Free Love After Dark by Marie Force Page A

tongue touched his, and he forgot about all the reasons why this was a bad idea and lost himself in her. Other than her, he hadn’t kissed anyone in longer than he could remember, and he’d never kissed anyone with quite so much pent-up need.
    Hope’s need seemed to match his, and she met every thrust of his tongue with her own, driving him slowly crazy. They got so caught up in the kiss that they nearly fell off the back steps, laughing at the near miss. When they broke the kiss, the sound of heavy breathing filled the night air.
    Paul found her hand in the darkness. “Come inside for a little while.”
    “What about Jenny and Alex?”
    “When they said they had stuff to do at the house, they meant each other.”
    Hope sputtered with laughter. “How do you know that?”
    “Because it’s gotten a lot ‘quieter’ around here since the carpet went in over there.”
    “That’s too funny.”
    “They’re not coming back here tonight. The coast is clear…”
    “Are you sure this is a good idea?”
    “No,” he said, laughing, “I’m not sure of that at all, but I’m sure that it feels great to kiss you, and I don’t want to stop. Not yet.”
    “I’m afraid…”
    “Of what? Not me…”
    “No, not you, but if this, whatever this is between us… If it goes bad, my job…”
    “I promise you that no matter what happens or doesn’t happen between us, it will never, ever impact your job. You have my word on that.”
    “What is happening between us?”
    “I don’t know, but I’m looking forward to finding out. Are you?”
    “Yeah,” she said softly.
    He stood and gave her hand a gentle tug. “Come inside.”
    She stood and let him lead her indoors, where he faced a decision—the sofa or his room? Because he couldn’t be entirely sure that Jenny and Alex were gone for the night, he took a left down the hallway to his room, where the rising moon provided a faint hint of light through the open windows.
    “Paul,” she whispered, hesitating. “We shouldn’t…”
    He closed the door and put his arm around her waist, bringing her in close to him. “Just this,” he said as he kissed her. “Nothing more.”
    Her arms encircled his neck and her body pressed tightly to his, making him want much more than her enthusiastic kisses. They stood there like that, in the dark room, for a long time, kissing like two people who’d been starving until they found each other.
    Paul walked her backward to his bed and came down on top of her, making her gasp from the press of his erection against her center.
    Her fingers tightened in his hair as she dragged him into another kiss.
    He wanted to touch her everywhere, to explore the curves that had captured his attention from the first time he met her. However, he kept his hands flat against her back, because he’d promised they wouldn’t go any further. That promise wasn’t easy to keep, however. Now that he’d had another taste of her, he wanted so much more. He broke the kiss and moved to her neck, where he kissed and licked the sensitive skin there, making her arch into him in silent demand.  
    Her hands moved down his back, finding the hem of his shirt and then sliding underneath.
    Paul trembled from her touch, his desire for her exploding the instant her skin brushed against his. As much as it pained him to stop, he pulled back from her, mindful of his promise not to take advantage of the opportunity she’d given him. But God, he wanted to.
    “What’s wrong?” she asked.
    “Nothing.”
    “Why did you stop?”
    “Because if I don’t, I won’t be able to.”
    She slid her hand from his back to his stomach and then up to touch his chest.
    Paul forced himself to stay perfectly still, afraid that if he so much as uttered a sound, she might remember all the reasons this wasn’t such a great idea.  
    “Touch me, Paul.”
    He closed his eyes and summoned the control he needed to go slow, to give her tenderness rather than the desperate need that every