He gave her an uncharacteristic smirk and then pulled her up against his side. She rested her head against him as they listened to the music. Neither of them spoke. Perhaps he was lost in his own thoughts about the bombshell she’d dropped. She couldn’t blame him. At least the silence was a comfortable one.
As she began to relax into him, Lilly felt the whisper-soft touch of his lips against the top of her head. She sighed softly and then tilted her head up to watch him. His gaze shifted to her face from some unknown point in the distance. She drew in a sharp breath when his eyes focused in on her lips. He leaned into her slowly, as if he was giving her time to back away from him if she wasn’t interested. Instead of backing away, she stretched up toward him, closing some of the distance between their mouths. He leaned in the rest of the way, and gently brushed his mouth against hers, once, then twice, before he started to deepen the kiss. He stroked the tip of his tongue over the seam of her lips until she opened her mouth beneath his. This wasn’t a kiss of exploration. Talan was staking his claim, and she gladly let him. The way that his mouth moved over hers spoke entirely of possession. His hands roamed her back, his touch like a brand on her skin. She’d never felt so utterly desired in her life.
Lilly shifted in the booth until she was practically facing him. She wanted to be closer to him. Desperately so. By the time he released her mouth, she was lightheaded. Drunk on sensation, she breathlessly said, “Holy shit.”
He let out a small laugh and said, “I couldn’t agree more.”
Seconds later, his hands slid into her hair as his mouth descended on hers again. He took her mouth more slowly this time, but the heat was still there. His tongue swept the recesses of her mouth, exploring every inch. When she heard the groan of pleasure low in his throat, she wanted to crawl into his lap, public place be damned. Lilly had never felt a physical connection like this with anyone. Her pulse throbbed, and she was wetter than she’d ever been. From a kiss.
Eventually, they separated long enough to settle the bill and head to the car. She looked at him, completely confused as he drove her back to her apartment. At this point she was willing to go anywhere with him if they could keep doing what they had been. When they arrived, he walked her to her door and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. Her heart pounding, she invited him inside.
“I want that, Lilly. More than almost anything right now. I want to be careful with you, though. You matter.”
Disappointment flooded her system at his rejection, but it had definitely been tempered by his explanation. She reached up and ran her fingertips along his angular jawline. “Thank you for a lovely evening, Talan.”
He smiled, tilted her chin up, then brushed a light kiss over her mouth. “You’re very welcome, Lilly. I’ll see you soon.”
“Good night,” she said, leaning against the door.
“Good night,” he answered as he stood there and waited for her to unlock the door. When she stood in the open doorway, he moved back toward his car in the same graceful way he did everything else.
She closed the door and slumped against it. Wow. That was completely unexpected. The conversation had been great for the most part, and the connection between them was explosive. The evening had been incredibly successful, and that gave her a hell of a lot to think about.
Chapter Six
Over the last two weeks since their first date, Talan had taken Lilly out three more times. On the nights they both worked, it had become habit that he would either stop in toward the end of her shift or they would get dinner together. He kept waiting for the novelty to wear off¸ but it hadn’t happened yet.
He had initially worried that they wouldn’t have much in common other than their mutual physical attraction for one another. For the most part, they didn’t. What they did seem to have in common was a fascination about each other. He found himself having to formulate answers to questions he hadn’t even considered. She made him examine himself in a way he hadn’t before.
Her face was incredibly expressive. He loved watching her eyes light with understanding if he was explaining his point of view. Even if he didn’t sway her thoughts on whatever they had been discussing, it was pleasing to know that she understood him.
He found himself seeking her counsel on business issues. Not necessarily because he didn’t know how to handle them, but he was curious as to how she would handle them. He was often impressed by her quick thinking and understanding of a world she had little experience in.
She had talked a bit more about her family. After the first date, when she’d explained her history, he worried that she’d have trouble seeing past it. If he had been in her shoes, he wasn’t entirely certain he’d have been able to. Her understanding of the fundamental differences between who he had become and the monsters that had destroyed her family had touched him immensely. Her trust in him had been almost immediate and unflinching.
When he’d spoken with her earlier in the evening, she’d let hi
m know that she had traded shifts with another bartender in the sports lounge. He had been looking forward to spending a little time with her tonight. He’d had thoughts of coaxing her up to his apartment after work.
Since their last date five days ago, he’d only managed one single, stolen kiss. He didn’t like to think that he was man driven solely by the physical, but kissing Lilly was unlike anything he had ever experienced. He couldn’t even imagine what it would be like when he finally took her to bed. For his sake, he hoped he’d find out soon. He wanted her with an intensity that was almost frightening.
Around midnight, on impulse, he picked up his phone and texted Lilly, “Please text and let me know that you’ve arrived home safely.”
Sighing, he returned his attention to the e-mail in front of him. He scanned the weekly report from the project manager in Miami. Things seemed to be moving much more smoothly after their conference call last week. Lachlan had laid it down in no uncertain terms that they were on verge of a lawsuit for breach of contract if there were any more delays. Magically, things started working the way they were supposed to.
He despised when people underestimated him. The building company had just assumed they’d have no recourse but to take it. They clearly hadn’t known him at all. As he typed a response, his phone buzzed. He quickly finished the e-mail and then checked his phone.
“If you want to verify my well-being, all you need to do is to come to 17 North.”
She was downstairs in the club. A grin spread across his face as he responded, “I’ll see you shortly.”
Pushing back from the desk, Talan took off his suit jacket and slung it over the back of the chair. Just as he was leaving the office, his phone rang. As much as he’d love to ignore it in favor of spending time with Lilly, it was business.
Gruffly, he said, “Hello.”
“Hey,” Lachlan’s voice boomed over the line. “I just spoke with George Karpov from the Continental in Seattle.”
Talan groaned and asked, “What did he have to say?”