.

She wasn’t sure about giving him that. He might make his way to her house that night after she ran out on him if he had her address. “Not yet,” she said, stalling him. “Maybe after you call me, then we’ll see about that.”

“Oh, I’m going to call ya. On that, you can count,” he said then put his phone back into his pocket. “Can we get back to where we were?”

She nodded and put her arms around his neck and let him kiss her again. Things were proving harder to do than she’d thought they’d be. Ethan was either a fantastic liar, or he was being real with her. Kel wasn’t sure which but she knew making-out with him was a thing she’d remember forever!