Free Wine & Roses by Susan R. Hughes Page B

mentioned the apparition, or whatever it was, that she’d seen in the inn’s upper window. She wasn’t at all sure anymore what she’d actually seen and what she might have merely imagined. “It’s the only way I can think of to get to the bottom of it.”
    “You’re a mystery writer. I’m sure you’ll figure it out. Maybe I’ll join you,” Jason offered, his tone playful. “Like you said, Rebecca’s my ancestor. Maybe she’ll reach out to me.”
    Abby smiled at him, gazing up into the rich depths of his dark eyes. “I didn’t think you believed in ghosts.”
    “I’ve yet to make up my mind.” His mouth curled into a mischievous smile.
    “Or maybe your motives aren’t purely related to the ghost stories,” she suggested.
    “You might be right.”
    Laughing softly, Abby set her wine glass on the end table beside them, then slid her arms over his shoulders, turning her body to fit it more snugly against his. “There’s only one room available tomorrow night.”
    One of Jason’s eyebrows quirked upward roguishly. “Is that a problem?”
    “Think of my reputation, Jason. My employees would know you were there; it wouldn’t be professional.” In truth, her reason for keeping him at bay had less to do with the opinion of her staff than the fact that she hadn’t been intimate with him yet, and didn’t plan on spending her first night with him at the inn. Whenever they did make love, it would have to be the perfect time and the perfect place—and she hadn’t quite decided when and where that would be.
    “Then I’ll sleep downstairs in the lounge,” he offered in compromise.
    “I suppose that would be all right.”
    “Now that that’s settled, I’d like to point out that there are no employees here, no prying eyes. It seems we’re perfectly alone.” Jason set down his glass to gather her closer, his warm breath caressing her cheek. Abby tilted her head back, parting her lips to invite his kiss. Obligingly, his mouth descended, joining hers in a slow, luscious kiss of the kind to which she was becoming happily accustomed. Excitement pulsed through her limbs and she smoothed her hands down the long, toned muscles of his back, taking pleasure in the feel of his masculine physique.
    While his lips glided over hers with mounting fervour, drawing her into a deepening spiral of passion, his hands wandered downward to slide under her blouse. The sensation of his fingers on the bare skin of her back sent a quiver of anticipation through her, blossoming into a deeper heat as they slipped under the waistband of her shorts, curling down to gently knead her bottom.
    “What about dessert?” she asked breathlessly, though the idea of breaking away from his embrace in favour of chocolate mousse was rapidly losing its appeal.
    “It can wait,” Jason muttered, his voice thick with simmering need. “At the moment it’s you I can’t resist.”
    Sinking onto the sofa, he drew Abby down with him, laying her against the cushions. The blatant hunger in his eyes both startled and gratified her. Immediately he set to work freeing her of her clothing. As he unfastened each button on her blouse, his lips followed, gliding down the hollow of her throat to skim her collarbone.
    Abby responded with a soft moan, relenting to the fiery need that rippled through her body. The past two days together had fulfilled her heart’s desire, but in public venues their physical pull toward one another had to be restrained; now that they were alone, free to unleash that yearning, it carried them both to the brink of urgency with lightning speed.
    Lacing her fingers through the waves of his hair, she urged him closer. As the last button came free and her blouse fell open, Jason answered her craving, bending to press hot, sensual kisses to the sensitive flesh of her belly. The luscious heat gathering just below began to smolder, burning more fiercely as his lips drifted upward, arriving above her bra clasp to explore the silky