Her Favorite Temptation (11 page)

“I’ve got toast, cereal or ice cream. What tickles your fancy?”

“Cereal sounds good.”

He made two bowls, because he hadn’t eaten, either, and suddenly he was hungry. Leah had toed off her shoes and sat cross-legged on the couch when he returned, her hair swept to one side, over her shoulder.

“Thank you. This looks awesome.”

“Just don’t ask for the secret recipe. I promised my gran I’d take it to my grave.”

“Right. One of those sacred family-secret things.”

“Exactly. The kind legends are made of.”

They were both silent for a few minutes as they ate.

“This is actually really good,” Leah said.

“I told you.”

She laughed, then gave him an unreadable look.

“What?” he asked.

“Thanks for this.”

“A bowl of cereal?”

“Yes, that’s right, Will. For the bowl of cereal,” she said, her tone very dry.

He grinned. “My pleasure.”

She gave an exasperated shake of her head, but she smiled as she scooped her next mouthful.

“Tell me what happened with your sister. You’ve left me hanging here.”

“Right. Clinging to the edge of your seat, desperate to know the next Chapter in the saga that is the life and times of Leah Mathews.”

He set down his empty bowl. “What did she say?”

“To be honest, I did most of the talking. First up, I apologized for being such a shitty sister. I told her that I was ashamed of myself for sitting back all these years, letting our parents play the favorites game. I told her I was ashamed of them, too, and that she was awesome and amazing and how much I admired her for always standing tall.”

“How did she take all of that?”

Leah sighed heavily. “She kept telling me we didn’t need to do this, that it was okay, that she didn’t blame me for anything. She said—” She closed her eyes for a second, clearly trying to get a grip on herself. “She said that she’d accepted long ago that she was never going to measure up.” Her voice broke and she knuckled away a tear. “I can’t tell you how much that killed me, Will, hearing her say that.”

“You need tissues? I have tissues,” he said, starting to get up.

“I think I’m okay.”

“You’re sure?”

“I think so.”

He sank onto the couch. “So how come you wound up not having dinner?”

She drew one knee up so she could rest her chin on it. “She was upset. She pretended she wasn’t, but she was shaking. Trembling. Like people get sometimes when they come into the E.R. after a car accident. She went to the bathroom, then she came back and said she needed to go. She said she tried not to think about this stuff too much, and she needed time to process.”

Tears welled up in Leah’s eyes. He took her hand, and she squeezed it tightly.

“Remind me to thank your sisters someday. You’re really good at this stuff.” She sniffed, using her free hand to wipe away her tears.

“As if I would voluntarily gift them with that kind of encouragement.”

She laughed. He gave her hand one final squeeze and then released it, curling his fingers around the memory of her skin against his.

“How did you leave things?”

“We’re going to try again another time.”

“Good.”

“You think so? I’m not sure how I feel about it all. But then I don’t know how else things could have gone, now I think about it. It wasn’t as though we were destined to skip off into the sunset holding hands or anything. It was always going to be messy. Especially at first.” She sighed again. “God. I’m such a head case at the moment.”

“No, you’re not.” He should know.
He
was the head case. He even had the pharmaceutical collection to prove it.

“I don’t know. It’s been pretty busy in here lately.” She tapped her index finger against her forehead. “Lots of wheels spinning, night and day. My parents aren’t talking to me. I just sent my sister running screaming from a restaurant. And every time I see you I wind up spilling my guts.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing. I happen to like your guts.”

She eyed him steadily. “Can I be serious for a moment? Will you let me do that?”

“Okay.”

“You have been...wonderful. I honestly don’t know how I would have coped in the past few weeks without you. You have been so generous with your time, and you’ve listened to me and you’ve rescued me and you’ve been kind.... I want to thank you for being a really good friend to me, Will Jones.”

