Jazz couldn’t move. Her body lay boneless, sated, and so relaxed she could’ve drifted off to sleep if not for the heavy weight of the man who’d kissed her keeping her awake. Rafe’s head rested on her stomach while he skimmed his fingers up her side. The sweeping exploration reached under her shirt to skim along the edge of her bra, but he made no move to unhook it. He hesitated each time as if he were debating whether he wanted to push for more. At the moment, with her body humming and pliant, she wouldn’t have resisted him.
Rafe would know it too. With the easy, confident way he’d touched her, she had no doubt he was well experienced. Unlike her. She hadn’t had any sexual relations in… five years.
Jeez, she hadn’t realized it’d been so long. She went from abstinence to fooling around with a stranger in a single night.
The rashness of her actions choked her. She tensed.
Rafe’s fingers stilled. He lifted his head and peered at her through the blond strands of his hair. He appeared wild and untamed…a primitive male set on taking down his prey.
Her breathing quickened.
“Jasmine?”
The cautious way he said her name added to the churning in her belly.
“Off.” She shoved at his shoulders.
He sat up slowly, as if afraid to startle her. She stood and smoothed her skirt. The clock on the wall chimed. Nine o’clock. Curses zinged through her head. She’d promised Mr. Wilkins she’d be home by nine-thirty.
She ran a hand through her hair. Or tried too. The tangled mess would need more help than her fingers could give. It would have to wait. She reached for her keys. They weren’t in her skirt. She glanced under the desk. Nothing.
“Looking for these?”
“Yes!” She reached for them. He raised his hand, keeping the ring with her two keys just out of reach. “Gimme those.”
He slid his other arm around her waist and drew her against him.
“Not until you give me your name and number. I want to see you again, Jasmine.”
She swallowed hard and tipped her head back. Heavy-lidded eyes met hers. “Jazz. Not Jasmine.”
He shook his head and slid a hand over her bottom. He massaged each cheek before resting his palm on her hip. “Only in public. When we’re alone, you will be my Jasmine.”
The possessive edge to his voice left her body and mind warring. She went lax in his arms, while her instincts warned her to run. The intensity to his gaze made her feel as if she was his prey.
“Don’t look so shocked. I didn’t lie when I said you caught my interest.” He grinned at her. “You should feel special.”
Special? She wasn’t special. “I’m sorry I led you on, Rafe, but I’m not interested in a relationship with you.”
“Not interested…in a relationship.” He bent closer, urging her to lean backward. “Exactly what does that mean?”
“It means exactly what I said. I am not interested in a relationship with you. This shouldn’t have happened. I got carried away.” She held out her hand. “Now give me my keys.”
A tic developed on his jaw. “And why shouldn’t this have happened?”
“Umm, well for one, you’re a stranger. And two, I’m not interested!”
“You didn’t tell me no.”
“I…I…” Ugh. He was right. She’d wanted his kiss.
“I want another kiss. Will you tell me no, now?”
She opened her mouth. The refusal wouldn’t come out. She couldn’t lie to this man. Or herself. Instead, she shook her head.
“Stubborn.” He made a low, annoyed sound and kissed her, pushing his tongue into her mouth and urging her to follow his lead. She didn’t resist him. After experiencing passion in his arms, she was eager for anything he gave her. She shouldn’t be, not with a stranger, but she hungered for him.
He lifted her and carried her to the couch never breaking their lip lock.
For the first time in five years, she wanted to have sex. Just the thought of being with Rafe excited her, but the sound of a zipper being undone yanked her out of the lust-filled moment.
What was she doing?
She shoved against his shoulders. They both fell to the floor. She scrambled up and backed quickly to the door. Rafe stilled, one hand on the floor and the other on the edge of the couch.
“Rafe, I—”
“No.” He zipped his pants. “Don’t. I’m sorry. I got carried away.”
“Me too. Look, it’s nothing personal. I just don’t want to take this any further.”
He stood, a lithe move that reminded her of a dancer, and walked toward her. He brushed a few strands of hair from her cheek. “Why?”
“I’m a single mom. My kids come first. Always.” She looked imploringly at him. “It’s nothing personal. Really. It’s just the way it has to be.”
He stared at her for so long she squirmed under his scrutiny.
“A mother?”
