“Some out-of-character guilt has you delusional.” She reached up and shoved at his arms, reeling from the charge of electricity it sent through her body. “Move, damn it.”
But he didn’t. In fact, he seemed to solidify to stone. And his eyes…they were hard. Even cold. “The sex was good,” he said. “You’re right about that. If it’s nothing more than that…why stop?” He let the question hang in the air. “I want you, Zoe.”
His hand found its way to her thigh just below her hemline. Zoe sucked in a breath as the touch radiated up her legs to her core. She wanted him. Why could she not control her feelings with this man? His fingers inched their way beneath her hem and her hand went to the top of his. “Stop, Declan.” But even to her own ears, the words sounded lame. Lord help her, she didn’t want him to stop.
He slid his other hand into her hair. “You want me,” he said. “I see it in your eyes.”
Zoe felt her nipples tighten, the heat of awareness burning her inside and out. She could barely think. Somehow, his fingers managed to make their way to her panties and he brushed the silk. The smoldering heat from moments before rocketed into a burning flame. Her eyes fluttered with the potency of the moment and her chest tightened. He eased her legs apart. Or maybe she did. She wasn’t sure. He inched the material of her skirt as high as it would go and then his eyes dropped to the vee of her body. Knowing he was looking at her served as an aphrodisiac of sorts. It turned her on and the throb between her thighs intensified, roaring with demand to be fed. Touched. Stroked. And when he pushed aside her panties and slid a finger along her sensitive flesh all reason fled. She wanted Declan. Everything prior to this moment didn’t matter.
“I can feel how much you want me,” he said, sliding a finger along her now wet, sensitized body.
Her hand went to his shirt, curling around it as she pulled him close. But need and the position of the chairs forced her to abandon that strategy quickly. She cradled his face in her palms, pulling his lips to hers and kissing him. Savoring him. Completely forgetting she was in the middle of a newsroom where scandal was made if not delivered. And here she was handing it over on a silver platter. Not even caring.
Chapter Sixteen
This wasn’t how Declan had planned his meeting with Zoe. But Zoe had tried to hide behind sex and he couldn’t let her. Hell, it pissed him off the way she tried to downplay what was between them. He knew she was scared, but damn it, so was he. He knew the situation was strange. Meeting the way they had and then finding out they had a link they didn’t know about. None of this changed the fact that there was something between them beyond the physical. Something he wasn’t ready to let go of. And he was willing to bet she wasn’t either. So, he’d decided if sex was her defense, he’d make it his offense.
Not a good idea. His actions were backfiring. He was sliding into the realms of passion and forgetting all else. He’d only meant to prove his point. That they couldn’t just walk away from each other. That the sex felt like it did because they were connected somehow. But now, as his tongue slid along Zoe’s, as he drank her in like a fine wine, he yearned to take her. To push her up on the conference table, spread her legs and sink deep inside her body. To claim her as his. To make her admit what was between them.
He slid a finger inside her body, stroking her inner wall, loving the soft moans she made. Low and sensual. Rich with wanting. And though he didn’t dare take her right here in the newsroom, there were other options. He’d make her submit. Her release would be his path to the other side of her resistance. His way of reminding her how intense what they shared had been and could be again.
Her fingers dug into his shoulders and she tore her mouth from his with a gasp, her legs spreading wider with the sound. His cheek pressed against hers even as he continued to play along the wet folds of her sensitive flesh. Pushing her toward release. His mouth found her ear. “Imagine if I was inside you right now,” he purred.
“Yes,” she whispered. Desperation laced the word or maybe a plea.
He nipped her earlobe and then trailed kisses along her jaw until his mouth lingered just above hers. “I can almost feel what it would like to be inside you. Buried deep, your warmth surrounding me.”
“Yes.” The word came out a hiss and her head fell back, her back arching slightly. Her hips thrusting into the slow rhythm he’d begun. “Oh…I…” He felt her stiffen, felt her fingers sink deeper into his arms. Her head came forward and found his neck. “I…”
She started to shake and then he felt her spasm around his fingers. With easy strokes, he eased her through the pleasure, slowing as the orgasm slowed, and removing his fingers only when he heard her sigh. She collapsed against him, confirming her completion, and for long moments they just sat there, unmoving, breathing together.
Then abruptly, she raised her head and looked at him. “I can’t…I don’t…” She shut her eyes and drew a breath before fixing him with a hard look. “This changes nothing.”
She tried to push away from him, but Declan grabbed her arms. “Don’t do this, Zoe. Don’t shut me out.”
“I didn’t know who you were.”
“It doesn’t matter. We had a good time and it’s over.” She looked at one of her arms and back up at him. “Let go.”
Damn it. He hated this. With the snap of a finger, her walls were back in place. He’d put himself on the line and she just kept slapping him down. Declan straightened, letting go of her arms. Feeling burned. He’d spent years focused on his career. Declan had known his father neglected his mother. It’s one of the reasons he hadn’t been quick to jump into a relationship. Hell, for years he loved his career more than he did anything. Time, maturity, and a few bad cases had taught him some lessons. And then Zoe came along and she had him believing he could find a balance between work and a personal life. Wanting to, was more like it. He pushed to his feet, shaking his head and laughing, but not with humor. A fool. He felt like a fool. Zoe claimed from day one this was all
about sex. Maybe she meant it. He’d spent over a week worried over this, desperate to make things right and she didn’t even give a crap. And the truth was, he had a law firm to run. His father had now taken off on vacation with his mother and he hoped like hell it was the first step to his retirement. His life wasn’t his own for a few years. He had no room for a relationship no matter how bad he’d wanted one with Zoe.
He turned to face her and motioned to the paper. “The story. If you want the exclusive here it is. Take notes. I expect nothing but what I say now, on the record, to be printed.” She stared at him, not moving. “Zoe. I need to go. Do you want the story or not?”
* * * * *
Zoe sat at the bar of the Blue Lagoon Restaurant and sipped her third margarita. Mike had asked her to meet him over an hour ago. Of course, she knew he wanted to tell her about the charges being dropped, but she knew already. Nice of him to tell her after it was already going to hit tomorrow’s papers.
So, while she sat and waited, she drank. A lot more than usual. In fact, she hadn’t had this much to drink in, well, in years. But today she’d turned Declan away and he’d let her. She wasn’t sure what she’d wanted him to do, but walking away wasn’t it. Which was nuts. He was a poison. The kind who pulled her into the hell of her mother’s world. Wanting a man who would never find you more important than his work. And of course, that was the case with Declan. It took a certain breed to be an attorney. To think he would or could be different from the rest would be nuts. For a little window of time, she’d tried to convince herself the opposite was true. Just thinking about her stupidity made her take another long draw off her straw. She should stop drinking. Her head felt light. She took another sip, not caring. Wanting to forget.