He wanted to shrug off her words, but her steady gaze wouldn’t let him. Heat climbed into his face, a combination of self-consciousness and deeply felt pleasure at her praise. He’d had people say nice things to him before—especially since the money and fame had arrived—but he’d never been told he was kind. Frankly, kindness had never been very high on his list of desirable character traits. He was a man, after all. The ability to understand the workings of the internal combustion engine or to kick a goal on the footy field had always seemed more important than
kindness.

But Leah was very easy to be kind to. She was so earnest, so open. It was one of the things he loved about her—when she looked at a person, she really looked, and she let them look back at her and didn’t try to hide what she was thinking or feeling. She was her own harshest critic, and she had compassion to spare.

She’d dedicated her life to helping others, and he knew without ever having seen her in action that she was an excellent doctor. She was one of life’s good people, and having her approval, having her look at him with such unalloyed gratitude and appreciation, moved something inside him.

“It’s been an honor, Leah Mathews,” he said, his voice thick with sudden emotion.

He wanted to tell her that she’d helped save him, too. He wanted to tell her that she’d made him feel normal, that she’d entertained him and aroused him and confused him. She’d been the one thing in his life that had been more compelling, more magnetic, more fascinating than his diagnosis and the prospect of imminent death or disability.

But sharing any of that with her would entail a conversation that he simply didn’t want to have. Not tonight. Not when the clock was ticking.

“Don’t freak out, but I’m going to hug you now. I swear on a stack of bibles that I’m not making a move on you.” She leaned across the space that separated them, hooking an arm around his neck. She lay her cheek against his, pressed it close. “Thank you.”

He couldn’t stop himself from wrapping his arms around her, pulling her closer still. She felt fine and strong in his arms, her weight against his chest and side infinitely welcome. He felt the unexpected sting of tears and he blinked rapidly.

“I’m really glad I was out on the balcony that night you were practicing your Shakespeare,” he said.

She laughed, and he felt it ripple through her body into his. As always when she was this close, need began to heat his blood. He wanted to touch her, to taste her, more than he wanted air.

If only tomorrow wasn’t so close.

If only he had a guarantee that there would be a tomorrow after that.

“You must have thought I was mad.”

“I thought you were gorgeous.”

She tensed, and he knew it was time to let her go. He’d established the ground rules of this relationship, after all. He eased his embrace, and she retreated to her side of the couch.

Her cheeks were pink, and she fussed with her hair, clearly trying to regain her composure. Her gaze bounced around the room, finally coming to rest on the laptop.

“Oh. I hope I’m not stopping you from working.”

“You’re not. I was just catching up on a few things. Letters.” He shrugged.

“I heard you playing the guitar during the week. I’ll miss it when you move out. It makes this place feel less like a collection of concrete shoeboxes and more like somewhere people actually live.”

“Yeah? I’ve been waiting for the complaints to roll in. Figured I’d have half a dozen anonymous notes under the door by now.”

“Are you kidding? Maybe if you were crap. But you sound so
good.
” She rolled her eyes. “Sorry. I had a fangirl moment for a second there.”

“Believe it or not, hearing that people like my stuff never gets old. Especially when it’s someone whose opinion I care about.”

She made a dismissive gesture with her hand.

“You want some ice cream?” he asked.

“I do. But I won’t have any. I’ll let you finish your letter.”

She stood, smoothing her shirt. He looked at her, trying to find the right words to convince her to stay. Everything that came into his head was too desperate, too needy, and he pushed to his feet.

“I’m glad things worked out with your sister. I’ve been wondering how you were going with all of that,” he said.

“I’m not sure it’s worked out yet. But there’s a lot of potential there. And I think we’re both willing.”

He started to lead her to the door, then stopped.

“I should probably let you know that I won’t be around much longer.”

“You’re moving out?” She didn’t even try to hide her disappointment and dismay.

“Yeah. Time to head back home.” Or not.

“So, when are you going? Maybe we could have dinner one night? You know, eat something that isn’t round, in an actual restaurant.” She smiled, but he could see she was sad.

