Jess melted into the seat. Any rational concerns she’d had—sex with someone she barely knew, the ramifications of Hailey finding out, the weirdness of doing it in Hailey’s house—had vanished. All she knew was that the past couple of years had been hard, and lonely, and celibate. If she didn’t deserve this, she didn’t know who did.
Sean leaned a little more into her. Somewhere along the way Jess had forgotten to breathe. Her head was spinning, need spiraling deep inside her. She wanted him with a ferocity that astonished her. Her tongue met his, sliding against it with warm, wet heat. She prayed for his hand to climb higher, parted her legs in invitation.
But something held her back from reaching around him, pulling him over her, feeling his heat and heaviness resting on top of her.... Damn seat belt.
“How ’bout we get out of here?” He whispered the words against her lips, retreating from their kiss just far enough to speak.
“Yes, yes.” Did she sound desperate? If so, she didn’t care. The idea that she wouldn’t see him again, that Sean would soon be moving on to his next destination, meant she didn’t have to worry what he thought of her. She just had to get him to satisfy the raging need he’d stoked to a firestorm inside her. Nothing else mattered. It was incredibly freeing—she wondered why she’d never found the courage to do something like this before.
Something about this situation was different, though. Perhaps it had something to do with Sean’s overwhelming confidence. Most guys who’d approached her in recent memory had given up in the face of her hesitation. Her divorce had left her with scars that usually took more than a sexy smile and a wink to overcome. Usually.
Jess fumbled with the seat belt for a moment and then had to scramble for her clutch purse on the floor. By the time she’d found it and untangled herself from the seat belt, Sean was at the door, opening it for her and offering a helping hand. She took it, grateful for his steadying grip. Her knees were feeling unreliable.
The cool night air was almost enough to sober her. Almost. She cast her eyes around the neighborhood, wondering if anyone was watching out of a chink in their curtains. Divorcée Jess Alexander, about to vanish inside with a man practically half her age, after making out in the car with him. It was indecent!
But no. Maybe she was overreacting a little. As nice a street as this was, it was still the city. And neighbors didn’t really care what went on next door as long as it wasn’t too noisy and it didn’t affect the resale value of their property.
Jess had a feeling it might get noisy, but she figured the resale values were safe.
“Whoa, hey, girl,” Sean said as they stood on the porch and he tried to push the door open. For a confusing moment, Jess thought he was talking to her, but then Hailey and Rob’s aging golden retriever, Suzie, woofed an excited greeting. Jess could hear her tail banging against the wall inside.
“Come on, Suz, you’ve got to stand back so I can get inside,” Sean said with a fond tone. He muttered from the side of his mouth, “Gorgeous dog, but certainly not the smartest one in the litter.”
“Uh-huh.” Jess was more than familiar with Suzie’s goofy smile. She usually wore it when Hailey brought her into the clinic with yet another accidental injury. Suzie had perfected the “Whoops! Look what I did” look.
The dog was bouncing around excitedly, and Sean was doing his best to control her as they stepped inside the house and closed the door behind them. “The neighbors walked her today,” Sean said as Suzie jumped up, her paws landing in his gut and making him oomph. “Not that you can tell.” He was laughing and patting her and saying, “Down, girl,” not using a tone the dog would recognize as a command.
“Suzie, down,” Jess ordered. The dog dropped to the floor and turned her interest to Jess instead. “Sit.” Suzie sat. “Good girl,” she praised, giving her ears a scratch.
Sean looked at her with wide eyes. “You’re like, Doctor Dolittle or something.”
“Not quite.” Jess smiled. “Suzie and I know each other, that’s all. I’ve bandaged her tail more times than I can count.”
“Really?”
“She’s the most accident-prone dog I’ve ever met.”
“That sounds like Suzie.” Sean took over patting the dog, crouching down to rough up her fur and scratch under her chin as he muttered in a silly tone, “Who’s the most accident-prone dog in the world? You, huh?”
Jess could only watch as Suzie drooled with pleasure.
It was ridiculous to be jealous of a dog.
But as much as Jess loved animals, it was time for this dog to go to her kennel and leave the human beings to indulge in a little primal behavior of their own.
Sean seemed to read her mind, because he straightened up and gave Suzie one last pat. “Suzie, go to bed,” he ordered, pointing to the back of the house.
Suzie pouted at them for a moment, pulling a puppy-dog-eyes look, before turning away and obeying the command, tail between her legs.
“She thinks she’s done something wrong,” Jess observed.
“I’ll make it up to her in the morning.”
Dogs don’t work that way, Jess almost said. But then tonight wasn’t about that. Suzie would be fine. Jess on the other hand was feeling a little chilled. Goose bumps skated up her arms as Sean turned to face her, his eyes dark with promise.
Then, suddenly, the intent in his eyes faded. “You’re right,” he said. “I need to take care of her. Don’t move. I’ll be back in a second.”
Jess barely had time to realize what was happening before Sean was back at her side.
“I gave Suzie one of those disgusting liver treats she loves so much. She’s happy now.”
“That’s good.” He’s kind to animals. That gave Sean an automatic big tick in Jess’s book.
And that delicious sparkle was back. “Let’s go in here,” he said.
He grabbed Jess’s hand and led her into the living room, turning on one lamp in the corner to bring a soft peachy glow to the room. Hailey’s housekeeping was immaculate, not a spot of dust to be seen anywhere.
“I’ve been dying to get this off since about five minutes after I put it on,” he said, shrugging out of his tuxedo jacket and draping it over the back of a chair. He kicked off his shoes and tore off his socks at the same time.
“It suits you,” Jess said. She took a few steps back, bumping against the end of the solid timber dining table that dominated this end of the open-plan living/dining room. Sean stood between her and the doorway, and her nerves suddenly came back to life with a vengeance. She wasn’t trapped exactly—she knew, without knowing why, that if she changed her mind, he’d let her go without a problem. But part of her anxiety was realizing that she didn’t want to change her mind—and she didn’t want him to, either.
“Nah, the formal look’s not me,” he said, batting away her compliment. “But that dress, on the other hand... You look gorgeous.”
He gave her an admiring full-length assessment that sent more chills through her. Then he worked at the cuffs of his shirt, frowning at them in concentration, pulling out the cuff links and tossing them carelessly on the table before turning the sleeves back to reveal strong, bony wrists, lightly dusted with hair.
Jess’s stomach flipped. Maybe she couldn’t go through with this after all. Maybe she just wasn’t ready. “Sean? I—” She broke off and licked her lips nervously.
“Can you help me with this thing?” He stepped