Until We Touch (Fool's Gold #15)

A compliment that warmed her from the inside out.

Together they put food in the refrigerator, threw away cartons and loaded the dishwasher. Dyna checked out a few of the leftovers they offered her and daintily took a piece of chicken. When the cleaning was done, Larissa walked to the freezer.

“I think there are some brownies in here, unless you ate them all.”

She searched behind frozen roasts and single servings of her crockpot chili before finding a package of brownies, then bumped the freezer door closed with her hip.

“Perfect,” she said. “These won’t take too long to thaw.”

She put them on the counter and unwrapped them, then turned to get a plate, only to find Jack was right behind her.

Momentum carried her forward a half foot or so, until she was nearly touching him.

Everything about the moment changed. The easy, lighthearted evening they’d been sharing shifted until the atmosphere was so thick, she could nearly touch it. Her breathing stopped as she stared up into his dark eyes. Her skin heated, her heart rate increased and the world shrank to hold only the man in front of her.

They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. Unexpected need pulsed through her, making her want to close the small distance that still separated them.

This was Jack, she thought, confused and determined at the same time. She knew every inch of him. Knew the feel of her hands on his skin. She wanted that now, but not in the usual way. She didn’t want to give him a massage—she wanted to be touching him the way a woman touches a man. She wanted to be next to him, exploring him as he explored her.

The sexual image was powerful enough to make her knees weak. She sucked in a breath and waited for whatever would happen next. Did he sense the tension between them or would he simply joke about the brownies and suggest they find a baseball game on TV?

His dark eyes were impossible to read. For several long seconds, he didn’t move at all, then he raised his hand and cupped the side of her face.

“Larissa.”

The single word was spoken on a whisper of air. Before she could know what it meant, he bent down and kissed her.

The feel of his mouth was heaven. Gentle, with only a hint of passion. Then the hint grew as the pressure increased. He drew her along with him, building need inside of her.

Without thinking, she raised her arms and wrapped them around his neck. He put his free hand on her waist and drew her against him. They were touching everywhere, hard to soft, male to female. She surrendered to his strength and melted against him, even as their kiss stayed chaste.

He brushed his lips against her cheek, then her closed eyelids. He nuzzled her ear before touching the tip of his tongue to the sensitive skin below her lobe. When his mouth returned to hers, she parted immediately and felt the sizzle that accompanied the first stroke of his tongue against hers.

Heat poured through her, settling low in her belly. Wanting exploded, surprising her at first with its presence, then with its intensity. She had to consciously keep from grinding into him—pelvis to pelvis. At the same time her breast ached for his skilled touch.

The kiss continued—a passionate game of tag, where losing was delicious and winning meant going into overtime.

Jack put both hands on her waist, then slowly slid them up and down her back. On the second pass, he slipped down over her hips. He moved slowly, exploring unfamiliar territory. Anticipation built. Her ni**les hardened.

More, she thought, ready to go wherever this led. Definitely more.

But instead of reading her mind, he drew back enough to break the kiss and put space between them. They stared at each other, both breathing more quickly. She felt as wide-eyed as he looked. Emotions flooded his eyes. Confusion, affection and, most of all, desire. Exactly what she was feeling. Because while she’d always liked Jack, until recently she hadn’t thought about liking Jack.

Indecision had her biting her bottom lip. Because this night could go in two very different directions. While wanting him was great and making love would probably rock her world, what would happen the next morning? What would she have lost?

She nearly stomped her foot. This was all her mother’s fault, she thought bitterly.

“I have to go,” she said suddenly, darting around him.

“Larissa, we have to talk.”

“We don’t. Not really.”

She found Dyna curled up on the sofa. Her cat didn’t take kindly to being disturbed, but allowed her regal self to be placed in the carrier.

“I’ll see you tomorrow. At work.”

With that, she raced for the front door and didn’t allow herself to relax until she was safely in her car. Before starting the engine, she drew in a few breaths and told herself living in a state of denial wasn’t all that bad. People did it all the time and she could, too.