Jesus, this was hard.

“I don’t have my schedule yet. Can I get back to you?” It wasn’t quite a lie.

“Sure. You’ve got my number.”

“I do.”

He walked up the hall to the door, Leah following him.

“Can I ask you something?” she said as he reached for the handle.

“Of course.” He faced her, very aware of the narrowness of the space and the fact that he hadn’t turned on the light.

“The other week you said you had stuff going on. Is that code for having a girlfriend?”

He hadn’t even dreamed she might interpret his words in that way. “No. I’m not involved with anyone right now.”

“So, if you wanted to, there’s nothing stopping you from doing anything?” She watched him with those big eyes of hers, waiting.

“Leah... You have no idea.... If I could, if it didn’t make me the biggest asshole under the sun, we wouldn’t be standing here right now.”

“Why would it make you an asshole?”

“Because I don’t have more than one night to give you. Not at the moment. And I don’t want to do that to you.” It was as honest as he could be without spilling the whole truth.

She tilted her head to one side, a small frown wrinkling her brow. “But how does that make you an asshole? If you’re honest with me right from the start, if I know what I’m signing up for?”

“It’d be a one-night stand, Leah,” he said.

Just so he knew, absolutely, that they were both on the same page.

She smiled faintly. “Yeah. I got that. I don’t want to shock you, but I
have
had sex before, Will.”

“Okay.”

He couldn’t look away from her. His whole body was tense, poised on the verge like a runner on the starting blocks. Because if she was saying what he thought she was saying...

“If one night is all that’s on offer, I’ll take it,” she said boldly. “I’ll even promise to respect you in the morning.”

Her words were so exactly what he wanted to hear that, for a moment, he couldn’t move. Leah faltered for a second, then she moved closer, resting a hand on his shoulder.

“For the record, this is definitely me making a move on you,” she whispered.

Then she kissed him, her mouth moving over his slowly, carefully, as though she wasn’t quite sure of her welcome, despite her brave, bold words.

Need slammed through him, ferocious, greedy, insatiable.

He silently swore, then fisted his hands into the silk of her hair, pulling her head back at the same time that he used his body weight to push her into the wall. She gave a small gasp as he rammed his hips against hers, his tongue sweeping into her mouth.

She tasted so good it almost blew his mind. Like spices and something sweet, and hot woman. He couldn’t get enough of it, and he plunged deeper, stroking her tongue with his, straining to be closer. The need to touch her, to discover all her secrets
now
, was like a fever in his blood.

He slid a hand down her body, palming one of her breasts, swallowing her moan as he found her nipple. She pressed her hips against his and they started a slow grind, a crude simulation of what they both wanted to do.

One-handed he yanked at the buttons on her shirt, not caring when he felt them pop. Something had slipped the leash inside him, something desperate and hungry, and he intended to make Leah his in every possible way.

He would make this a night to remember.

Tugging her bra down, he pulled an already-tight nipple into his mouth, groaning as he registered how good her skin tasted. Her hands were clutching as his shoulders, her body bowing toward him as he suckled on her breasts.

God, she was so beautiful, her skin so pale and velvety soft. He switched to her other breast, sucking and licking fervently as his hands found the waistband of her pants. He had them open in seconds, both hands fanning the fabric wide as he swept his hands around her hips and onto her ass. She said his name, a guttural, harsh cry, and he lifted her against him, his fingers clamping around warm flesh covered by silk.

He lifted his head from her breasts, his breathing ragged.

“Put your legs around me,” he ordered.

“Yes.” She wrapped her legs around his hips as he lifted her.

He kissed her, then started walking, heading for the bedroom.

CHAPTER EIGHT

L
EAH
FELT
DRUNK
with desire, giddy to the point of disorientation. One minute she was in the hallway, Will’s body pinning her to the wall, the heavy thickness of his erection pressed against her, the next she was on her back on his bed and he was crawling over her, owning her.

