Free Sweet Revenge by Katherine Allred

headed for the nearest table. “She’d have let you off the hook the first time she heard you sing.”
    “You are so good for my ego.” His grin changed to a look of concern as she collapsed onto a seat. “Jess, are you okay? You look kind of flushed.”
    “I’ll be fine in just a minute. I think I had a little too much champagne.” A nd too much Chase Martin, she added mentally. Or maybe the problem was that she hadn’t had enough of him.
    What had possessed her to let things go that far? She’d known he was going to kiss her, had even started to protest. A nd then he’d looked down at her and the protest had died on her lips.
    Oh, he was good. He hadn’t even completed the kiss and she’d already been a quivering mass of nerve endings. A t the rate she’d responded to him, if he’d actually kissed her, she probably would have let him make love to her right there on the balcony. It didn’t bode well for her resistance to him.
    She propped an elbow on the table and lowered her forehead to her hand, a small groan escaping her. If she had been a naïve virgin she could have understood her reaction. But she wasn’t. Not that she’d been as free as some of her friends in New York. One-night stands weren’t her cup of tea.
    In truth, she liked making love. Liked the sounds and smells of it, the feelings of being close to someone. But never in her experience had she gone up in flames like she had with Chase tonight. A nd with so little prompting. Unconsciously, she licked her lips. She could still taste him, for God’s sake.
    “Hey, you really do look rough. Maybe we should head back to your house.”
    She tilted her head sideways to look at Dom. “I think you’re right. I’ve had about all the fun I can stand for one night anyway.” Dom took her hand and helped her to her feet, then slid an arm around her waist. “Geesh, Jess. You’re shaking. Could you be having an allergic reaction to something?”
    She barely stopped a snort of hysterical laughter. If she was allergic to anything, it was Chase Martin. She had promised herself before she moved back that she wasn’t going to let him know how she felt and now look at her. The first time he touched her she crumbled like a rotten brick wall.
    “I swear, I’m fine, Dom. The last few weeks have been exhausting, getting moved and getting the studio ready. I probably overdid it. A good night’s sleep and I’ll be back to normal.”
    “You’re sure you don’t need a doctor?”
    “Positive.”
    It was time to get a grip, and the only way to do that was to stop thinking about Chase. She had accomplished her mission tonight. Quite a few people had already approached Bridget about enrolling their children in a dance class. That was the only thing that should matter right now.
    She waved at Bridget and Howard, then took a deep breath of the night air when she and Dom left the ballroom. A s soon as Dom helped her into his car she leaned her head back on the seat and closed her eyes. She was tired, she realized. It was only ten p.m. and she was stifling a yawn.
    Instead of waiting for Dom to open her door, she climbed out of the car as soon as it stopped in her drive. Chase’s sedan was parked beside his patrol car but his house was dark. Either he was still at his aunt’s house with A my, or he’d already gone to bed.
    Flipping the light on as she entered the kitchen, Jessie yawned again. “I think I’m going to hit the sack.”
    “Good idea. If you don’t mind, I’m going to stay up a while, maybe watch some TV.”
    “Of course I don’t mind. Make yourself at home.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “See you in the morning.”
    “Night, Jess.”
    * * * * *
    The ringing of the phone woke her. Groggily, she reached for it just as it stopped. Dom must have answered it. From downstairs she could hear the muted sound of the TV. A s she shifted positions, she glanced at the illuminated dial of her clock. Eleven. She’d only been asleep for