He shook his head afterward. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to get me drunk to have your way with me.”
Smart man. “Is it working?”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“You don’t think?”
“No matter how much I want you, or how drunk you get me, I’ve got enough control to stop myself screwing my friend’s baby sister.”
She didn’t lie and say Roman wouldn’t care. They both knew he would. He wanted her settled down with another brainiac, off in a lab somewhere where she wouldn’t worry her family, hence the blind dates from hell.
He didn’t want her getting more embroiled in his life, through his associates, or any other way. “Don’t worry . . . I won’t share your secrets,” she said, repeating Max’s words.
He shook his head. “Not going to happen.”
“That’s what I said. You don’t have to worry about me telling tales.” She wasn’t a blabbermouth.
“We’re not having sex.” Well, that was blunt.
But she could be blunt too. “You want me.”
“Yes.” That single word held a wealth of meaning.
He really wanted her, like seriously, really. Of course the growing and quite impressive bulge in his jeans said so even more than his affirmative.
“I’m right here.” She pulled her T-shirt over her head and dropped it on the floor. Blunt was good. Action was better.
He made a strangled sound in his throat and stepped back. “Ain’t going to happen.” But his eyes ate her up.
And that was so hot, she couldn’t help posing a little. She might have felt stupid but for the alcohol and the way he watched her, like he was a sailor on leave and she was the first woman he’d seen after getting off the ship. No, even hotter . . . so hot, her skin burned.
Her jeans came off almost as easily as her top. She stepped out of them. “Really?”
She thought maybe it was going to happen. Max’s body for sure wanted it, no matter what his mouth said. She stretched and did a little turn. “All yours for the night.”
“Shit. Piss. Damn. You shouldn’t have done that.” He spun away and practically sprinted for the guest bedroom.
“Where are you going?” she demanded, even the warmth from the alcohol not equal to the chill of his blatant rejection.
“Bed, where you should go too . . . in the other room, not mine.” He was babbling and it would be cute except for what he was saying. “Good night, Danusia,” he called over his shoulder as he disappeared down the hall.
Danusia stared down at her nearly naked body. Okay, she wasn’t a nearly six-foot-tall supermodel like her sister, Elle, but she wasn’t horrific either. And they hadn’t done anything yet, so he couldn’t know she wasn’t a perfect sex kitten between the sheets.
Oh, she’d be happy to try, but no amount of reading made up for practical experience and hers had been pretty dismal.
Her alcohol-muddled mind couldn’t decide what she’d done to send Max running. He’d said he wanted her. His body had shown it. Oh, how it had shown it.
But he’d also said he had five reasons. Five reasons for not having sex with her.
She needed to find out what those were.
Because she wasn’t about to give up on the first man that could hold her attention when there was new data to decipher.
CHAPTER 4
Max woke to the smell of coffee and frying ha
m.