She wanted to be owned. She wanted everything he had to offer.

Panting, she worked with him to get rid of her clothes, then it was his turn. The moment they were both naked they came together, chest to breasts, belly to belly, hip to hip. The world fractured into sensation: the heat of his skin, the roughness of his hairy legs against her own, the weight of his body pressing her into the bed, the pull of his mouth on her breasts, the urgent slide of his hand as it glided between her thighs.

She opened to him, lifting her hips, grasping at his shoulders and back and backside as he stroked her sex once, twice, three times. She was trembling with need and desire, and so was he, excitement and urgency vibrating from her body to his and back again.

“You’re so wet. Leah, I can’t—”

“I don’t want you to.”

There was the crackle of a foil wrapper being opened, then she felt the nudge of him at her entrance. She forgot to breathe as he slid inside her, thick and so very hard.

“Ohhhh,” she whispered.

He started to pump, his ass flexing and contracting powerfully. His body was hunched over hers, he was so intent on her, on the connection and sensation building between them. She met him thrust for thrust, angling her hips, relishing the way he filled her.

He felt so good. So right. She wanted it to last forever. She wanted him inside her forever.

“Say it again,” Will panted, one hand raking through her hair and cupping her skull, forcing her to look him in the eye, and she realized she’d spoken her thoughts out loud.

He looked so fierce riding her, his teeth slightly bared, his gaze demanding as he pumped in and out of her. She smiled, gripped by a primal, possessive feminine satisfaction. Holding his eye, she told him what he wanted to hear.

“You feel so good inside me. Don’t ever stop,” she panted.

She kept talking, seducing, goading and teasing him with words as his movements became even more urgent. She could feel excitement rising inside her, ratcheting tighter and tighter. Suddenly she was coming, her back arching off the bed, her hands clutching at him as she was swept away to a place of pure pleasure.

“Leah.”

He buried himself deep inside her, then nudged deeper again, grinding his pubic bone against hers. Incredibly, the pulse of him inside her and the knowledge that he was coming pushed her over the edge a second time, her body grasping around his greedily, voluptuously.

He collapsed on top of her, one hand still fisted in her hair, his chest rising and falling in time with hers.

She lay, unable to think, her body heavy and hot and sated, every part of her glorying in what had happened and in the fact that Will was still on top of her and inside her, his breath harsh near her ear, his sweat mingling with her own.

She had needed that. She’d needed Will.

Without stopping to think about it, she wrapped her arms and legs around him, lifting her hips into him, pulling him closer into her.

“Thank you,” she said, her voice thick with gratitude and emotion. “
Thank you.
”

He responded by holding her as tightly, pressing his face into her neck, inhaling audibly as though he was trying to memorize her scent.

“I’m the one who should be thanking you,” he finally said.

“Perhaps we could agree on a mutual-gratitude pact.”

He didn’t say anything, simply squeezed her again. After a while, his grip slackened and he eased himself off her. The loss of his body heat was a blow, but she’d barely had a chance to register the absence before he’d pulled the duvet over both of them.

Will curled his body alongside hers, one hand banding across her belly, his fingers curling into her side. He nuzzled his nose against her cheek, dotting kisses there, stopping now and then to inhale deeply.

She smiled. She felt so good. So warm and sexy and
good.

“Why do you keep doing that?” she asked lazily, unable to muster the energy to even open her eyes.

“You smell amazing. I’m trying to work out what it is.”

She frowned slightly. “I don’t think I’m even wearing perfume.”

“No. It’s just you,” he said, kissing the corner of her jaw. “Pure Leah. And it’s driving me crazy.”

An illicit little thrill raced through her, finding a home in the place between her legs that was still throbbingly hot and wet from his efforts.

“I’ve been thinking about doing this with you for so long,” he said, tasting her with his tongue.

She swallowed, aware that her nipples had hardened. Just because of the knowing, growly note to his voice.

“Yeah?” she said. “What have you been thinking about?”

