a willing woman’s arms.
“We shouldn’t do this,” he said, even as he returned the kiss, letting the pressure of his lips against hers and the sweep of his tongue say all the things he didn’t have words for.
When they broke apart, he fought to keep his breathing even, to control the emotion that threatened to overwhelm him. Her eyes met his, her expression tender. “If we don’t do it, won’t you regret it? Would you really rather be alone than be with me?”
He’d been alone too long. All his caution had brought him nothing but too much loneliness. “What about Carl?” he asked.
“I think we have a couple of choices there. We can try to keep our relationship a secret. No one at work needs to know about it. Or we can go to Carl, tell him…tell him we have feelings for each other, and that he needs to accept that.”
“And if he doesn’t accept it?”
She took a deep breath. “Then we find other jobs. We’re the number two rated show in the afternoon drive slot in Denver, on our way to number one. That ought to be worth something.”
He tightened his hands on her waist. “It’s a big risk.”
“A big risk is worth it for a big payoff.”
He looked into her eyes. There was no accusation there, no suspicion. Only a wanting that reflected his own feelings. He didn’t want to fight her anymore—to fight himself. Better to give in to his feelings and deal with the consequences than continue this painful struggle. “Let’s go into the bedroom,” he said.
She smiled up at him. “I thought you’d never ask.”
12
ERICA FOLLOWED Adam into his bedroom. Like the rest of his house, this room was masculine and comfortable—dark wood furniture, a navy-blue comforter on the queen-size bed, a leather armchair piled with magazines and old clothes in one corner. He picked up a pair of jeans from the floor and flung them into the chair. “If I’d know you were coming, I’d have cleaned up.”
“It’s okay. I’d have been disappointed if it was neater than my own place.”
He came up behind her and put his arms around her and began kissing her neck. She leaned against him and closed her eyes. If people could purr, she’d being doing so right now.
“Turn around and look at me.” He turned her toward him.
She pressed her palm to his cheek. His skin was smooth, clean-shaven. When he closed his eyes his lashes tickled her fingertips. “This is different, isn’t it?” she said. “With the lights on, being able to see each other.”
“You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to see you. All of you.” His gaze swept over her. “Those times when I missed my cues when we were on air? It was usually because I was sitting there, imagining you naked.”
The thought of him fantasizing about her made her stomach flutter. She stepped back and held out her arms, smiling. “Then be my guest.”
He studied her a moment, as if deciding where to start first. She began to feel a little silly, standing there with her arms outstretched. Then he reached for the top button of her blouse. “I was debating how upset you’d be if I didn’t waste time unbuttoning these, but just ripped the shirt off.”
“Don’t.” She put her hand over his and looked into his eyes. “Let’s take our time. Really get to know each other.” More than anything, she wanted him to trust her, to realize he didn’t have to hide anything from her.
He reached for the next button and undid it, then moved to the next.
“You’re still going too fast,” she said.
“I am?” He looked puzzled.
She smiled. “You want to take the time to really appreciate the moment. Like this.” She carefully unfastened the top button of his shirt, then leaned forward and kissed the triangle of chest that had been revealed. She swirled her tongue over his skin and breathed in his clean scent. Then she moved on to the next button, pausing to kiss each newly exposed inch of bare skin, down his chest, to his stomach, moving slowly, exploring him thoroughly. She circled her tongue around his navel and he drew a sharp breath, and his hands tightened on her shoulders.
Encouraged, she moved lower, tracing her tongue along the line of fine hair leading to the waistband of his jeans. She followed with her fingers, stroking his abdomen, teasing along the top of his jeans. “I want to make sure every inch of you is