Free Uncharted Waters by Linda Castillo Page B

her reasoning powers lay in a puddle at her feet?
    But in some small corner of her mind, she knew the situation had already gone too far. She knew there was no stopping it, like a train careering wildly down rickety tracks toward an inevitable crash. All she could do was hang on for the ride and hope she survived the impact.

CHAPTER FIVE
    I t wasn’t often that Drew completely lost his head. He was neither impulsive nor reckless. He didn’t get off on adrenaline or court disaster just for the thrill of it. He had a code of honor and a steely discipline, and he maintained both at all costs. He supposed he was going to make an exception today because kissing Alison Myers broke every rule in the book.
    There had always been a certain amount of electricity between them. Drew had accepted it, convinced himself it was one-sided and handled it because he’d known they were too smart to venture down that shadowy trail. Alison was too decent. He respected her too much. He had respected Rick too much.
    But the instant his mouth touched hers it was as if something primal had been unleashed inside him. A long-buried need that had been abruptly unearthed. He knew better than to give it free rein, but the need to hold her, to possess her was like an unruly beast tugging against a tenuous cord. A cord that was dangerously close to snapping.
    Closing his eyes against the hot burst of pleasure, he drank in the essence of her. The taste of her mouth. The feel of her in his arms. It seemed as if he’d wanted to kiss her forever. Intellectually, he knew Alison Myers was off-limits for too many reasons to name. She was the widow of his best friend. A man Drew hadseen die. A death Drew had played a role in. The irony that she would want him after that burned. The burden of guilt was crushing.
    Drew’s body didn’t give a damn about either of those things.
    Her body was small and curvy and incredibly soft. He was aware of her breasts against his chest. His senses were so heightened, he could feel the hard nubs of her nipples through their clothes. The warmth of her sigh against his cheek. The sweet taste of her mouth mingling with the bitter knowledge that he was making a very big mistake.
    He knew better than to take the kiss to the next level. Not with a thousand warnings blaring in his head and her little boy sleeping just a few feet away. But his intellect relinquished its hold. The beast gained a foothold, dug in with spindly claws and slowly took control. Drew had neither the discipline nor the will to fight it.
    He tested her with his tongue. She hesitated, but her uncertainty didn’t deter him. He didn’t slow down, didn’t stop, and he didn’t ask nicely when he tilted her head back and went in deep.
    The earth shifted beneath his feet when she opened to him. Her mouth was like warm, wet silk. He marveled at her taste, let it intoxicate him like an exotic wine. He wanted to guzzle. He wanted to drink in every inch of her, every dark corner, consume every last drop.
    Vaguely he was aware that he’d backed her against the wall, that her body was flush against his. His breaths rushed in and out as if he’d just run a marathon. Blood pulsed like lava through his veins. His thoughts were scattered, his focus centered completely on hermouth, on the contact of their bodies, the fire burning low and hot.
    His hands trembled when he laced them with hers and drew her arms over her head. He felt her go slack against the wall. Her head went back, exposing the column of her throat. Bending his head, he kissed her there, tasting her, his tongue leaving wet trails on her soft flesh. She shivered against him, her back arching. Need coiled and snapped inside him. A short fuse connected to a keg of dynamite that was ready to blow.
    He wanted to explore every inch of her with his hands, with his eyes, with his mouth. He wanted to be inside her. Her body. Her mind. Her heart. She’d been inside him for so