Free Bachelorette for Sale by Gail Chianese

her.
    “Actually it feels nice. I was getting a little hot in the restaurant.”
    “Tell me about it.”
    Her eyes popped open and Jason realized how his comment sounded. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it that way.”
    She cocked her head to the side, a small frown on her face.
    Crap. “And that didn’t come out right either. Maybe I should shut up and eat my pastry.” What was wrong with him tonight? It’d been a while since his last date. Still, he used to have a little more finesse.
    Cherry reached out and laid her hand softly on top of his. He met her gaze. The look in her two-tone eyes spoke louder than words. She’d been hurt, and he’d make a guess she hadn’t fully recovered.
    “Jason, it’s okay. This isn’t your ordinary date. You don’t have to pretend to feel something when you don’t actually feel it. It’s been a fun night, and that’s way more than I expected.”
    Except he had meant it when he said he had been getting hot in the restaurant, he just didn’t want to admit it and have her thinking (again) that he was a creep. Not to mention he still needed to tell her about his company and the proposal.
    “Hey, let’s toss a coin in the fountain and make a wish. You never know, it may come true.” She grabbed his hand and tugged him over to stand in front of the sculpture. “Remember, you can’t say it out loud or tell anyone or it won’t work.”
    Jason pulled out two quarters, handed one to Cherry, and tossed his into the water. He turned to face her. She stood with her back to the fountain, with her eyes closed and her nose scrunched up, as if she was rejecting wishes. After a few minutes, her mouth turned upward and the coin flew through the air before landing with a plop into the still water. He didn’t know what she had been thinking of; he doubted it was the same wish as earlier. Before she’d looked sad and lost, but this time she looked happy and sexy.
    Action overtook his brain. He slid his hands into her hair, cupping her face between his hands. Her eyes opened slowly and she gazed up at him. She bit down on the corner of her lip and he lost his battle. He kissed the spot she’d bitten first and then tilted his head to get a better angle and dove in. She tasted of coffee and sweet cream. He could stand here for hours lapping her up. She had stepped into the kiss, bringing their bodies into full contact. He scraped his teeth along her jawline, not wanting to stop. Soft purrs came from her throat, urging him to continue. He returned to her sweet, luscious mouth, inhaling the intoxicating floral scent around her.
    He’d once been told by a high school counselor to be careful of addictive substances. Now he knew what the man referred to: Cherry’s kisses.
    Shit. He really couldn’t bring up the center proposal now.

Chapter Five

    T he rush and gurgle of the nearby waterfall filled the air. The breeze blew a light mist that cooled her sun-kissed skin as his hand trailed up her bare thigh. Cherry arched her back, lifting her breasts to meet his hungry mouth. She grabbed two handfuls of his shirt and tugged it up and over his head, tossing the offending article of clothing aside. She wanted skin-to-skin contact. To feel the shift of his muscles under her palms, to play with the light sprinkle of dark hair on his chest. She wanted to do a whole lot more, but the infuriating man insisted on taking his sweet, sweet time.
    He lifted his head, gazing at her with intense blue-green eyes, his mouth tugged up on one side. A small growl escaped from her lips.
    “Hungry?” he asked.
    “Starved,” she replied.
    Instead of giving her what she wanted—him—he broke off a piece of dark chocolate and fed it to her.
    “Yum. Not what I meant, though.”
    “Patience, my love.”
    “You drove my patience over the edge at least ten minutes ago.”
    He had the nerve to chuckle before swooping in and slipping his tongue into her open mouth to caress hers. He tasted of chocolate and wine from their