“No. I barely know him, but I can tell he’s an asshole.”
“I’ve known him for years, and he’s a great guy.”
Luke had met Brad at Michael and Heather’s engagement party a few months back, and he’d pegged him right away as a womanizer and a creep. He didn’t even need proof—Luke had jerk radar. Either Jane was so infatuated she couldn’t see the truth, or she was a lousy judge of character.
“What makes you think he’s so great?”
She studied him closely before answering. “He’s intelligent, handsome, sensitive, funny and he cares about helping people.”
“Which is why he works at a bar when he’s not riding around on his white horse rescuing little old ladies from muggers?”
“He manages a restaurant!”
“Which one?”
“O’Malley’s Pub and Grill,” she said grudgingly.
“Hmm.”
“And he only works there because he went into debt paying his grad school tuition and hasn’t been able to afford to return to school for his doctorate yet.”
Yeah, Miss Sexual Restraint had it bad for Brad Stone, and judging by her mile-long list of his positive attributes, she was much more attracted to some idealized version of the jerk than the actual guy. Luke decided it was his personal duty to show her what a real man could do for her.
“Let me guess—you were thinking that if he saw you here with me tonight, he might sit up and take notice.”
Jane’s cheeks formed red blotches, one on each side, and she focused her gaze on Luke’s left shoulder. “Um, something like that.”
“I feel so used,” he said, struggling to keep a straight face in light of her distress.
“You’re only interested in me to prove my relationship theories wrong. How admirable is that?”
“What makes you think that’s the only reason I’m interested?”
Jane’s gaze met his and lingered, daring him to look away. “I’m not stupid.”
“No, you’re not. You’re intelligent and sexy as hell. An irresistible combination, in my opinion.”
Jane opened her mouth as if to speak, but nothing came out. Luke took the opportunity to demonstrate physically what she wasn’t quite believing verbally. He dipped his head down and covered her mouth with his again, pulled her closer, and kissed her for all he was worth.
She opened up to him, a soft moan escaping her throat and mingling with their kiss. Luke immediately hardened again. He hadn’t intended for them to make love right here in the bathroom, but Jane had a strange effect on his self-control. She seemed to render it nonexistent. And if she took things further on her own, there was no way he could back off.
He slid his hands down her rib cage and dipped them under the waist of her shirt. She arched toward his touch as his fingertips explored the soft, hot skin of her torso and then the rough texture of her lace bra. Her nipples were erect, and when he squeezed them gently, Jane moaned again.
He pushed her shirt up to reveal a black lace bra encasing her heavy, perfect breasts. After he’d made quick work of the bra clasp, he broke away from their kiss and dipped his head farther down to taste her bare flesh. He took one brown nipple into his mouth and heard air gush out of her lungs. She tangled her fingers in his hair and thrust her breast farther into his mouth.
If she hadn’t done that—or maybe if she hadn’t wrapped her legs around him and started grinding against his erection—Luke might have had a chance to regain his senses for a moment. Maybe just long enough to put a halt to their craziness.
Or not.
He wanted Jane with a nearly uncontrollable force. He hadn’t come into the bathroom intending to get down and dirty with her on the bathroom counter, but everything about her drove him wild. From her lush body to her quick wit to her crazy opinions, he’d lost all common sense where Jane was concerned.
All he knew was that their clothes were getting in the way, and he wanted to see if her panties were made of the same sexy lace as her bra. He slid the little black skirt up to her waist and expelled an appreciative groan when he saw dark hair revealed through black lace. Then he knew he had to taste more than just her breasts.
He trailed kisses down her stomach, over the smooth flesh of her thigh, and up her inner thigh to that mesmerizing triangle of black lace. Kneeling between her legs, Luke wasn’t sure he’d ever felt so dizzy with sexual desire, and just as he was about to plant a kiss on the fabric over her most sensitive spot, Jane went from panting and whimpering to dead silent.
“What are we doing?” she finally asked in a shaky voice.
“Last I heard, this was called—”