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“Yes” She waited for him to tell her she’d been an idiot
He raised his bottle toward her “I applaud your bravery”
“Thank you Life is short You have to do what you can while you have the chance”
His gaze sharpened “Is that what you believe?”
She nodded “Same as you, with an entirely different theory I want it all Love, kids, an IRA I could go tomorrow, but what if I live to ninety-seven? What if you do?”
“Then you can join Ana Raquel in being right”
“The possibility doesn’t change your mind?”
“No”
Not a surprise, she thought He’d seen too o there, rather than where she had—with the belief that all opportunities elcome
“It’s getting late,” he said, rising to his feet “I should go”
She stood, ignoring the whimper from her feet “Are you mad?”
He smiled “No I’m not mad”
Do you want to have sex?
She wasn’t sure where the question cao away Not that she was going to speak the question Her fearlessness had limits
Still, the kiss yesterday had been very nice
“Thanks for all your hard work today,” she said “It was even h the season, but I think this is the worst of it”
“This ishis plate to the sink and putting his bottle into the recycling bin
“You’re saying you don’t want a career in retail?”
He faced her “There are things I like”
“My sparkling wit and charm?”
She was standing by the table He walked toward her and put his hands on her waist
“That’s part of it,” he murmured even as he lowered his mouth to hers
She wrapped her arainst hi feet she had to shift her head back a little more than she had before, but the kiss orth it
His ainst hers Hein and brushing his tongue against her botto the sensuous stroking along with the clenching low in her belly
She tilted her head Their tongues circled in that age-old dance of sexual need He slid his hands up her back She stepped even closer so that they were touching everywhere possible Her brsts flattened against his chest, her belly pressed against his groin and in a matter of seconds she felt proof of his arousal
Her fingers instinctively tightened their grip on hiainst his need Which would first require undressing hi else and had to hold in a moan
Her bedroom was just down the hall All she had was a full-sized mattress, which meant there wouldn’t be a whole lot of roole close and that could be fun
He broke the kiss to nibble his way along her jaw, then over to her ear He drew her lobe into his h her
They definitely had to go to her roo her frantic Get in her bed and—
“I should go,” he said, dropping his ar back
She blinked at him “What?”
“It’s late”
“It’s eight”
“I know, but if I stay”
They were going to have sex She was fully aware of that It was kind of the point
“I don’t understand,” she admitted
“I don’t have an IRA”
Had she been drinkingbin and saw that no, she had only finished one beer and started a second Even with her eet her into an altered state of consciousness
“An IRA?”
“I’ for,” he said
Really? Because the quivering in her belly said otherwise
“It’s not that I don’t want you,” he continued
“Oh, good, because if you’d tried that one, I would have pointed out the obvious”
He gave her a slow, sexy s Then the smile faded “I like you, Noelle”
Crap Shebut even she knew that any conversation that began with “I like you” was not going to end well
“But?” she asked, bracing herself
“But you want things I don’t believe in You want forever You want love I can’t give you that I’ and even if I weren’t, that’s not me”
“And if I just want sex?”
She happened to be glancing down as she asked and had the satisfaction of seeing his erection surge slightly
“I don’t think ood,” he told her
“You’re saying I’irl?”
“So like that”
She wanted to say he rong, only he wasn’t She was old-fashioned In her world, sex and love went together Or if not love, then extreme like with the possibility of love
Did she want toGabriel her body?
The girl bits were screa “Yes, please Take me now” The rest of her was more cautious Did she want to have what it took to be that disconnected fro love to be that casual?
He brushed another kiss across her ht,” he said firmly