Page 36 of Raging Fires

“What’s that?” Kelli could barely get the words out. All she could think of was how good Jake smelled and how very close his lips were to her neck. “What the hell is up with Josh Hartnett’s hair?” He leaned back to his side of the couch, and Kelli did her best to feel relieved. But all she really felt was disappointed.

Chapter Eighteen

They had forgotten about the movie completely about half-way in. Jake couldn’t have told you the name of the series now that he was standing here at the foot of the bed. All he could think about was how soft Kelli’s hands felt drifting over his shoulders, light as a feather, going lower, caressing his nipples, rippling over his abs. Her pressure increased and he let out a low moan. The jangling of a button filled his head with thoughts of what would happen next. He remembered everything about Kelli. About every single time they’d been together. She’d done things to him no one else could come close to.

Her tongue flicked out and started to follow the path her hands had made as she slowly unzipped his jeans. She made a move to drop to her knees, but he grabbed her by the shoulders.

“Not yet.” Everything in him was thrumming, pulsing, ready. But he wanted to see her.

“Take off your clothes first.” He waited a long moment, the need in him growing even more.

And then, without a word, Kelli pulled off her tank top. She wasn’t wearing a bra and her breasts were even more beautiful than he remembered. The perfect size and shape, and, he was sure, just as soft. But he restrained himself, keeping his hands at his side.

“No. Take off all your clothes.”

She shimmied out of her jeans and he followed every movement with his eyes. God, he wanted to be inside her. On top of her. Making her moan. But first he wanted to hear how much she had missed it. How much she had missed him. How no one else had felt like him. He knew for a fact that no other woman had been anything like her.

“Tell me. Tell me what you want.”

Hooking her fingers under the delicate edge of her thong, she pulled it down. She stood back up, perfectly naked. She looked even less vulnerable this way. She was all strength. He’d always loved that about her. There was no shyness in her eyes as they locked on him. “I want you. I want you moving inside me. Filling me until it almost hurts. I just want you, Jake. Jake…”

“Jake.” The voice was soft and quiet, the hand on his bare back warm. He let out a little murmur of pleasure and turned his head, opening his eyes. Kelli’s face was close above him, her loose hair touching his cheek. He smiled dreamily. “Hey, babe.” He started to roll over, his hand reaching for the sheet to let her slide in next to him.

“Jake!” Her voice was a hiss, and she poked him in the shoulder. Hard. “Wake up.”

He blinked, reality settling in. He scowled. “What the hell?” For some reason, he responded in the same low whisper.

“I think there’s someone outside.”

That brought him fully awake, and he sat up, remembering just in time to grab the sheet so he didn’t completely expose himself. “Why? What happened?”

“I heard a noise outside my window,” she whispered. “It woke me up. Like the shrub rubbing against the window screen.”

“Just the wind making it move.” His heart settled down, and he flopped back on the bed. If he was lucky, maybe he could get back into that dream where Kelli was naked and—

“No! Jake! It wasn’t the wind. I heard it again over at the bar. I think somebody’s trying to break into the Blue.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously. Man, you are really not a spring-into-action guy.”

“You woke me up from a very, very good dream.”

A flash of jealousy flitted across Kelli’s face, and he was glad he hadn’t said it was about her. Let her wonder. He made a shooing motion. “I’m getting up, and I’m not wearing anything.”

“Why are you not wearing anything? We discussed your ‘clothing is optional stance’ during the Rules.”

“That was before you told me I couldn’t crank up the A/C anymore. It’s too hot to sleep in anything when the house is 80 degrees.”

“It is not 80. I have the thermostat on 76.”

“That’s still what people in Norway would call a summer heatwave.”

“Well, then, it’s a good thing I don’t live in Norway.”

She swung around, making a big show of not looking at him. Which was good because he was still as rock hard as she’d made him in his dream. He grabbed the shorts he’d discarded on the floor beside him and pulled them on, standing up and trying to adjust himself. Well, at least it was dark. Maybe she wouldn’t notice.

“Listen, Kell, I can follow the A/C rule or the ‘all clothes all the time’ rule. I can’t do both. Why don’t you just let me pay the bill and you can wear a hoodie? It’s the practical solution.”