Her belly twisted. The couple of times she actually showed interest in a guy, right after she’d moved back home and needed a lover, not a boyfriend, they’d looked at her the same way Rafe did. After dropping a lame excuse, they’d run in the opposite direction.
She sighed. “Yeah, a mother.”
“Of boys.”
It was a statement, not a question, as if he already knew the answer. He couldn’t. Then again, if he was Josh’s friend, Rafe might know more than she thought.
She nodded. “Yes. Twins.”
“Adopted.”
Another statement.
The fake birth certificates she’d paid to get had never been scrutinized. Nobody, not even Josh, had ever suspected the truth.
“No, they’re mine.”
He parted his lips on an inhale.
Her heart skipped a beat. She’d seen her boys do the same thing more times than she could count. Big cats had special sensory organs in their mouths that allowed them to taste scents. If she didn’t know better she’d say Rafe was doing the same thing, but shifters were rare. Megan was the only one Jazz had stumbled over in the years since she’d been the mother of two shifters. The odds that Rafe was a shifter too…
She moved slowly away from him.
He ran a hand through his hair. “Children are precious. I would never think of coming between a mother and her kids, but I don’t want to let this thing between us go.”
“There is nothing between us.” Jazz motioned from him to her. “This was just a spur of the moment thing. It wasn’t serious.”
“If you want to believe that, go ahead.” Rafe closed the distance between them. He tipped up her chin. “But I don’t buy it for a minute. There’s something between us. I don’t know what it is, but it’s real.”
“That’s lust. Walk out into that bar and grab another girl. I’m sure you’ll feel the same thing.”
An amused glint sparked in his eyes. She didn’t get the chance to say more. He bent his head and kissed her. Slowly. Tenderly. Tension drained from her muscles, and a shaky sigh escaped. The man stirred emotions within her she didn’t have the energy to fight.
On her tiptoes, she linked her arms around his neck and met him, stroke for stroke. After an endless moment where they worshiped each other, he pulled back.
“That’s more than lust.” He pressed their joined hands to his chest, right over his heart. “I feel it here.”
She blinked. “I…I…”
“Don’t make up an excuse. I see the rejection in your eyes, but I also see your reluctance.” He pressed a kiss to her palm. “Give it a chance. We can meet somewhere public. I want to talk to you. Kiss you again. It doesn’t have to be more. I’m a patient man.”
Hadn’t she just thought how much she regretted cutting herself from her family and friends? Other than Mr. Wilkins, she was alone. Yes, she had Josh—or she would once he learned about Megan—but he didn’t make her burn the way Rafe could.
She glanced into Rafe’s face. A mix of patience and hunger shone in his eyes. There was no rule that single mothers couldn’t find romance. If a man were to fall in love with her, knowing she had kids, wouldn’t he also be making a commitment to her boys? Love them as much as she did? No matter what they were. If he was a good guy, he would. If not, well she wouldn’t be with him.
The only way to find out what Rafe would do was to spend time with him. She could meet him at public places, exactly as he’d suggested. If she talked it over with Seth and Levi, they’d be careful not to let Rafe see something he shouldn’t. They weren’t babies anymore. Their control over their cats got better every day.
Making a decision, she slipped under Rafe’s arm and walked to the desk. With shaky hands, she scribbled her name and number on a piece of paper, folded it, and handed it to him. “I’m not promising anything.”
“Okay, Jasmine.”
Normally she hated when people used her full name. When they did, it usually meant they were angry with her as Josh had been earlier, but in Rafe’s unusual accent her full name made her feel beautiful. She couldn’t place the cadence to his speech. It wasn’t quite Irish, but it had a similar lulling quality.
She motioned to the private rest room. “I’m going to use the bathroom. I need to get home.”
“I’ll wait for you and walk you to your car.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I have my own selfish reasons.” He rubbed his chin and glanced away before meeting her gaze. “I want to enjoy your company for as long as I can. I’m just grateful you were able to get a babysitter to your house to watch your boys tonight.”
“Actually, they’re at my neighbor’s house. He doesn’t drive at night.”
He took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Then I should thank him for watching your children. I hate to think that our paths would never have crossed.”
“Umm, yeah…me too.”
Jazz wasn’t quite sure how she went from trying to run from him to agreeing to a date, but she knew one thing—Rafe was the most romantic man she’d ever met.
Or he was a good player.