‘Um. OK? Would you like some coffee?’
‘Why, yes, thank you.’
He put her puppy back into the pen with her littermates and led Sage into a cheerful kitchen. ‘What do you like? Flavoured? Dark? I’ve got a bunch of these Keurig—’
‘That’s not important. Sit down?’ She gestured to one of the chairs at the little kitchen table and waited while he hesitantly took a seat. He looked confused and off-balance, and she had to fight the urge to laugh at the dazed look on his gorgeous face. ‘Now, I know you don’t want to sell the puppy,’ she began, and held up a hand when he started to speak. ‘And I’m sure you wouldn’t let her go home with just anyone. But she’s the one. I just know that we have a special connection, and you can laugh if you want, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes to change your mind.’
‘I’m really sorry that you got attached,’ he said, starting to rise. She stepped close enough that they’d be pressed together if he stood, and he weighed his options and sat back down. ‘The puppies are all really excellent dogs.’
‘They certainly are,’ she agreed, ‘but we both know that this one is special, or you wouldn’t be arguing with me.’ He made a sound of reluctant agreement. ‘Which is why I’m prepared to make a very generous offer, on top of your usual adoption fee.’
His handsome face went stern, and she felt a little sliver of doubt run through her. If he got irritated, she’d be going home empty-handed and broken-hearted too. ‘This isn’t a matter of money.’
Sage took a deep breath and considered the line she was about to cross. She’d come here to make a professional transaction and that was it, but if she’d met Leo at a bar, she wouldn’t have hesitated to approach him. That fact made it a lot easier to lean forward and run a playful finger down his chest. ‘Then what about a bargain, instead?’
He swallowed hard, his expression stunned. ‘What?’
Thank God she’d worn a shirt with buttons. She lifted her hands to the highest fastened button – the one just above her cleavage – and worked it loose. ‘I told you I was willing to be very generous …’ Her heart pounded so hard she could barely breathe. This was crazy. She just knew she was two seconds from getting thrown bodily out of this man’s front door. She licked her lips nervously, and was almost dizzied with relief when his eyes flicked down to follow her tongue and his breath caught.
‘What –?’
He probably meant to ask what the hell she was doing, but she chose to interpret his choked word creatively. ‘Whatever you want,’ she said, and then amended, ‘well, as long as you’ve got some protection handy.’
His breath huffed out in a wheeze that was either an attempt to laugh or the first sign of a panic attack. Sage bit her lip, worried, but the soft curse that followed only encouraged her.
‘You’re not seeing anyone, are you?’ she asked.
‘No,’ he said, strangled.
She let out a relieved sigh; she’d have had to stop if he wasn’t single. There are some lines a lady doesn’t cross. ‘Good. Then why don’t I give you a little taste of what I’m offering.’
Before he had a chance to say anything, she straddled his lap and made herself at home, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her lips to his. He started out closed-mouthed and just about frozen, his hands clasping the sides of the chair like she was a stripper he wasn’t allowed to touch. She tried not to let it discourage her, kissing him softly and waiting for him to either respond or push her away.
When she let her tongue dart out and tease across his lips, Leo let out a shuddering sigh and grabbed her hips, pulling her forward and against him. The bulge that pressed against her was impressive, even accounting for all the extra layers of clothing between them. ‘Do you realise what you’re getting into?’ he asked, his voice rough. His fingers dug into her hips and she squirmed against him, making him groan. ‘For a dog?’
‘She’s a ver
y nice dog,’ Sage answered with a sassy grin. She pulled back enough to look him in the face, her hands caressing his shoulders and the back of his neck. ‘But I wouldn’t be quite so forward if she didn’t have such an attractive human.’ He laughed, looking surprised, and something in him seemed to ease. She leaned forward and kissed his neck. ‘So what do you say?’
‘Take your shirt off.’
Well, that was one way to answer! She finished undoing the row of buttons, not bothering to make a show of it since he seemed to be in a bit of a hurry. He panted as he watched her, and pushed the fabric impatiently down her shoulders as she freed the last button. Without a word, he reached around her and popped the clasp on her bra, and she let that drop free as well.
‘Jesus,’ he breathed, and reached up to cup her breasts, his touch surprisingly gentle after the hard grip he’d had on her hips. He kissed across the top of her left breast and she moaned, pleasure fluttering in her belly. The pleasure swelled and intensified when he kissed his way down, finally sucking her nipple into his eager mouth.
He worked her that way, his hands kneading and teasing as his mouth set her insides roiling and bubbling with arousal. First on one nipple, then the other, he placed gentle kisses and nips that sparked the line between pain and pleasure, and then he sucked and swirled his tongue, the heat and pressure irresistible.
She was nearly incoherent with desire when he eased back and looked her up and down, the heat in his gaze banked with hesitancy. ‘Please,’ she whimpered, and thank God it was enough. He pushed her pants down and she stepped out of them, toeing off her shoes in the process, using his shoulders to balance. He hooked his fingers in her panties next – she was glad she’d worn cute ones – but instead of pulling them down straightaway he feathered his other fingers against her belly, making her shudder and twitch with pleasure at the gentle, almost ticklish touches.
He waited until she was practically dancing in his grip, her whole body writhing as she endured the gentle hints of pleasure and waited for something more, before he finally tugged her panties down. He pulled them all the way to her knees, making her gasp at the cool rush of air against the heated flesh of her pussy, then he stood, pivoting with her as he rose. She ended up tipping back over the table, and he grabbed her legs and helped to push her back until she was served up for him, draped across his kitchen table, naked except for a pair of pink socks and the panties around her knees, spread wide and wanton.
‘You’re gorgeous,’ he whispered, peeling the panties the rest of the way off. She whimpered in reply, and he chuckled as he kissed the inside of her knee, then her calf, and finally her ankle before easing that sock off. He repeated the treatment on the other side, then placed her heels on the edge of the table and stood between them, running his hands down the inside of her thighs. ‘Do you want this?’
‘Yes!’ She didn’t even have to think. It made him smile, and she smiled back, a little amused by her own brashness but mostly eager and hungry – so hungry – for whatever came next.
The touch, when it came, was gentler than she’d expected, though she should have known better. He traced one finger down her mound, then let it slide softly between her folds and into her slick centre until he found the welcoming heat of her pussy. He pushed that single finger inside, his eyes following its path, intent on her most intimate place. After a few teasing strokes within her, he pulled his finger out and traced his way back up again, this time parting her folds as he went until he finally slipped inside her hood and found the hard bead of her clit.
Sage nearly flung herself off the table at the unexpected intensity of his touch, but he only hummed a pleased sound and let his finger trace back down again, slide inside her, tease its way back up … She was more prepared the second time, but his gentle touch was no less intense. Her fingernails scraped against the varnish of the table and she gasped, starving now. ‘Please,’ she repeated.