“You’re a team player,” Roan praised, feeling suddenly happy. His whole chest felt like it was expanding with an unfamiliar joy as he drowned in her dark green gaze. Her eyes reminded Roan of being deep in an evergreen forest with tiny bits of sunlight falling through the foliage like gold and diamonds.
“I’ve always been a team person,” Shiloh murmured. When she started to get up, Roan stood, offering his hand to her. He’d taken off his gloves and they stuck out in the rear pocket of his Levi’s. She wanted to touch this man and slipped her fingers into his large, worn hand. Warmth curled up through her as his sun-darkened fingers wound around hers, gently pulling her to her feet. She saw heat flash through his narrowing gray gaze, saw his eyes go stormy. His fingers tightened briefly around hers. He should let her go. But he wasn’t. And she wasn’t trying to pull her fingers from his. Drowning in the desire she saw in his eyes, Shiloh realized Roan wanted to kiss her. Going hot from head to toes, her body gnawed with need, Shiloh knew all she had to do was take one step forward. Roan had held her as she cried earlier. She wanted those long, strong arms around her again. The feeling of safety within his embrace tore all the darkness away from her.
Throat growing dry, her gaze settled on his mouth. A wide, strong mouth, well defined, and she felt beyond needy for Roan. Somehow, Shiloh knew he would be a skilled lover and he would put her first, not last. And all of this transpired in a heated second strung between them. Reluctantly, he opened his fingers, allowing her to reclaim her hand. She should have stepped forward, should have taken the unspoken invitation burning in his eyes. Inwardly, Shiloh called herself an emotional coward. Why couldn’t she kiss Roan? He wanted to kiss her. She wanted to kiss him!
Shiloh didn’t move, her hand dropping to her side. Her heart was beating so hard in her chest, he must have heard it, he was that close to her. Roan hadn’t moved, his eyes tracking her every expression, reading her, wanting her. Trying to swallow, she helplessly opened her hands and whispered, “I’m afraid, Roan. . . .” There, it was out. The truth.
“I can see that,” he drawled.
There was no judgment in his tone. His voice was low, mellow, and her skin reacted, desperately wanting his touch, his callused fingers gliding and discovering her. Frowning, Shiloh forced herself to look up at him. Roan deserved her courage, not her cowardice. “You wanted to kiss me.”
“I still do.”
Her mouth went dry. Her heart amped up, thundering in her breast. “I—I’m afraid.”
“Because?”
His patience embraced her. She sensed him monitoring her, that kindness in the recesses of his gray gaze made her feel safe. It gave her the courage to go on. “Because I know you’re not the type of man who wants a one-night stand, Roan.”
“And you are?” he asked, one brow raised questionably.
Her mouth quirked. “No . . . no, I’m not built like that, either.”
“It’s just a kiss, Shiloh.”
She stared hard at him. “A kiss is never just a kiss and you know it.” She watched his mouth twitch, warmth drenching his gray eyes. “It . . . well, it’s always meant more to me than that. I can’t help it. It’s who I am.”
“You’re saying there has to be more important reasons to kiss than just to kiss?”
Roan was maddening. She glared at him, frustrated. Jamming her hands on her hips, she muttered, “Yes.”
“You play for keeps, Darlin’.”
Wincing, Shiloh tore her gaze from his. “I don’t take liking someone lightly, Roan. I—just never had it in me to just have a fling and walk away from it the next morning.”
Nodding, he murmured, “I didn’t take you for a woman who played around much.”
“Thanks. That’s a compliment.”
“Are you presently with another man?” Roan wanted to know, damn his soul. There was such powerful yearning tautly strung between them; like a living, heated connection that was screaming to be satiated.
“No . . .”
“Not the last six months, I would guess?” Because that’s when the stalker entered her life, imprisoning her. He saw angst in her face and she chewed momentarily on her lower lip. He knew that meant Shiloh was experiencing stress, and he felt bad, but they had to broach this topic. Roan had no idea what the fallout would be, one way or another. But at least he’d know if Shiloh was interested in him or not.