One hand cupped her neck, his hold dominant, daring her to pull away as his head lowered and he delivered a quick, hard kiss to her lips.
“What was that for?” She jerked back, but only after he released her.
“That was one of those little good-bye kisses lovers share,” he said sensually. “Surely you recognized it?”
She would have had to have a lover first. “We’re not lovers,” she told him through gritted teeth.
At that he smiled. A slow, sexy curve of his lips, rife with promise. “Of course we are, sweetheart. I told you, you can’t go back now. The only question in this relationship is when we’ll go forward.”
“There is no going forward.” She had made a grave tactical error with him, and she knew it. He had taken control from the first moment, and he wasn’t letting it go. “I’ve decided enough is enough. It’s more than obvious I can’t handle you, let alone both of you.” She waved her hand toward the silent, amused Chase.
Amusement glittered in his eyes. “You already have.”
Jaci stared back at him in disbelief, and she had to admit to the temptation rushing through her at the amused passion, the arrogance in his eyes.
“You couldn’t handle it seven years ago. You were too young then, and I knew it. You’re not too young to understand it now, Jaci.”
“No. Now, I’m old enough to know a disaster walking when I see it,” she said, her voice scathing. “And that’s what you and Chase are to any woman’s heart, Cameron Falladay. A disaster walking.”
He chuckled, the deep rumble of amusement stroking across her senses, despite her determination to remain resolute.
He leaned closer, and rather than retreating, she felt frozen before him, staring back at him, mesmerized by the fire in those light green eyes.
“So much pleasure,” he whispered. “Remember how good it was last night, Jaci. How hot and sweet, and so good you thought you were going to die from it.”
She could feel the sizzle in her womb, the need for that pleasure further dampening the flesh between her thighs. Dangerous. The potential for destruction was rising daily.
“You have to leave, remember?” She forced herself back from him, but she couldn’t force back the images raging through her mind, or the fire it built low in her belly.
Just the thought of last night. The thought of being wanton, sexual, of taking all the pleasure she had ever dreamed of and knowing she was safe within it, was a temptation she found hard to deny, now that she had experienced it.
“We’ll see,” he murmured, stepping back to return to the living room.
“You’ll see,” she informed him, rather pleased by the strength in her voice. She didn’t sound as though she were ready to submit and lay prone before the Falladay brothers, as they covered her in nothing but lust.
He smiled at her declaration. That sexy smile. The way his slightly fuller lower lip tempted her to taste it, and the way his eyes encouraged her to be bad, was a potent combination.
“I’ll see you in the morning.” He turned on his heel and headed for the door. “I’ll pick you up on my way into the office and take you home tomorrow evening. If you need anything or need to go into town at any time, Chase or I will take you.”
“Why?” Stunned, she followed after him. “I can rent a car.” She would rent a car. She didn’t need to spend any more time with the Falladay twins than she absolutely had to. That was a recipe guaranteed to wear away at her resistance.
“Why rent a car? I pass by here daily on my way into Ian’s home office. The hotel charges an outrageous price for parking, and it would be inconvenient.”
“Then I’ll get a cab.”
He was silent for long moments, just watching her, those eyes piercing inside her.
“Don’t push me,” he finally said softly. “I’m walking away now because I understand that pushing you too fast right now isn’t a good idea. But I won’t give up the few chances I’ll have to get to know you again. And I won’t let you throw them away.”
“You would have to invest yourself first, Cam, and we both know you can’t do that,” she accused, hearing the roughness in her own voice, the fear in it.
She was weak, too weak to spend any more time in his company than she absolutely had to.
“However you want to see it.” Powerful shoulders lifted in a careless shrug. “But you don’t want to fight me too hard right now. My self-control isn’t at its best when you’re around. It never has been. And if push comes to shove, we both know, the lust is going to win. So let’s not tempt that beast today.”
For a second, the savagery of his determination held her speechless. And it wasn’t fear that caused it. It was the incredible need to do just as he had warned her not to. To tempt the lust raging in his expression.
“I’ll see you at nine in the morning.” His fingers grazed her cheek, the incredible gentleness in that touch at odds with the battle she saw raging in his eyes. Because he wanted to tempt it as well. He wanted to push it and see how hot they would both burn, and she knew it.