The moment dragged on, and then she did the last thing he’d imagined. She burst out laughing.
He laughed with her, relieved.
“Damn!” She shook her head. “And I thought this was going to be awkward.”
“You don’t find it awkward that I just told you I want to sleep with you?”
She shook her head with a smile. “I knew that anyway.”
He had to laugh. “You did, huh? How?”
She looked down at her breasts. “You can’t keep your eyes off these. You’d love to get your hands on them—and you’re not the kind of guy who’s just hoping for a quick feel. So, getting your hands on them means getting me into bed.”
He nodded happily. “I’m not going to deny it. Aren’t you going to ask me?”
Her confident smile dimmed at little. “Ask you what?”
“How I know you want to sleep with me.”
Her big blue eyes widened again, but she lifted her chin. Good. She wasn’t going to back off or deny it. “How?”
He stepped toward her and she backed away. He grinned. “That, right there. You can’t take your eyes off me when you think I’m not looking. But you won’t let me into your personal space.”
“Pft. That’s normal. No one lets anyone into their personal space.”
He winked at her. “I know. And you’re trying to pretend that your reaction to me is normal. But what’s really going on is that you don’t trust yourself to let me get that close.” He stepped closer again, and just as he’d expected, this time she didn’t back away. She was going to try to prove him wrong.
She wasn’t much shorter than him, but he was close enough now that she had to look up into his eyes. He put his hands on her hips. He was tempted to lower his head, to brush his lips over hers, to pull her against him. But he didn’t. They were standing outside the library, for God’s sake. What was he thinking?
He couldn’t help watching her breasts rise and fall. “You didn’t want me inside your personal space because you didn’t trust yourself, did you?”
She closed her eyes, and he loved the way her long dark lashes brushed her cheeks. When she opened them again, her eyes were like a deep blue ocean he wanted to swim in. She shook her head and surprised him again. “If we’re going to do this, it’s no strings, just sex. Are you up for that?”
He slid his arms around her waist and pulled her against him. Her body felt warm and soft against his hard-on. “You tell me.” He pressed against her. “Do you think I’m up for it?” He half expected her to break free and slap his face. What did he even think he was doing? He was practically dry humping her on the library steps.
He had to close his eyes when her hands came up around his shoulders and she pressed the full length of her body against him, those full amazing breasts warm against his chest.
She looked up into his eyes. “I’m serious, Ryan. No strings. No getting attached. Purely physical. That’s all. Are you good with that?”
He held her a little closer, hardly able to believe his luck. “Good with it?” He grinned. “You may be my ideal woman.”
She laughed and stepped away from him. “I thought as much. So, where do you want to go?’
She’d taken him by surprise again. He’d thought that he’d ask her to go to dinner with him. At least for a drink. She wanted to just …? He caught hold of her hand and started making his way down the steps. What the hell? No time like the present.
~ ~ ~
Leanne clung to his hand as she trotted down the steps after him. She didn’t trust her knees not to give out on her. What did she think she was playing at? Had she seriously just asked him where he wanted to go? Like, they were going to … just go and screw each other right now? She had to bite back a laugh. Apparently, she had, and they were. And judging by the length of Ryan’s stride, the sooner, the better as far as he was concerned.
And why not? They both wanted it. Dan was right. They should get it out of their system and then hopefully the three of them would be able to work together to get through this class. She knew she needed Dan’s help to do it. She could only imagine that Ryan did, too—he didn’t strike her as any kind of tech genius. So, if she and Ryan did the dirty now, they’d get it out of the way.
Ryan didn’t break his speed until they reached the corner. When he did, he smiled down at her. “When’s your next class?”
She frowned. “I don’t have any actual classes until Monday now.”
He grinned. “Perfect.”
“Because?”
“Because …” His grin faded. “Because I thought we could get out of town for the weekend. Go stay in a cabin.” He let his gaze rove over her, making her knees threaten to give out again. “Take our time getting to know each other.”
Her heart hammered in her chest, and the heat pooled between her legs in the intensity of that look. But no. She hadn’t signed up to spend a whole weekend with him—just the afternoon. If he was as good as she expected, then sure, she could probably be persuaded to spend the night with him. But come morning …
He stopped walking and tugged on her hand, making her stop and turn to look back at him.
“You’re about to say no, aren’t you?”
She nodded. She had to. Spending the whole weekend with him was a crazy idea. It was crazy enough to be marching down the street with him like this on a mission to find a bed.
He tugged her hand again, pulling her slowly toward him. She shouldn’t go. She knew it. But she wanted to. It felt as though he was reeling her in like some fish he’d hooked. He didn’t let go of her hand until she was close enough that he could close his arms around her again. Damn. She’d do anything he wanted when he held her like that. He felt so warm and hard—not just the obvious—his chest was hard, his arms felt hard and strong around her. Why was she saying no to a whole weekend of this? She had to ask herself.
He looked down into her eyes. His were a deep, deep blue. They reminded her of the ocean on a stormy day. “How about I ask you again in the morning?” She loved the way he smiled. It was confident but not cocky. It was reassuring somehow.
“Okay.” She was agreeing that he should ask her again in the morning, but something inside her knew that she’d just agreed to spend the weekend with him. Oh, well. At least, she knew she wouldn’t have to worry about him turning into a clinger. He wasn’t that kind of guy. He wouldn’t want anything more from her than great sex—and she sure as hell didn’t want anything more from him.
Chapter Four
Ryan’s mind was racing almost as fast as his heart by the time they approached the corner to his street. He hadn’t thought this through. Did he really plan to just take her in and take her straight to bed? He wasn’t above going home with a woman. He did it often enough. But that was about hooking up on a night out. Meeting someone and going home with her afterward.