Ay! Kate’s core was on fire.
Spencer’s tongue danced across the roof of her mouth in a flood of sensation that pooled between her thighs.
Until now, her love for Spencer had been unrequited. Moving to Bourbon, away from family and everything familiar because she needed to stand on her own, was difficult. Seeing Spencer on her first day of work made the loneliness of living alone bearable. Love at first sight, that’s what her mother would call it. Her heart hummed in agreement as he suckled her tongue. Coaxing her to yield.
Any thoughts she’d had that he was a passive lover quickly vanished when he took her mouth greedily. His teeth grazed her swollen lower lip where he nipped, demanding she open fully to him. Kate shivered, intrigued by the beast he had kept at bay so far.
He was hungry.
But she’d been starving for months.
Too soon, his mouth lifted.
“No!” Was that her strangled cry? She couldn’t open her eyes. Not yet, not when her lips still tingled and her taste buds danced from a sample of his flavor.
The hard angle of Spencer’s cheek brushed hers as he nipped the length of her jaw. How many times had she imagined kissing him? A dozen…a million? None of those times had she imagined the all-consuming fire that burned everywhere he touched. How many times had she stroked herself? Pretended his fingers and not hers were driving her to climax? Yet, she was wetter now after one kiss than she’d ever been at her own manipulations.
“If we don’t stop now, we’ll burn the shrimp.”
His breath teased her ear deliciously. For a few seconds, she’d forgotten about their dinner, or that she’d been secretly in love with this man since moving to Bourbon. The kiss reflected the newness of their relationship, the undeniable spark from their first meeting. A spark she wanted to explode.
Taking a deep breath, Kate took a leap of faith. They were so different, scary different. She loved people, the intimacy of touching, and warm cuddles while Spencer thrived in small circles. From his kiss, the way he’d lit the flames, to the part of her that longed for something deeper felt oh so right. But could he withstand her need for cuddles, the heat of her hand on his body, or was he just opposed to the touch of all outsiders? There was only one way to find out.
“I’d like to feed you dinner,” she said.
When she’d seen him in the office earlier, she vowed not to put off meeting him even if it meant making the first move. When she left Spencer’s home, he was either going to take a chance on a girl that came from the wrong side of the tracks, or she’d have to start looking for a new job because there was no way she would be able to see him visit her boss and not wonder if Spencer was going on another date. That would be torture.
“Please,” she said when he hesitated.
He turned off the stove and poured two glasses of wine. Time slowed watching him move around the chef's kitchen before entering the dining room and sitting at the table. Kate expelled a relieved breath. She thought he’d say no and she could tell from the way he’d rolled his shoulders before sitting that that was his way of preparing himself. Spencer wasn’t easy to read like the men from her past. Perhaps that was why she found him appealing.
In a single serving bowl, she added the pesto to the pasta, then the buttered shrimp. It wasn’t what she’d call fine dining, but she enjoyed making the meal with him. Being in the kitchen with another human, teasing and laughing, reminded her of home and cooking with her family. They’d never accomplished all the dreams their grandfather had set out for them, but family meals were their source of wealth.
She hesitated before leaving the kitchen with their food. Kate never thought she was the type of girl he’d look at twice. She wasn’t rich or attended an Ivy League school… What if he thought she liked him for his money? Kate flinched. She hadn’t known he was rich until she’d processed a donation from him and Cor to a children’s charity in Wheelcaster. Would he even believe her?
Shaking her head to dislodge the negative stream of thoughts, Kate left the kitchen and walked towards Spencer in the dining room. She was never one to have an interest in material things. If there was one thing her father taught her, it was that money came and went. It was hardly a foundation for a relationship, and if Spencer thought she cared about his money, then perhaps he wasn’t the guy for her after all.
His brows wrinkled but, like before, he didn’t say a word when she straddled his chair except for the groan that rumbled from his chest when she sat in his lap. Warm unexpected fingers gripped the top of her exposed legs where her skirt had ridden up and she trembled.
“What are you doing, Kate?”
Twirling a small portion of pasta around the fork, she held it to his mouth. “Feeding you as promised.” Kate hadn’t been this nervous since deciding to move to Bourbon.
“Can I ask a question?” She licked the pesto sauce from the corner of her mouth. “Do you always go on double dates?”
“The double date wasn’t my idea, it was hers.” He shrugged. “You already know I’m not a fan of crowds.”
She flushed at the reminder she’d secretly been lusting after him for way too long.
“How long have you worked for Cor?”
“Six months.” She shifted and his grip tightened, anchoring her firmly against him. Now that she thought about how long she’d allowed her emotions to run wild, going to work hoping for the briefest glimpses of Spencer, or how she’d fallen in love with a man she hadn’t met, Kate realized she must seem a tiny bit obsessed.
“Do you know what you’re doing?” he asked, a dangerous thread turning the question into a growl.
The only thing she was sure of was she’d waited too long to meet this man, and now that she had, there was no way she wouldn’t be playing for keeps.
Kate swallowed. The flutter below her waist directly connected to his sexy drawl. “I’d like to think your friend wouldn’t have hired me otherwise.”