She's not that kind of girl!
Veterinarian Jess Alexander doesn't have one-night stands with the best man at a coworker's wedding. But thirtysomething divorcée Jess is definitely in a rut that a night of reckless passion with a younger man just might break. And what better candidate than criminally good-looking Sean Paterson?
Being with Sean is exhilarating. But where could this relationship possibly go? Expecting anything more than a good time from Sean is a one-way ticket to heartbreak. Against her better judgment, Jess can't walk away from whatever this is…not yet.
The Set-Up:
Sean Paterson, best man at his brother’s wedding has found someone else who’s not enjoying the long celebration. Jess Alexander, a vet and Sean’s new sister-in-law’s boss, vet Jess Alexander, just needs a little convincing to go for a drive in his hotted up car. But along the way it turns out that it’s not
just a drive. And the sparks that sizzled between them at the wedding might be too hard to resist...
Jess shifted in her seat and from the corner of his eye, Sean watched her skirt fall open again. She wasn’t wearing stockings or panty hose—the bare skin of her legs was a pale pinky-gold that he just knew would feel like silk. Her fingers grabbed the fabric and she tugged on it to pull it back into place.
“Don’t.” Sean covered her hand with his. The contact sent a warm thrill through him. He wanted to touch her all over. The arousal that had been echoing faintly through his body became an ache at the thought.
Jess halted and looked down at their hands and her bared thighs before sending a smile his way. “Hmm. You sure I won’t distract you from driving, sitting here like this?”
Sean tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, doing some quick mental navigation. “We’re only ten minutes from where I’m staying.”
“And that’s where we’re going, is it?”
“Well, it would solve the distraction problem.”
“Hmm, I see what you mean.”
It wasn’t much of an answer. “Unless you have another suggestion?” Sean took his eyes off the road for a moment to get a quick read on Jess. He wanted to end this evening with those gorgeous legs wrapped around him—he very much hoped she wanted the same thing. And, in addition to that seductive image, she was right. Her bare skin, her soft floral fragrance, the ideas that were circulating through his head—none of it contributed to totally focused driving.
“How long are you in Melbourne for?”
He frowned at the question. “Not long. Why?”
One shoulder lifted and then dropped in a nonanswer. “Hailey said you don’t stick around anywhere for very long. Where to next?”
“Sydney. I’m probably heading there tomorrow or Monday.” He had to be somewhere with a solid internet connection by Monday evening. For one of the most important meetings of his life. It’d make sense to set off on the ten-hour drive the next day; stop overnight somewhere halfway so he was fresh when he arrived.
“Is that a problem?” he asked when Jess remained silent. It was better she understood now that this wasn’t the beginning of something more than he could offer.
“No, no it’s not a problem.” Her voice was a little faint.
Sean steered onto an off-ramp and turned into a side road. As soon as he could, he pulled the car over to stop on a low embankment. He turned to face her and, before she could protest, lowered his lips to hers.
It was a gentle kiss, just lips and breath and the warm rich scent of her skin. Their noses and chins rubbed together as Sean kissed either side of her mouth, before settling on her lips again to just barely caress them.
He pulled back just far enough to watch as her eyes drifted back open, her expression dazed.
“Wow,” she whispered.
“Yeah.” He grinned, knowing it would be goofy, but that one kiss had been enough to make him absolutely positive about what he wanted next. He cupped her chin with one hand. “Jess? I really like you. I’d like to spend the night with you—if you’d like to spend it with me.”
Jess wet her lips nervously but her eyes didn’t move from his. “That was direct.”
He gave a small shrug. “Best to be up front about these things, I’ve found.”
Jess didn’t answer. Her eyes were round and her porcelain skin pale in the sulfuric glow of the streetlight.
“You look a little scared.”
She gave a weak laugh, shifting in the seat to pull away from him. Sean dropped his hand to rest on her thigh.
“I’m not scared,” she said. She met his eyes, a curious determination visible in them.
“If you don’t want to, that’s cool. Seriously. We’ll head back to the reception now.” It was the right thing to say, but he hoped to hell she wasn’t going to take him up on it.
She still looked nervous, but the smile she gave him was sure. “No, I was over the wedding anyway. Let’s go.”
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