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She should be stepping back—re hi—but his low voice and the soothing caress of his hands were having an odd effect on her

“Adainst her temple “You liked the kiss” His hands continued to stroke her, coax her

It was hard to issue a denial…and hard to remember why it was so important that she do so His hands moved up to knead her shoulder blades and her eyes nearly closed

She could feel thefroaze connected with hers His eyes shone with a golden-brownish hue in this light She felt prickles of awareness all over her skin, her nipples tight beneath the concealing fabric of her bra

“You find me irresistible, don’t you, petunia?” he said in a low, seductive voice “I’ant, heavy-handed monster, but you like it”

Yes She should say it out loud and put an end to this She focused on his ain She bent toward him—

—and he stepped back, his ar from his eyes “Lucky for us then that I can resist you”

It took her a second, but comprehension finally hit and, with it, a cold fury

He’d been toying with her! Of all the arrogant, s…

She was tempted to rear back and punch him He found her very resistible, did he? He’d enjoyed their kiss just as much as she had, the stinker

And with that thought, she kneipe the srasped his lapels and yanked him down to her

In the instant before her eyes closed, she noted the surprise in his eyes followed by—and she knew she wasn’t wrong—male interest

Four

Her response caught hiuard

But he’d be dae of the opportunity she’d handed hi to rile her Sure, her refusal to aded hi between them all week could almost be cut with the proverbial knife

So, when one of her hands rasp his shoulder while the other cupped the back of his head, he let her urge him forward and press herself into him as she slanted her mouth across his to deepen their kiss

Her lips, he thought, were just as soft as he re And war, rubbing

He parted his lips and let her take the kiss deeper His body tightened in instinctive reaction to her nearness

No matter how much she denied it, the sexual attraction was almost palpable between them So much so that there was a fine line between their constant baiting of one another and juether

He wrapped his arms around her, lifted her off her feet, and tilted his head back so her ainst him

She htened his arain in a series of increasingly hot kisses that had his blood pounding through his veins

Finally, when the urge to undress her and take her right there in the entryway started to overwhelainst the wall He lowered her slowly, letting her slide down against hih sliding against his arousal

When her feet had reached the floor, he let her break their kiss

She blinked and took deep breaths that seemed to mirror his own

“Want to go another round, petunia?” His voice sounded husky with arousal to his own ears “I dare you”

He watched as her brows snapped together and her eyes flashed It orth the price of adht into hie into sexual energy twice now, and both times he’d been putty in her hands

“I don’t need another round, Rafferty” Her lashes lowered and her hand came up to stroke his arousal She looked back up at hi seductively “I have all the proof I need that—how did you put it?—you can resist me”

He sucked in a breath In an instant, he had her pressed up against the wall again, hands over her head and wrists cuffed by one of his hands

She wiggled against him, her seductive smile still in place, and he muttered a curse

“What’s that, Connor? I didn’t hear you”

He narrowed his eyes They were playing a dangerous ga the other’s bluff Yet, he was far froe “Careful, princess You e like that when you’ve literally got your back to the wall,” he growled “Do you want to deny again you enjoyed our lip-locks? Because, if you do, I’ll have to try to prove you wrong again”

To her credit, her bravado didn’t desert her She tossed her head, silky strands of dark hair sliding against them both as she tried to clear her face “I suppose this counts as seduction to a caveman like you”