Free Werewolf in Seattle: A Wild About You Novel by Vicki Thompson Page A

And I need to go to bed before I collapse.”
    She drew a long, trembling breath. “Right.” She’d conveniently forgotten that he must be exhausted. But that was partly his fault. He’d started it by wanting to kiss her again.
    He held out his hand to help her up. “Let’s go back. We both could use a breather.”
    “I guess so.” But she knew what would happen once her rational brain took over. She’d chicken out. If he gave her a chance to think things over, as he was determined to do, she’d never go through with it.
    If they’d had sex tonight, she could have blamed her behavior on the charged atmosphere of the occasion. By tomorrow, she’d remember all the reasons why having sex with him was a really bad idea, beginning with themost important one—their potential business relationship.
    Tonight could have been her initiation into the wonders of carnal knowledge by someone who seemed to know his way around the subject. Apparently he thought postponing the event would make it better. She wasn’t going to tell him now, but postponing it meant that it wasn’t going to happen at all.

Chapter 6
     
    Colin’s exhaustion was real enough, but that wasn’t his only reason for calling a halt. He had some decisions to make regarding Luna, including the business matter of her inn project, and the personal matter of wanting her with the heat of a thousand suns. Decisions on both questions should be made only after due consideration and not on the spur of the moment.
    This lusty attraction had scrambled his wits, which wasn’t a common problem for him. He would like to blame it on jet lag, but he feared it had to do with the beautiful Were herself. After he staggered to bed, and just before he fell into a dreamless sleep, he vowed to avoid being alone with her again until he’d sorted out his feelings.
    Fortunately, he had limited time to be tempted by that deadly combination of innocence and passionate response that had nearly undone him at twilight on Happy Hour Beach. He slept until nearly noon. He barely had time to shower, dress in a cotton long-sleeved shirt and slacks, and grab a quick snack before the real estate agent, Regis Trevelyan, arrived by motor launch. Colin spent the afternoon showing Regis, a graying Were witha slight paunch, around the estate. Late in the afternoon, Colin invited him to stay for dinner.
    He asked Luna to join them, and she agreed, but he noticed the rigid set of her jaw every time she looked at Regis. Maybe she thought that Colin had invited him to dinner because they’d signed a contract to list the property. The opposite was true. He’d invited Regis to dinner because the poor chap wouldn’t get the business, after all, and Colin wanted to offer him dinner as a small consolation.
    The dining room had never looked better, and Colin gave Luna and her hard-working staff credit for that. Beeswax tapers cast a mellow glow over the dark paneled walls, and flowers graced the center of the table and the sideboards, as well. Luna had pinned her hair up in that sexy, mysterious way known only to women, and had worn a simple ivory dress that outlined her body so deliciously that she was driving him slowly insane.
    But that was his personal problem. Even with that distraction to deal with, he could see that she was an excellent hostess. In her hands, Whittier House would flourish as an inn for Weres. He still had to mull over the particulars, but he was increasingly inclined to consider her plan. He’d never really wanted to sell Geraldine’s house, anyway.
    “Amazing job on the salmon,” Regis said as Sybil cleared the dinner plates.
    “Thank you. I’ll tell the chef.” Sybil beamed at him and continued to gather the empty dishes. She wore a white blouse and navy slacks, which might have been her attempt at a uniform.
    Colin liked the comfortable informality of the staff’s clothing, which hadn’t changed since the summers he’d spent here years ago. But if Luna intended