After a few heavenly minutes she wrenched her mouth free of his, gasping for air. His lips trailed across her jaw and down her neck. Big, open-mouthed kisses that alternately sucked and soothed. She was on fire, in ecstasy and hurtling towards oblivion. Her breathless gasps accelerated to audible moans as his fingers continued their erotic torment and his thumb rotated around her sensitive nub. It made her want more, much more. She wanted everything. She stirred against him, and murmuring against her, he upped the pressure and pace.
The tempo and volume of her soft moans increased accordingly and she threw her head back, her hips bucking as her body tensed, on the edge of release. The cry of pleasure already building in her chest.
Then he was gone. Without warning he’d pulled back and with a muttered oath whipped his hand free.
‘No!’ she moaned, frantic. Just a few seconds more, just one second more!
‘What is it with us and timing?’ He grasped her shoulders and stood her upright, then quickly turned and pulled her chair out for her. She practically fell into it, breathless and stunned and so, so frustrated. She had been so close to what would have been the most powerful orgasm of her life. She sat dazed, wondering what the hell had just happened. Then she heard them. Voices, along the corridor. Rory must have heard the elevator bell.
‘Come home with me tonight,’ he said urgently in a low voice as he dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief before sliding into his own seat. He looked across at her, his eyes stormy and brilliant.
She stared at him, barely able to breathe let alone think or reply. Suddenly her headache came pounding back, blindingly vicious. The euphoria of the previous moment vanished and the void was rapidly filled with an icy cold. What was she doing? The emptiness was unbearable. She stared at him as horror sank in. Her uncontrollable desire for him appalled her. She was far on the road of no return and she needed to fight it. Fight hard. She curled her shaking hands into fists on her lap. She opened her mouth, bracing herself for her reply. She needed to shoot this down now.
The door opened and in walked James and Marnie bearing large pizza boxes. The smell hit Lissa like a wall of slime. Disgusting.
She didn’t stop working as they ate, knowing she was on borrowed time for getting the last of the work done before this headache rendered her utterly useless. She nodded as James set a piece of pizza beside her, but ignored it completely as she desperately focussed on ensuring there were no errors whatsoever in the final version.
Finally she sighed and clicked the save icon for what she hoped would be the last time. ‘Can someone check this? I think I’m done here.’
Marnie came straight over waving another slice of pizza at her. Lissa shook her head and winced as pain knifed through her temple.
‘Are you OK?’ Marnie asked.
‘Fine,’ she replied softly, aware that Rory’s head had jerked up at the question. She could sense his scrutiny.
Marnie watched over her shoulder as she scrolled through the pages. ‘Looks great to me. Awesome. You are done!’ she said at the conclusion.
Lissa let out a breath in relief and began to tidy away her things. Her hands shook slightly as she tried to work methodically through the pile.
Marnie’s voice seemed to come from a distance. ‘Hey, you’re really flushed. Are you sure you’re OK?’
She looked up and summoned the strength from who knew where to reply. ‘It’s just a headache.’ She waved a vague hand at the computers. ‘All that staring at the screen.’
Marnie smiled and nodded. ‘Go home and SLEEP. You’re so lucky this is all finished for you tonight. We’ve still got the big exam in the morning.’
She smiled weakly. Yes, for her it was over. Tomorrow she’d be back at her usual desk in the information centre. HQ would be a plain old meeting room again. The paper removed from the windows. Rory would be working on the floor below. The soreness in her throat sharpened.
‘Is there anything else you’d like me to do?’ her voice rasped. She avoided looking at Rory by fussing with her bag.
‘No,’ she heard him say quietly. ‘You’ve done more than enough for tonight. We can take it from here.’ He paused. ‘Thank you.’
Did she imagine that tender stress in the way he said thank you? She couldn’t bear it. As she reached the door she turned and addressed the room in general. ‘Good luck for tomorrow.’
By the time she got home she was shaking head to toe. Alternately hot then cold, it was all she could do to get a glass of water, strip off her suit, pull an old tee shirt on and collapse into bed. Restful sleep eluded her. Flashes of moments with Rory span chaotically in her mind. She relived snatches of their meetings, the flare between them. She tossed and turned, her body either aching or on fire. It was close to dawn and the birds had started chirping when she finally descended into a dreamless sleep.
Chapter Five
RORY ran up the stairs back at the office with more energy than a nuclear reactor. The blood in his veins sang. He felt vitally alive and his excitement was palpable. James and Marnie had fed off it too. The meeting had been fantastic. The client had bought it hook, line and sinker and awarded a massive project to Franklin. He’d proved his right to win that promotion well and truly.
And now he was going to win what he’d really been racing for. Lissa. No holding back. Last night, she’d blown him away. So passionate. So damn hot. Utterly on fire for him. He’d nearly lost all reason and had her on the table then and there. How good that would have looked when James and Marnie walked back in with that pizza.
He laughed aloud exultantly. He’d hardly slept but he wouldn’t have with the meeting today anyway. He didn’t mind that it had scuppered the chance of being with her last night. It made the prospect of tonight even more exciting. It felt as if he’d wanted her for ever. It had been good to have the presentation to concentrate on in the end; reciting facts and figures had been a way to finally get to sleep rather than twisting and turning all night with the most enormous erection of his life. Of course, he’d been dreaming of her when he woke. The ache in his body had been growing since the night he first met her. She was so alive. So refreshingly blunt. Her laughter. So sexy with those long legs and caramel hair. But her reluctance in the office nearly killed him. It was all he could do to stop himself from teasing her, tormenting her into betraying herself. Making her reveal the sparkle and enthusiasm he knew bubbled under that cool façade.
His body tightened at the thought of the night to come. Unbuttoned and tousled. Oh, yes, it was all going to happen. After her response last night he knew she wouldn’t say no to him.
He wasn’t sure what she’d wanted to do just as the others got back. He’d seen the fear in her eyes and guessed she wanted to try to push him away again. But she couldn’t. She’d opened up to him and going back now was impossible. He knew. He knew her passion for him was as blazing as his for her. And she knew he knew.
He strode into the library wanting to establish a date even before going to debrief George, the managing partner, on how the meeting had gone. He came to an abrupt halt by her empty chair. Damn. He looked around, encountering Gina’s bland look.
‘She’s not here,’