Free When a Man Loves a Woman (Indigo) by LaConnie Taylor-Jones Page B

stripped away one by one.
    She didn’t want to fall in love again, yet it was too nerve-wracking to teeter back and forth with the physical attraction that had crackled between them for months. Why not enjoy the moment? When things were over, he could move on, and her heart would remain unscathed. Without saying a word, she turned and looped her arms around his neck. “What’s right is you and me…tonight.”
    He placed his hands atop hers. “I beg to differ.”
    She whispered in his mouth, “Baptiste, enjoy this moment with me and what we feel for each other without any commitments, okay?”
    “I can’t do that, Honey.” He lifted her hands and placed them at her side.
    She stepped away, confused. “I-I don’t understand.”
    “For the first time since I’ve known you, I’m going to love you. And just so you’ll know, I’m not going to simply enjoy the moment. Never.”
    She shook her head. “What are you saying here, Baptiste?”
    He moved closer, but didn’t touch her. “I told you before, Honey, I’m not going to settle for a casual affair with you and then go our separate ways afterward.”
    “B-But you just said a moment ago you were in love with me, right?”
    Smiling, he nodded.
    “Well, if a person loves someone, they usually show it physically, right?”
    “Usually,” he concurred, lightly stroking his finger along her cheek. “The only problem is that it doesn’t hold true in our case.”
    Frustrated, her hands landed on her hips. “And just why not?”
    “Because you don’t love me. If I simply wanted a booty call, I could get that anywhere. You’re too precious to me to settle for anything less than your complete love.”
    Vic was more baffled now than she was earlier. “B-But you asked if you could love me, right?”
    He nodded. “Precisely. I asked if I could love you, not make love. There’s a world of difference.”
    “Difference,” she cried out in bewilderment. “How?”
    His hand fused with the back of her head. “Let me show you.”
    Before she knew what hit her, he wrapped her in his embrace, his mouth swooping down on hers. The feel of his lips was strong, yet ever so gentle. A voice inside her head screamed this was another one of his ploys to make her fall in love with him. The whisper from her heart confirmed he might succeed before all was said and done. The tiny flicks of his tongue against the corners of her mouth caused her arms to inch their way back around his neck. His fingers toyed with her skull, causing her lips to part, and he probed further, sucking away her senses and resistance until she released a moan of pure, unadulterated pleasure.
    He stepped back, kicked his slippers off, and tugged at the tail of his tank top.
    Vic swallowed hard. “W-What are you doing?”
    “Getting ready to go to bed.” He walked over and sat on the edge of the mattress and removed all his clothes except his underwear, then stood again.
    Vic’s eyes widened. She blinked once, twice, and a third time before it finally registered. Oh, Jesus. Black silk bikini briefs? She didn’t even know such a design existed; she’d been out of circulation too long.
    “Are you coming?”
    “C-Coming where?” she stuttered in a strangled voice.
    Didn’t he just tell her two seconds ago they weren’t going to have sex? She continued to stare, but this time, with appreciation. Muscular, toned, and powerful, his massive physique towered over her. She closed her eyes and held the image. Lord, the man looked good.
    “To bed,” he answered softly.
    She shook her head to try and clear the confusion and looked down at her clothes before glancing back at him. “Take them off?”
    “You can leave them on or off. It doesn’t matter.”
    She sucked in a deep breath and tried to steady the trembling of her hands while she undressed down to her underwear. His gaze never left hers.
    Their eyes met, and with slow, deliberate steps, he closed the gap between them.
    “You’re about to