Will’s fingers pressed into her side as his arm tightened around her. Her eyes sprung open as he tilted his hips forward.

He was hard again. Already.

Wow.

“Everything. I’ve been thinking about everything. I want it all, Leah. I want all your secrets.” He found the soft lobe of her ear with his teeth and tongue, biting it lightly before soothing it with hot strokes.

She let her breath out on a sudden rush, more than a little astonished by the surge of desire that washed through her.

“I want to taste every part of you. I want to make you come so many times you can’t walk. I want to know everything there is to know about you,” Will whispered in her ear.

Her sex tightened in anticipation, a deep, wet pulse as she thrilled to his words.

“Okay,” she said breathlessly. “Let’s do that.”

He huffed out a small laugh, lifting his head so he could look in her eyes. “God, I like you,” he said.

“Yeah? Prove it to me.”

He grinned, then suddenly he was very serious as he gazed into her face. She returned his stare, waiting for him to say something. But he simply lifted a hand and smoothed a strand of hair off her face, his fingers incredibly delicate as they trailed along her temple and cheek and jaw. Something flickered in his eyes, something dark and almost angry. Then it was gone, and he was lowering his head to her ear again, tracing the curve of it with his tongue.

She tensed involuntarily when he invaded the shell of her ear in much the same way, shocked and delighted by how good it felt. It was but the first of many sensual revelations as Will embarked on a journey of discovery and torture—discovery for him, torture for her as he worked his way slowly, thoroughly, lasciviously down her body. He made love to her ear with his mouth, one hand stroking her belly almost negligently just above her pubic hair. Then, when she started thinking about turning to him and demanding more, he began to kiss his way along her neck to her nape, extracting yet more sensation from the sensitive indentation there.

From there he followed the line of her neck to her shoulder, working his way down to her arm. He tongued her wrists, the insides of her elbows, her armpit, astonishing her with the sensations he coaxed from parts of her body she’d previously considered nothing but utilitarian. Then he feasted on her breasts, kissing, sucking, biting, soothing, teasing. She was pleading with him by the time he finished, begging him to put her out of her misery. He simply smiled and slipped lower in the bed, tracing along her rib cage with the tip of his tongue.

By the time he’d worked his way past her belly button to the patch of hair between her legs, she was so aroused she ached.

“Please, Will. I need you inside me. Come inside me,” she pleased, grasping at his shoulders, trying to twist toward him. He pressed her onto the bed, spreading her thighs wide.

“Soon, baby. Soon,” he said.

She watched as he surveyed her sex, his gaze avid and heated. Then he lowered his head and she felt the warm, wet suction as he delivered an openmouthed kiss where she craved him the most.

She lost track of time after that. He made her come with his mouth, then used both hands and mouth to make her come again. Then and only then did he roll her onto her side, pushing himself inside her from behind. They rocked together for what felt like hours, the nudge of him inside her pushing her inexorably toward yet another climax. She knew the exact moment he lost control, felt the sudden urgency in his thrusts.

Acting on instinct, she pushed onto her knees. Will came with her, leaning over her as he began to pound into her. It was exactly what she needed, hard and fast and almost brutal, and she came in a rush, her whole body gripped by the power of her climax.

Will came seconds later, his hands digging into her hips as he thrust himself home to the hilt.

Afterward, they lay damp and panting, a tangle of arms and legs. She was exhausted, utterly sated, her sex swollen and ever so slightly sore from the best sex she’d ever experienced. She felt dazed, as well as almost irrationally buoyed and awed. As though someone had whispered the secret to the universe in her ear.

“Sleep.” Will pulled the covers over them again. “But not for too long.”

He was true to his word, waking her in a couple of hours and leading her into the shower, where he washed her with a patient, avid intensity that did wonders for her ego. That he found her body desirable was more than apparent, and afterward they made slow, careful love, her riding on top this time, him taking his cues from her. Any soreness she had slipped away as desire built, and when Will reached between their bodies to find her, using his thumb to push her over the edge, she let her head drop back and simply rode it out, feeling decadent and powerful and wild.

