Free Something About Joe by Kandy Shepherd Page A

him
every evening they spent at home—no matter how late she’d finished
work.
    But she hadn’t seen Peter’s attitude as
unusual. It had been the same when she was growing up. Even when
her mother had been ill, she’d dragged herself around the kitchen
and taken care of the household. Her father had demanded it.
    “I appreciate you cooking,” she said. “I
usually just heat something in the microwave and eat it in front of
the TV.”
    Why had she said that? She wished she could
drag the words back into her mouth. They made her sound like some
kind of social reject. That wasn’t the image she wanted to project
to Joe Martin. She might be date-less but she was far from
desperate.
    She forced a laugh. “All this healthy stuff
you’re cooking me is good for my figure.”
    His already husky voice deepened to almost a
growl. “You’ve got an amazing figure.”
    Allison was
about to say she could lose a pound or
two, but was halted by the sensual gleam in Joe’s eyes as he
appraised her body. His gaze roamed over her breasts, her waist,
her hips, lingered on her legs and returned to her face.
    Her nipples hardened in response and she
could feel a flush climbing up her neck like a rising tide. She
prayed he wouldn’t notice. Her knees started trembling with a
sudden weakness. If just by looking at her he could arouse such
feelings, what would it feel like if he were to touch her? To
stroke and caress her and make her body sing?
    This time
there was no mistaking the passion that gleamed hot in his eyes. “I
like a woman to look like a woman,” he said, his voice husky with
sensuous undertones.
    Allison’s heart missed a beat. Had she heard
him right? Was Mitchell’s nanny coming onto her?
    She smiled,
but was so shocked she could only stammer out, “Th...thank
you.”
    She was so
overwhelmed by her attraction to him she could hardly speak—and she
didn’t know how to handle the situation. She, who had never trusted
physical attraction, was unprepared for the force of the pull she
felt to him. She couldn’t keep her eyes from his face, from his
mouth and the sensual admiration in his eyes. It made her feel sexy
and desirable and womanly. And she hadn’t thought about herself in
that way for a long time.
    Joe abruptly
turned to the stove. But seconds later he turned back to her. His
expression, his stance—he looked as though he’d fought a battle
with himself and lost. It was the first time she’d seen him lose
his unbeatable aura of self-confidence.
    She stood as
still as he did for a long second—his gaze reflecting her own
uncertainty—before he reached out and gripped her shoulders. She
could feel the warmth and strength of his hands through the silky
knit of her top. Her heart started a violent, excited hammering.
His face was close, his eyes so intense they seemed no longer blue
but black. He slid his hands down her back and she wound her arms
around his neck, linking her hands behind his head.
    Then his
mouth, fierce and demanding, found hers. She kissed him back with
equal fervor; her pent-up longing fuelled her passionate response.
She tightened her arms around his neck and pressed her breasts to
his chest.
    Her mouth
opened under his and she shuddered with delight as his tongue
traced the soft fullness of her lips and then sought entrance to
her mouth. She welcomed him, the tip of her tongue inviting him to
explore further. He pulled her tighter. His hand slid up the back
of her top and caressed her back. She quivered with the pleasure of
it.
    His hands
were warm and firm on her skin. Her senses were filled with his
scent. She could hardly believe this was happening. She was kissing
Joe in her kitchen, her body aflame for him, the blood pounding
through her head—and it was heaven.
    Time seemed to stand still as she gave
herself over to sensation. Her and Joe. It was all she was aware
of.
    The baby
monitor on the countertop crackled. Once. Twice. She froze, her
mouth still pressed to Joe’s.