Free Lone Star Wedding by Sandra Steffen Page B

moment his lips left hers. He smelled like summer and spice and man. Pressing one hand over his chest, she spread her fingers wide over his heart, inching upward to his neck. On somelevel she was conscious of the whisker stubble on his cheek, of the broad bones and taut skin along his jaw, of the narrow little dip in the center of his chin, but she was more conscious of the warmth that was weakening her knees, and the desire that was quickly spinning out of control.
    His lips left hers. Covering her hand with his, he brought it to his mouth, pressing a kiss into her palm. Hannah’s eyes opened dreamily, his features blurring slightly, the dark blue of his eyes turning hazy and deep.
    â€œYou’re beautiful.”
    This close, her features had to be as blurry as his. It didn’t matter. She wasn’t beautiful, not the way her mother and Maria were, but that didn’t matter, either. Because he was making her feel beautiful, and every woman alive knew that that mattered a great deal.
    Lowering from her tiptoes, she said, “Are you sure I can’t get you anything?”
    â€œYou can show me to the bedroom.”
    â€œI could.” She made no move to do it, though.
    â€œHannah?”
    She chanced a glance up at him, and slowly shook her head. “I’m trying to think of the right words to make you understand.”
    â€œI understand the attraction that’s between us. You can’t deny that you feel it, too.”
    Just like that, he kissed her again, without warning, devouring, cajoling, enticing. By the time he raised his mouth from hers, she was breathless all over again.
    â€œYou’re a hard man to resist,” she said softly.
    â€œThere’s no need to resist.” His voice was a husky murmur close to her ear.
    â€œIt’s too soon, Parker.”
    â€œThe timing is perfect.”
    A shiver of wanting strummed through her.
    â€œYou want this,” he whispered.
    She practically swooned at the feel of his lips along the sensitive skin below her ear. “That’s beside the point.”
    â€œHoney, that is the point.”
    â€œMaybe,” she whispered. “But…”
    He paused, the sound of his deeply drawn breath loud in her ear. “I’m listening.”
    â€œI’m waiting.”
    There was that word again, Parker thought. “Define waiting.”
    She wet her lips, straightened her clothes, took a deep breath. And finally met his gaze. “I’m waiting. For the right man. For a commitment. For forever.”
    â€œYou can’t mean you’re waiting for your wedding night.”
    She pulled a little face. “Nobody can say that with absolute certainty. I mean, people with the best of intentions have been known to get carried away. After all, sex is a heady, pleasurable sensation.”
    â€œI know how pleasurable sex is.” He decided to try a different tack. “Look, I make a very good living from clients who prove over and over that marriage and forever are two completely different concepts.”
    â€œMaybe for some. I know what you’re thinking, Parker. But there are still a few of us around.”
    The implication hit him between the eyes like a sledgehammer. He didn’t know whether she was a virgin—he grimaced at the notion—or one of those born-again virgins he’d read about. Either way, it was insane.
    He must have said it out loud, because she bristled. “You’re welcome to your opinion. I’ll stick to mine. Attraction is nice, but so often it fizzles. Love lasts.”
    â€œLove is overrated.”
    Hannah could have argued. But she refrained. Instead she took a frank look at Parker. After quiet deliberation she decided that only someone who had never been in love could say such a thing with so much quiet conviction.
    She crossed her arms and redistributed her weight to one foot, and finally said, “And sex isn’t overrated?”
    She thought his