Kate slid her arm around Ian’s waist. “He has a few boundary issues, that’s all. He’s actually quite wonderful.”
“Watching my girl cockblock you was even more satisfying than when I did it myself.” Ian pointed at Kent’s date, who was halfway down the hall. “But maybe if you catch up with her and do some groveling, you can turn this around. Good luck.”
Kent looked like he couldn’t decide if he wanted to punch Ian or try to salvage what was left of the evening with his date. Considering he was several inches shorter than Ian and more than a little drunk, he made the wise choice to take off after her.
Ian turned to Kate. “We make a good team, don’t we?” he said, lifting her hood.
She looked into his eyes. “The best.”
Snow was falling hard when they walked outside. Ian held Kate’s hand while they waited, and right before the valet pulled up with his car, he raised her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it.
“I should probably delete my dating profile,” Kate said as Ian drove carefully through the swirling snow. She’d long since turned off all notifications and had no idea if there’d been any activity—or what her current profile photo looked like.
“Keep it,” Ian said, laughing. “I like it better this way.
“Ian Bradshaw, what have you done?”
She used her phone to log on to her account. He had changed her profile picture to the one he’d taken of her driving the Shelby.
“A nice, normal photo,” she said. “How unexpected.”
“I want them to know exactly what they can’t have.”
He’d changed her bio too. It was short and simple and made her laugh: I like meat, driving fast, and Ian Smith.
She leaned across the console and kissed his cheek. “What am I going to do with you?”
“Maybe we can figure that out when we get home.”
Kate slipped off her boots, walked into the bedroom, and turned on the bedside lamp. She was standing in front of the dresser removing her jewelry when Ian joined her. He caught her eye in the mirror and began removing the pins from her hair, working patiently to find all of them. Once her hair was down, he ran his hands through it, massaging her head.
“That feels so good,” she said, holding his gaze as she laid her head back on his chest. He slipped one arm around her in front but trailed the fingers of the opposite hand along the curve of her waist, the slope of her hip. He nibbled her ear and then placed kisses, whisper soft, down the length of her neck, making her shiver.
She turned around, desperate for his mouth on hers. He slid his hands underneath her jaw and lifted her face, his kisses alternating between teasing and urgent. He’d taken off his jacket as soon as they walked in the door, but Kate needed the feel of his skin under her lips and fingers. She unbuttoned his shirt and removed it, then stripped off the T-shirt he wore underneath. Lightly rubbing her face on his chest, she breathed in the spicy smell of his cologne and sighed as she reached around, seeking the hard muscles of his back.
He turned her so she was facing the mirror again. Without breaking eye contact, he raised the hem of her dress and slowly pulled it over her head. Her thighs were touching the edge of the dresser, and he pressed the full length of his body up against her. She could feel how hard he was, and she pushed back, making him groan. Slowly he unlaced the ribbons on the bustier.
“You promised to be careful,” she reminded him.
Locking eyes with her in the mirror, he gave her a half smile and unzipped the lingerie, catching it before it could fall to the floor. He placed it gently on the dresser.
He cupped her breasts and squeezed. He sucked on her neck and pulled on her nipples, gently at first and then harder on both.
She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe. “Ian.”
“Keep watching,” he said, his voice low and heavy. He slipped his hand into the front of her thong, stopping just above where she wanted his fingers the most.