I couldn’t go one more microsecond without touching her. Her cheek felt the same—smooth as silk, warm. Her lips as dark and luscious as ever. She was wearing her signature Dockers and button-down white shirt—probably her work clothes, or maybe all she had in her wardrobe—but she’d pulled her hair back into a sexy high ponytail instead of into that tight schoolmarm bun. It flowed down her back in a sleek, dark waterfall.

“Let me taste that meaty fruit,” I said, and I brushed my lips across hers.

She parted them, and I slid my tongue inside. She was more assertive in her kisses now, meeting me with her own tongue, opening her lips more freely. Still, I could tell she was holding back. We both were, truth be told.

We were testing the waters. Deciding if the chemistry we’d had on the island was still there. Had it just been an island romance between two single people whose friends were all paired up?

I deepened the kiss, groaning into her mouth.

No. The chemistry was definitely still there.

As much as I wanted to lift her in my arms and take her into my bedroom, I knew that would be a mistake. She had only just lost her virginity. I couldn’t move too fast. I didn’t want to scare her away.

I broke the kiss and smiled at her. “Hungry?” I asked.

She nodded. “Definitely.”

Did she mean hungry for food…or something else? After that kiss, any other woman might mean something else. But Ruby Lee? I knew her well enough to know she meant food.

“Then step aside while I sear some scallops. It doesn’t take long.”

“Can I do anything to help? I’m pretty good in the kitchen.”

“I already made a salad, and green beans are steaming. I’m serving the scallops over a fresh corn relish, which I already made as well. You can get that out of the fridge if you’d like.”

“Sure. Can I set the table or anything?”

Set the table? I was used to eating alone. I never set the table. I just grabbed a plate out of the cupboard, utensils out of the drawer, and served myself from the stove. I should have thought of that. I hadn’t had a woman here in quite a while.

“Yeah, that’d be great.” I gestured to a cupboard. “Plates are in there. Silverware in the drawer below.”

She fiddled around setting the table while I seared the scallops. I seasoned them only with salt and pepper. The succulent flesh of sea scallops needed nothing else. I quickly put them on a serving platter. This was all so new. All I could think about was that I’d have three times the dishes to clean up, but hey, this was a dinner date, after all.

Once all the food was on the table, I filled two glasses of water and refreshed both of our wineglasses. “Dinner is served,” I said.

She smiled and sat down.

I took her plate. “This is a dish I invented. The corn relish is made with fresh corn, a mild vinaigrette, and salt and pepper. Top it with the seared scallops. I hope you like it.”

“It looks wonderful,” she said, as I set her filled plate in front of her.

“Shit. I forgot the salad.” I got up and got it out of the fridge, tossed it in some balsamic vinaigrette, and served her some on her already filled plate.

“You gave me enough to feed an army,” she said.

“From what I recall, you’re not shy when it comes to food.”

“True enough.” She took a bite of scallops and corn. “Mmm. This is fantastic.”

Watching her eat was a joy. She relished her food. She wasn’t worried about eating too much in front of a guy or getting fat. As much as she worked out, she didn’t need to worry about that. Plus, the stress of her job probably kept her metabolism moving at a rapid pace.

She cleaned her plate in short order and had seconds of green beans.

“Save any room for dessert?” I asked her.

“Oh, no. I couldn’t possibly eat another bite,” she said, licking her lips.

“Good,” I said. “Because that’s not the kind of dessert I was talking about.”

She fidgeted nervously. “I see.”

“Look, we don’t have to.” Though the thought of the case of blue balls I’d be nursing was nearly unbearable.

“I… I think I’d like to. I just wasn’t expecting anything, you know?”

“What do you normally expect when a man asks you over for the weekend?” I regretted the words as soon as they left my mouth. She’d never spent a weekend with a man before. She’d never dated before, never had sex before…until recently. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

“It’s okay. Most women my age have spent the weekend with a man before. It was an honest mistake.”

“Not really. I know you now. I shouldn’t have been so thoughtless.”

“It’s okay.” Her lips trembled a bit.

I stood and helped her out of her chair. I looked into those soulful blue eyes. “Ruby, I want to go to bed with you. I want to go to bed with you a lot. We give each other something. You may not realize that since you don’t have any experience, but I can truly say that what we have together is special. I’ve told you that before, haven’t I?”

She nodded. “You have. And I…enjoyed our time together very much. Too much, really.”

“What do you mean?”

“You have to understand. This isn’t anything I ever wanted. I mean…ever thought I’d want.”

“So you don’t want it?”

“No, I want it. I just don’t want to want it.” She shook her head. “No, even that’s not true. I want it. Plain and simple.”

“I’m very happy to hear that. Because I want it too. I want you.”

She fell against me, and I crushed my mouth to hers. She opened instantly, not tentative as she usually was. She was giving in. Giving in to the heat between us, the desire thick in the air.

I kissed her thoroughly, deeply, letting our tongues tangle, our lips slide together. I grabbed her ponytail, and with my other hand, began unbuttoning her perfectly pressed Oxford shirt.

She tensed under my fingers at first, but then relaxed.

Her breasts were still encased in her bra—I’d never seen her in a bra before—and I cupped one, full and firm in my hand.

