Free Fever by Kimberly Dean Page A

hurt you,” he said hoarsely. “You’ve got to know that.”
    “I do.” Oh, why had she said anything? She didn’t want to get into this. “It’s not that.”
    “Then what is it?”
    The tone of his voice made her shiver. He wasn’t going to let it go. She’d thought he’d been intense at the office, but in bed he was overpowering.
    “You… You make me feel things that I shouldn’t. I don’t know how to act when I’m around you.” Reaching up, she covered her face with her hands. “You make me lose control enough as it is, but after last night... Now you know.”
    She felt his tense body relax and then he was coaxing her hands to the side. “Is that all? Hell, hot stuff, you’re not the only one who went wild last night. You should have warning signs posted on you. Don’t you know you scare the hell out of me, too?”
    Hesitantly, she peeked at him. “I do?”
    “Yeah, but I’m not going to let that stop me.” He looked her dead in the eye. “Are you?”
    Slowly, he wedged his hand between their bodies. Watching her closely, he flicked her clit. The sensation brought her need back with a rush. It percolated out of her core and bubbled through her veins. Her thighs tightened around his hips, but he refused to move. His lungs worked like a bellows as he braced himself over her, watching her face. Assessing her.
    “Look at me,” he said. He fingered her again, and she groaned. “We’re good together. You can’t deny it.”
    She couldn’t. Not with the way her body was betraying her. She ran her hands down his back, trying to encourage him to move. To thrust.
    He shuddered, but stayed stock-still. “You’ve got to make the choice, Delia. Do you want some unknown dream lover or me?”
    She wrapped her legs around his hips.
    “What do you want, baby?”
    She couldn’t fight it anymore.
    “I want you.” She caught his shoulders as her back bowed. “ Jackson !”
    His control snapped, and he began to pound into her.
    Delia clung to him like a life raft in a storm. Her need had been strong all night, but now it threatened to incinerate her. The heat was blinding. Her teeth scraped along his shoulder, and she held on for dear life. “What’s wrong with me? Why won’t it stop?”
    “You’re in heat,” he growled. He thrust so hard and so fast, the headboard rattled against the wall. “I don’t care about the doctor’s diagnosis. You needed to mate.”
    Mate. The word was enough to make her come. The orgasm slammed into her hard, and he wasn’t far behind. He thrust one more time, nearly sending the headboard through the wall into Mrs. Sneed’s apartment, and his body stiffened. He spurted into her for what seemed like forever before he sagged onto her.
    They lay there together, his weight pressing her into the mattress as the urgency dissipated.
    Delia went quiet.
    Jackson Lloyd was her lover. The whole man. Every side of him.
    Timidly, she ran her fingers down his spine. It was going to take some adjusting to, but he was still the same man he’d been in the darkness. Sexy. Bold. Caring. He’d be good to her. He’d be good for her. There was no reason to be nervous.
    Other than the fact that he held her livelihood in his hands.
    Her eyes widened. The day was already half over. “The bid!”
    “Rob’s taking care of it,” he murmured tiredly. He nuzzled the side of her neck, and her cheeks flamed as he slowly disconnected their bodies.
    The budget. That was probably the reason he’d come here in the first place. He’d needed clarification on something—the sensor quotes, her spreadsheet…
    Her thoughts came to a screeching halt. Oh, God. Her spreadsheet. He’d found the error and had come here to fire her.
    “Rob’s terrible with numbers!” She pushed at Jackson’s shoulders. “Let me up. I’ll go in and make sure everything’s ready. We’ve still got some time.”
    He moved to her side so she could breathe more easily, but kept one leg thrown over her hips. His dark