“Pay for the drinks, Graham,” she said.
Hooking an eyebrow, Graham turned to her.
“Unless you don’t want me to see you in those boxer briefs?”
Like magic, his wallet appeared. Tossing enough cash to cover the drinks and tip on the bar, he pulled her to her feet. “You sure?”
Tess slid her hand up his lapel, cupping his jaw and dropping a light kiss on his lips. “We’re not going to overthink this.”
He pulled her toward the door. “Cab?”
“My place isn’t far. Let’s walk.”
“Or run.” He spun her into his arms, pressing her against the rough brick, not caring a homeless man slept in the alcove a few yards away.
Tess tugged his head down, her mouth eagerly meeting his. This time she wasn’t stingy with opening her mouth and it inflamed her even more. He pressed himself against her, sliding his hands down to her hips in order to pull her against his erection. Warmth turned to frenzied fire.
“Oh,” she breathed, her hands knotting in his short wavy hair. “Maybe we better hurry.”
He smiled against her.
“Yeah, y’all should,” the old bum squawked. “Unless you want a little company.”
“No, thanks,” Graham called, wrapping an arm around Tess and pulling a five out of his pocket and dropping it in the man’s tipped-up hat. “Something for you, sir.”
“Not as good as what you’re about to get, brother,” the man cracked.
“True,” Graham called out over his shoulder, not slowing up as they crossed Canal Street. Several blocks later she pulled her keys from her purse, struggling to keep her hands from shaking. Right before she pushed through the front entrance of the building, Graham caught her elbow. “You sure?”
She looked up, surprised he’d try to stop now. “You trying to talk me out of having hot, uncontrollable, slightly dirty sex with you?”
He swallowed, his teeth flashing in the darkness. “That’s what’s on the menu?”
“It’ll be better than the stuffed mushrooms you turned down. I promise.” She held the door open with no regret.
“I like your confidence.”
* * *
GRAHAM ROLLED OVER and glanced at Tess asleep in the moonlight. Long lashes lay against her upper cheeks. The smattering of freckles were more pronounced against her luminous skin. Wild locks of dark gold mixed with light brown caught in the light. She looked so innocent.
And not so much like the hellcat who had pinned him down, taken control and brought him the most excruciatingly pleasurable orgasm he’d ever experienced.
And it wasn’t just the skill Tess possessed in bed, it was the passion she plied it with. She’d taken his breath away as she made love to him with both reckless abandon and deliberate focus. Her girl-next-door vibe hid a consummate lover.
Thank God he’d invited her to dinner.
She’d fit him perfectly. The projections and reliefs of her body meeting his in such a way he’d felt like a jigsaw puzzle finally completed. Sounded hokey, but he felt that way. He’d never met someone like Tess—a woman he’d had an immediate connection with. Walking into her world felt like a fate thing.
“Mmm,” she groaned snuggling against his body, her lovely breasts brushing his chest as she wound an arm around his lower stomach. “That was soooo good.”
“Beyond good,” he said, pushing a hank of hair from her face.
She opened those gorgeous eyes and blinked sleepily up at him. “I fell asleep. Sorry.”
“Why?” he whispered, sliding a hand down to cup her bottom. She arched against him, sliding a leg over his, fitting herself to him and giving him better access.
“I don’t want to sleep tonight. I want to make love all night. That was an appetizer. Remember?”
“Right.” He pulled her atop him, sighing as she allowed her legs to fall to either side of his hips. With her breasts plumped against his chest and her smiling eyes studying him, he almost believed he could fall in love with a woman in less than twenty-four hours.
Lifting his hips, he teased her with his stirring erection. “Ah, Tess, you might kill me tonight.”
“Then we’ll die happy.” She lowered her mouth to his, dropping tiny kisses against his lips. “I don’t want morning to come. Let me have these hours.”
He cupped her ass and moved her against him. He wanted to be inside her again. But not yet. Not until he tasted every inch of her. Not until he made her shudder and arch against him. Not until she screamed his name, grabbed the sheets and lost every ounce of sanity she possessed.
He might be a geeky engineer, but he was a determined geeky engineer who prided himself on his attention to detail...and he was about to get it so right with Tess.
Flipping her, he pulled himself back, staring at her in the faint light before dropping his head and tugging her nipple into his mouth. He glanced up as she sighed and closed her eyes. Minutes later after making her writhe beneath him, he slid down her soft belly. “Your appetizer was good, baby.”
Her only response was a moan. Graham ducked his head and rained kisses around her belly button. “But I’m hungry for dessert.”
“Oh, sweet—” Tess arched against him as he slid lower.
“You taste so good,” he murmured, his hands lifting her hips.
Tess’s hands slid to his hair, fisting in the depths. “Graham.”
He sighed as he lowered his head and dropped kisses along her hip bone. “I’m so glad I walked into that bar and saw you. It’s like getting the sweetest of gifts, Tess.”
“Oh, Graham,” she begged, wiggling her hips. “Please—”
And so he gave her what she wanted.
* * *
BY THE TIME Tess slid from her bed, she’d managed a good hour or two of sleep and that was it. She’d be toast for her meeting, but she had no regrets.
All night, she and Graham had laughed, dreamed and made love on those new sheets, and it had been the most wonderful night of her life.
Seriously.
She’d had lovers—ever since she’d let Justin Hogue go all the way with her the night of her senior prom—but she’d never had one like Graham. She couldn’t believe how good they’d been together. Everything he did felt ten times more incredible than with any other guy. Tess had hit the jackpot with the unlikeliest of guys, and it felt a little surreal...and maybe a little scary. Sex had never been so mind-blowing before.
She glanced at the suit folded on the funky polka-dot chair that matched her apple-green duvet and smiled. Buttoned-up, wing-tip boy. Who’d have thought?
Joy bubbled inside her as she walked naked into the bathroom and turned the knobs in the shower. Waiting for the water to heat, she glanced back and found Graham still asleep, sprawled on his stomach, the sheet barely covering his splendid backside.
She stepped into the marbled shower stall and sighed as the hot water coursed down her body. Minutes later she felt two arms slip around her.
“Got room for me?” he murmured in her ear, causing goose bumps to shiver down her length.
She turned, wrapping her