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She reached for them, but he caught her arm before she could grab anything from the bowl. Her laughter faded when he didn’t let go. His gaze dropped to her mouth, and resisting the urge to kiss her became impossible.

He kept his hold on her as the playful challenge in her eyes gave way to something else. Her perfume reached him beneath the aroma of garlic and spices, and the sounds of dinner cooking behind him faded from his awareness. She was close enough that all he had to do was pull her a few inches toward him.

Her free hand rested against his chest, sending a jolt through him as his attention dropped to her mouth. He'd been thinking about kissing her again since he'd left Edith's driveway, and having her within reach made resisting the urge seem pointless.

He backed her against the counter and covered her mouth with his. Her arms slid around his neck as she kissed him back, drawing him closer. Whatever game they'd been playing over the peppers vanished the second her lips parted beneath his. Her tongue met his, and he moved against her, wanting more of the body pressed to his. He was tempted to strip her bare and take her right there in the kitchen, but before that fantasy could get any further, the sharp sizzle from the stove broke through the lust fogging his brain.

Shit. Dinner!

He dragged himself away from her and reached the skillet in time to keep the steak from burning. A laugh came from behind him as he moved the meat around the pan.

“Not one word.” He shot her a look over his shoulder, warning her not to push her luck.

“I didn't say anything.”

No, but he could practically hear whatever snarky comment she was holding back. “You were going to.”

“Probably.”

He rolled his eyes, used the spatula to flip the steak pieces, then checked on her. She remained against the counter, cheeks flushed and lips swollen from his kiss, and the sight threatened what little concentration he'd managed to recover.

Then he noticed the strip of yellow pepper in her hand.

Of course.

She met his stare and took a bite.

“You're going to get thrown out of my kitchen.”

Her mouth curved as she chewed. “You keep saying that, but I'm still here.”

Yeah, she was. And he hoped she’d stay a long time.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Dinner took longer than expected because neither seemed interested in finishing. By the time their plates were half-empty, Grady couldn't remember the last time he'd enjoyed a woman's company this much without feeling as though he had to work at it.

Eventually, they abandoned the dishes in the sink. Grady grabbed another beer from the refrigerator while Amanda picked up her wineglass, and they moved into the living room. He sat on the couch, and she joined him, close enough that their thighs touched.

For a while, they kept talking, but as the minutes passed, Grady focused less on the conversation and more on the woman beside him. Every small shift she made against him pulled his attention away from whatever they were discussing.

His gaze dropped to her mouth again. He'd lost track of how many times he'd caught himself doing that tonight, but this time, she noticed.

Instead of teasing him, she leaned closer, and whatever he'd been about to say vanished from his mind.

He set his beer on the coffee table, then took the wineglass from her hand and placed it beside his bottle. When he turned back, she was watching him, and the anticipation in her expression told him she knew exactly what was coming.

That was all the invitation he needed.

He lifted a hand to the back of her neck and closed the remaining distance, capturing her mouth with his. Her lips parted, and the first stroke of her tongue sent a rush of desire through him. The faint taste of wine remained on her mouth, mingling with the scent of her perfume and the lingering aroma of dinner from the kitchen.

She shifted toward him, one hand sliding over his shoulder and into his hair. The soft scrape of her nails against his scalp sent a shiver down his spine, and he deepened the kiss, forgetting everything beyond the woman in his arms.

God, he wanted her.

He'd spent hours telling himself dinner could simply be dinner, that he'd take whatever she was willing to give him and be satisfied.

But with her mouth moving against his, their bodies flush against each other, and his cock growing harder with every passing second, pretending he didn't want more was impossible.