“Good,” he said, and his voice sounded hoarse. “Now my turn.”
He studied her for a moment, his hot gaze gliding over her. After stroking her belly with his fingertips, he trailed over the ring in her navel then gave it a little tug. The skin was still tender from the piercing, but strangely, the pain felt more like pleasure, and heat flooded her sex.
“I like this,” he said giving it another tug.
She shifted a little as another jolt of sensation shot along her nerves to settle between her thighs. But nothing could happen here. It felt good not to worry about the consequences—this was only acting, after all. “You like it? I thought you’d hate it. I was going to get a tattoo as well, but I ran out of time.”
“Forget it.” He grinned. “Unless it’s stamped across your ass and says, ‘property of Jake Knight.’”
“Never going to happen.”
She glanced around the room. Nadia was talking to Jake’s other sister, Tania, but kept darting glances their way.
Jake followed her gaze. “I reckon she needs a little more convincing.”
“Well, there’s not much we can do in the middle of a crowded party.”
“Is that a challenge?”
She shot him a stern look. And he grinned. “It’s amazing what you can do if you’re discreet.”
His words sent a thrill running through her. She ignored it. Almost. “Yes, but the whole point is that she sees. So that would be defeating the object, wouldn’t it?”
“But it might be fun.”
“We’re not here for fun. We’re here to save you from stalker madwoman.”
“You’re right.”
Without giving her a chance to say anything else, he took her by the shoulders, spun her around, backed her against the wall, and kissed her.
It was official—he was an excellent actor.
He kissed her like he loved her, needed her, would never get enough of her.
He slanted his lips over hers and forced his hard tongue inside her mouth. For a second she fought her body’s instinctive reactions, but it felt so good. She relaxed her defenses, and suddenly she was kissing him back. Her tongue sliding into his mouth, tasting him, stroking along the hard edges of his teeth. He didn’t touch her anywhere besides her mouth, but her whole being ached with need, her skin prickly, a pulse throbbing between her thighs.
She lost all track of time. After an age, he pulled free. He bent closer and rested his forehead against hers. They both panted heavily. Finally, he straightened.
“You are such a good…actor,” she said.
He twisted his lips into the semblance of a smile. “You, too. Come on. If that hasn’t convinced the whole room that I want you, then nothing will.”
Slowly the party came back into focus. She glanced around and found a number of people watching them. She fought the need to fan her face, but it was only a kiss. Not as though they’d stripped naked and had wild, hot sex in the middle of the dance floor.
“Who’s the man over there watching us?” she asked. “The one with the big grin on his face.”
“I’ll introduce you.”
She guessed who it must be as they drew closer. He had a look of Jake about him, except he appeared more relaxed.
“This is Damon,” Jake said. “My brother.”
Damon leaned across and kissed her on the cheek. “That was quite a performance.”
“Simply trying to make a point,” Jake replied.
“Ah—Nadia, I presume.”
Jake nodded. “This is Kimberly.” He turned to Kim. “You could say you and I met because of Damon.”
“We did?”
“Yes. He was supposed to take over Dad’s company but had a premature midlife crisis and decided he wanted to be a painter instead.”
“An artist, please—a painter sounds like I decorate houses.”
“Anyway, that’s why I left the army and set up the security company, and the reason I was in your building back when you were married to that bastard.”
“What were you doing there?” Kim frowned. “You never really said.”
He looked a little shifty. “Just surveillance on one of the residents.”
She wanted to ask more because she had a weird notion, but at that moment, Jake’s mother approached them.
“Did you have to?” she muttered to Jake. “A parachute jump. What were you thinking?”
Jake grinned. “He’ll enjoy it.”
“That’s what I’m worried about.”
Kim allowed the conversation to flow over her. They were a nice family, and it was obvious they were close. She’d never had that and felt a faint glimmer of regret. Things hadn’t been too bad while her mother was alive. But she’d died in a car crash when Kim was ten.