We kissed and we kissed. I ached for her to unbutton my shirt as I had hers, but she didn’t. Perhaps she was feeling too timid. So I broke the kiss.

“Undress me, baby,” I said breathlessly. “Please.”

She looked around. “Shouldn’t we…”

“What? Go to the bedroom?”

She nodded.

“What’s wrong with here? I’m going to set you on the table and slide my cock inside you. God, I’m hard just thinking about it.”

“Lord,” she moaned. “All right.” She shakily started on the buttons of my shirt. “You look great in black,” she said shyly.

“You look great in everything. But you look the best in nothing.”

She let out a nervous chuckle and continued. Soon she parted the two sides of my shirt and ran her hands over my chest. My nipples hardened for her instantly. My cock was already granite solid.

“You look the best in nothing too,” she said, out of breath.

I closed my eyes, reveling in her touch. “Yes, touch me all over. My chest. My abs. Your touch drives me crazy.”

She smoothed the shirt over my shoulders, and I opened my eyes. For the first time, I regarded her bra. Basic white, no lace or adornments of any kind. So very Ruby. I couldn’t help but smile.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing, baby. Let’s get that bra off you.” I brushed her shirt over her shoulders and then unclasped her bra, throwing both garments to the floor.

Ricky clambered around us, looking for attention. I let him outside.

“You didn’t have to do that,” she said. “I don’t mind him.”

“I do. I want you all to myself.” I set her on the table and removed her loafers and socks. Then I unbuckled her belt, undid her Dockers, and slowly pulled them over her hips and onto the floor. Her underpants were basic white cotton. How I missed the blue lace she’d been wearing the last night in Jamaica.

I inhaled. She was ripe for me already. Sweet vanilla musk. I resisted the urge to rip the panties from her. I didn’t want to scare her. So I dragged them over her hips, leaving them on the floor with her pants. Then I spread her legs.

And saw paradise.

I had bright track lighting in my kitchen. Every other time I’d seen Ruby with her legs spread, we’d been outside in the dark under the stars. The moonlight had done her justice, but right now, I could see her dark pinkness, her wetness, every part of her delicious pussy.

I fingered her folds, relishing the soft sigh from her lips. “You’re beautiful, baby. Absolutely beautiful.”

“I’m feeling…embarrassed.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re looking…down there.”

I laughed. “I’ve seen you ‘down there’ before, you know.”

“I know. But it was dark. And we were in a foreign country.”

“What’s a foreign country have to do with it?”

“I could… I could pretend. I could pretend I was someone I wasn’t. That I was beautiful. That I was the kind of person who wasn’t afraid of…”

“Afraid of what? You don’t strike me as a person who’s afraid of anything, Ruby. You’re a cop.”

“Cops are still afraid,” she said. “But that’s not what I’m talking about.”

“What, then?”

“Afraid of men, damn it. Afraid of men.”

I looked into her searing blue eyes, removing my fingers from her pussy. “You know you have nothing to fear from me.”

“Of course I know that. I wouldn’t have come if I were afraid. It’s just…” She heaved a sigh. “Now is now. Now is reality. We’re no longer on a tropical island.”

“No, we’re not.”

She shook her head. “Of course, even that beautiful island had a dose of reality.”

I cupped her cheek. Those perfect lips were in a frown, but God, she was still beautiful. “Do you really want to go there right now?”

“No. Absolutely not. I’m sorry.”

“Ruby,” I said, “we’re no longer in Jamaica, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be the people we were then. We’re the same people no matter what, baby.”

“Of course. I know that. I wish I could make you understand what I mean.”

I thumbed her soft cheek. “I do understand. I do. We were in paradise, under the stars, the waves rolling in the distance. But I promise we can recreate paradise right here.” I laughed. “I’ll even turn on the television. I’ll bet we can find ocean sounds on one of the music channels.”

That got a laugh out of her. “You just made me see how ridiculous I’m being. But please understand, this is still all very new to me.”

“I do. I get that. We don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to. Even though you’re sitting on my kitchen table naked.”

“And it’s cold on my butt, by the way.”

“I can take care of that.” I lifted her in my arms and carried her out of the kitchen, through the hallway, to my bedroom. I set her down on my comforter. “Better?”

“I suppose.”

“You suppose?”

She nibbled on her lower lip. “I knew what would probably happen when I agreed to come here. I’m not naïve.”

“Never thought you were.”

“I don’t really know how to explain what I’m feeling. It’s not apprehension. I want you. I do. It’s not fear. I’m not sure what it is.”

My balls were aching, but I’d go at her pace. Not like I had a choice. “Tell you what. Do you want to go sit in the hot tub and relax for a while? We’ll see how things go. However they go, you are welcome here. I have plenty of spare bedrooms.”

She smiled. “You have a hot tub?”

“Right outside. By the pool.”

“You have a pool? I thought you said this is Talon’s guest house?”

“It is.”

“Wow.”

Now wasn’t the time to impress her with Steel money, so I divested myself of my boots and jeans, wrapped a towel around my waist, handed her a large towel from the bathroom, and then scooped her up. “Ready?”