Get it over with? Surely this attraction couldn’t all be on his side. His body hummed with the knowledge of the kiss to come. Was she immune to him? Could she be when he felt this strong a need to touch her?
He leaned down, lifted her chin with his finger and brushed his lips over hers gently. She tried to pull back—as if that was payment enough for losing the bet. Dan wasn’t having that, though. He tugged her closer and slid one hand to cradle her head and the other around her back to keep her there.
At first she stood rigid under his touch, her mouth resolutely still, but a moment later, just as he thought her stubbornness might ruin the pleasure of this encounter for both of them, she gave in with a sigh, and parted her lips.
Flush with this new victory, Dan pulled her closer still, and tightened his arms around her. Her acquiescence turned him on in a way he hadn’t expected. Maybe because she was an equal, not a worshipper. He deepened the kiss, probing with his tongue, tasting her until his whole body was on fire with the desire to push things further. He couldn’t do that, though. Not with an audience.
Mason wolf-whistled, and Dan blinked, coming to his senses. Sarah stared back at him, looking equally surprised. Her fingers were curled into his shirt as tightly as his were tangled in her hair and for one split second he saw the naked want in her eyes. It wasn’t so much a sexual thing, he realized instantly, although he’d swear she was as aware of him as he was of her right at this moment. Instead it went deeper. She needed a man who could understand who she was—the military side of her as well as the feminine side. He bet most men couldn’t do that. Before he could explore this idea, however, Sarah stiffened and pushed him away.
“That’s enough of that.” Her voice was clipped and she tried to step back. Dan held her in place, confounded by the urge he had to keep her close until he’d discovered everything there was to know about her.
“I don’t think that’s nearly enough of that.” He tried to pull her in for another kiss, but Sarah erupted in a blur of motion. A moment later Dan found himself on the ground. “What the fuck!” He glared up her.
“Black belt in Krav Maga. I’ve been an instructor for the past five years.”
Krav Maga. The Israeli military’s legendary self-defense system. Figured. Dan hefted himself off the floor until he towered over her again. “You won’t be able to do that twice,” he growled. Not now that he knew what to expect. He cursed himself for lowering his guard long enough for her to be able to take advantage of it. This was exactly why he didn’t date women in the military.
Sarah just shrugged. The triumph in her eyes sent his competitive spirt skyrocketing. Before she could react, he grabbed her, kissed her again—a thorough, hungry kiss—then let go, dumping her to the floor. “Black belt in making out,” he explained and left the room.
Chapter Four
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“This is supposed to be a holiday, not the Olympics,” Regan said to Sarah the following day as Sarah and Dan suited up in borrowed pairs of snowshoes. Dan had challenged Sarah to a cross country race in the cumbersome footgear at breakfast, and to Regan’s dismay, she had accepted. “If you don’t like him, stay away from him. It’s a big ranch!”
“This isn’t about like or dislike. It’s about honor.” Regan was a great friend, but she didn’t understand how frustrating it was to have to constantly prove her worth as a soldier. Sarah had put a SEAL on the floor last night, after nearly beating him on an obstacle course. Hadn’t she proved herself?
Apparently not, because Dan had spent the morning meal dissing everything from her balance beam technique to her self-defense capabilities. As he continually pointed out, he had managed to sneak that extra kiss past her guard, after all.
And what a kiss it was. In the privacy of her own bedroom on the third floor of the Hall last night, she’d replayed both kisses a hundred times. What was it about the man that set her on fire when he touched her? She wasn’t sure what made him any different than the other men she’d dated.
None of them had ever set all her senses alight, though, and none of them had looked at her the way Dan had when he was done—like he’d been stunned by their contact and hungered for more.
She was beginning to think she wanted to get to know him better too. As insane as that was.
She’d die rather than let him know that, though. SEALman was too full of himself already, and why wouldn’t he be with that hard body and handsome face? He was something out of a recruitment poster and she bet lots of women flung themselves at his feet. The same couldn’t be said for her. She knew she was passable in the looks department, and she had all the right curves, but while her military prowess earned her begrudging respect among her fellow soldiers, it didn’t inspire any of the men she knew to fall on their knees and worship her.
More’s the pity.