She recovered in time to watch him come, his upper lip curled into a snarl, skin tight over his face, the tendons standing out in his neck as he rode out his pleasure.

She drifted into sleep again afterward, barely waking when she felt the bed dip in the early hours. Sometime after that, she felt the warm press of Will’s mouth on hers.

“I’ve got an early appointment, Leah. Do you want to stay here or go to your place?”

She blinked, pushing her hair off her face, so bamboozled by amazing sex and the strange hour that for a second she couldn’t think.

“When will you be back?” she asked.

“I don’t know.”

There was an odd note to his voice, and suddenly the last of her muzziness was gone.

Right. This was a one-night stand. She’d almost forgotten.

“I’ll go.” She sat up.

“You don’t have to,” he said.

She was already braiding her hair, a temporary fix to get it out of the way. She didn’t want to sleep in his bed without him. She definitely didn’t want to make things awkward because she’d overstayed her welcome.

“It’s okay. I’ll probably sleep better in my own bed,” she lied. She was almost proud of how even and uninflected her voice sounded.

Will was already dressed in faded jeans and a white T-shirt, giving credence to the idea that he genuinely had to be somewhere else and wasn’t simply rousting her out of his apartment.

He stepped close to help her button her shirt, apologizing sheepishly for the fact that three buttons were missing.

“It’s fine. I have about a million others like it.” And she knew that she would never have a night like that again. A few buttons were a very small price to pay.

Will walked her home, waiting while she unlocked the door. He looked pale and tired in the harsh lighting in the hallway, and she ran her fingers along his stubble.

“I hope you’re not too tired for your appointment.”

“I’ll be fine. And it was worth it.” He smiled then, but there was something not quite right about it.

Did he feel guilty because he’d kicked her out of his bed? Or was he uncomfortable because he’d gotten what he wanted and simply wanted out of there now?

She kissed him quickly, squeezing his shoulder briefly.

“No regrets, Will.” She’d meant it as an unequivocal statement, but somehow it came out sounding like a question.

“Hell, no,” he said.

He kissed her properly then, one hand holding the back of her head, his fingers buried in her hair.

“Look after yourself, Leah,” he said when he lifted his head.

“You, too.”

She swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. She hadn’t realized this was goodbye. Even if they didn’t sleep together again, she’d assumed she would see him before he moved out. But there was something undeniably final about his words and the expression on his face.

He touched her cheek, the brush of his hand incredibly gentle, then he turned away. She shuffled inside her apartment, shutting the door quickly so he couldn’t see the tears welling in her eyes.

She’d told him she was fine with a one-night stand, and she was. She totally was. But she would be lying to herself if she pretended she didn’t want more.

Being with Will had been...right. She had no other word for it. They had fit together like two puzzle pieces, and she figured she would be certifiable if she didn’t want more of that.

Even if she knew she wouldn’t get it.

Moving slowly, she walked to her bedroom, shedding her clothes and crawling beneath the covers. The sheets felt cold, almost clammy, after the shared warmth of Will’s bed, and she curled in on herself, waiting for her body to generate some heat.

Five minutes later, she heard the distinct sound of Will’s door closing. He hadn’t been lying about the appointment, then.

For some reason that made her feel better, and she finally relaxed enough to drift into sleep.

* * *

B
RIGHT
SUNSHINE
WAS
streaming into her bedroom when Leah woke. She scrubbed her face, then stretched, a slow, secretive smile forming as her well-used body protested the movement.

Last night had been... She didn’t have the words for it. Even though it had ended weirdly—she refused to even think the word
badly
—she couldn’t bring herself to regret a second of it.

She’d had Will. And he’d had her, and it had been amazing. She intended to hang tight to that undeniable fact and ignore the rest of it—the questions and the yearning for more, the niggling insecurities and doubts.