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I shivered, not just from the chill creeping into the room, but also the knowledge Jasper would only be around for a short time. “I’m sorry it’s so cold in here. The heater wasn’t on for long enough to really warm up the place. I’ll grab a couple of blankets from the bedroom.”
“In the movies, this is the part where I offer to share my body warmth.” A smile teased at Jasper’s lips. “It would be the noble thing to do.”
My stupid pulse kicked up at the thought, and I tamped down my thoughts. “And as the plucky heroine, I guess I snap you up. Purely for survival, of course.”
“You only want me for my body.” Was it my imagination, or did Jasper’s voice go husky? “I could cope with that.”
Was he serious? The air between us felt heavy and loaded with uncertainty. I could make this into a joke or say yes.
“There’s an irony here,” I said, trying to be funny but failing. “I have plenty of padding. I should be the one warming you.”
His frown returned. “Okay.” He drew the syllables out. “Help me out, here. I don’t understand why you keep dissing yourself. I like you, Caitlin. I’d like to get to know you better.”
I wanted to hug myself with glee. He liked me. At the same time, the dark side of me rolled her eyes. Was this another way of saying he wanted sex? A quick fling before he left the country? “Feels like there’s a but coming,” I said, before I could rein back my tongue.
“Maybe. Dunno.” He looked adorably confused and scratched at the stubble on his jaw. “You’re gorgeous. I don’t see your problem.”
But I’m fat, I wanted to wail. Are you blind, or is that just a line to get me into bed? I waited until I could speak evenly. “Thank you, but that’s not how I see myself. It’s why I’m trying to exercise and lose weight. I don’t like what I see in the mirror.”
Jasper stared for the longest time. When I was about to crack a joke, he cleared his throat. “Can I sit next to you?”
I nodded, and he slowly pushed himself to stand before joining me on the sofa. We still had a gap between us, but he twisted to face me, easing his bad leg onto the cushions.
“Let me tell you what I see when I look at you,” he said. He held my gaze, and I couldn’t have dragged it away for anything. I nodded, and his lips tilted into a lop-sided smile.
Jasper lifted a hand and touched my temple. “Bright, intelligent eyes. You’re smart. You run your own business, and you’re good at it.” He trailed his fingertips down the side of my face. “You have a pretty mouth. Your cheeks are going pink, and it suits you, that flushed look as though you just had amazing sex.”
I was probably beet-red, rather than pink, but I didn’t want him to stop.
“You’ve got curves, Caitlin, in all the right places.” He glanced at my chest, my breasts straining against the bra that confined them. “I don’t understand why women want to be stick thin.”
Before I could say anything sensible, he slid his hand into my hair, and then huffed a low noise. “It’s as soft as I thought.” He cupped the back of my head and held me there, our gazes locked.
If I was the moth, he was definitely the flame, and any second now, my wings would be scorched. From the way he focused on my mouth, he wanted to kiss me. Nobody had ever looked at me with such a burning intensity, as though I mattered. Doubt roared forward, but I shoved it away. One kiss. I could manage that, without tumbling head over heels for him.
“There’s something I have to tell you.” His voice was husky. “I’m still hung up on what Cindy did, and I promised myself I wouldn’t get involved again. Not for a good long time.”
I wasn’t over Bruce yet, so I understood only too well.
“I’m not looking to be anyone’s boyfriend,” he said.
There was a warning note I couldn’t ignore, but he continued to hold me, caressing the back of my neck with his fingers. What did he want from me?
I never had a no-strings fling before. I’d never been confident enough to undress in front of anyone I wasn’t in love with.
“Caitlin? What do you want?”
He’d only be here for three weeks. If tonight was hideously embarrassing, I could avoid him until he left the country.
“You,” I whispered. “I want you.”
Jasper smiled, and I knew right away I was in bigger trouble than I imagined. Sitting so close to me, his fingers touching my skin, eating me up with his eyes, I was in heaven. I’d spent two days watching him while trying not to be obvious about it, but he’d noticed me too.
“Here’s the thing.” His voice was hypnotic. “Needing to be fit? I totally get that. Exercise is my life, and I’ll help you with that every step of the way. But if you’re talking about getting rid of these”—he swept his knuckles against the curve of my breast, and a shockwave rippled through me—“that’d be criminal. You have to be kidding.”
His intensity seared me deeper than anything Bruce had done. Ever.
“Come here, pretty girl,” he murmured, leaning closer. “Let me kiss you.”
Was saying no ever an option? I wanted to babble about my pathetic sexual history. Twenty-seven years old, and only two boyfriends I’d slept with. A truckload of neuroses and self-doubts. A muted relief that it was dark in here—that he wouldn’t see my flabby body clearly.
Jasper swept his lips against mine, gentle and undemanding, as though asking permission. I hadn’t brushed my teeth since eating curry, but he’d eaten the same. Were there more excuses in my arsenal?
He waited, his breath warm on my cheek, fingertips massaging the base of my neck, and I wanted to laugh with the ridiculousness of the moment. The hottest guy I’d ever met wanted to kiss me. This would be another X-rated dream. I’d wake in a minute and find myself tangled in the sheets, alone as usual.
Fuck it. I meant what I said. I wanted him, and it was time to make that clear.
Mentally crossing my fingers for luck, I covered the scant distance between us and met his lips.
He made a growling noise deep in his throat and took over. With one hand in my hair, he guided me into the perfect position and kissed the fuck out of me. Some guys used kissing as foreplay, a brief stepping stone to getting me undressed, but Jasper was different. He focused on me completely. No grabbing my breasts or clumsy fumbles at the button on my jeans. He raised kissing to an art form.
If he carried on much longer, my panties would combust. When I smelled a waxy, smoky fragrance, I thought they had, but it was one of the tealights dying.
I lifted my head, conscious of two things at once. Most of the candles had gone out, and despite the heat we were generating, the temperature was dropping rapidly.
“Let’s go to bed,” I whispered. I could pretend propositioning a gorgeous guy I only met days ago was normal.
He hummed his approval and nipped at my lower lip, before laving the sting away. “Mind-reading too. This is proof I’m a lucky fucker.”
I couldn’t hold back my giggle. If anyone had struck lucky tonight, it was me. My mind leapt ahead, darting from one thought to another, even as I stood and took his hand, to pull him up.
I blew out the last tealight, grabbed a battery-powered lantern, and then led Jasper into my bedroom.
My room was tidy, no piles of laundry awaiting attention. I even had a new packet of condoms, bought in a surge of optimism when I broke up with Bruce.