Chasing Forever (The Forever Series #1)(39)
He chuckled and the vibration tickled her chest. “Mmm…I second that.”
She felt his hardness between her legs and she dipped one of her hands into the front of his pants, wanting more. His hands wrapped around her wrist, stopping her from reaching her desired destination. “No.”
Her eyes flew to his and she froze, fearing he already regretted their actions and they hadn’t made it very far or not as far as she wanted at that moment.
He leaned his forehead against hers while his hands lazily roamed up and down her sides. She wanted to relax and melt in his touch, but she didn’t understand why he wanted to stop. Without any explanation, he kissed her on the corner of her mouth, then picked her up and eased her off his lap on to the edge of the mattress.
“That’s it?” she asked disbelievingly. “You’re going to stop there. No explanation.”
He smirked and stood up.
She tried not to stare at him, but even mad and confused she loved the play of his muscles as he moved.
Leaning over, he brushed his finger along her bottom lip. “As much as I want to throw you back on the bed and continue what we just started, we can’t.”
“Huh…why not?” she asked, fearing he would tell her he’d changed his mind. If he backtracked now, she didn’t think she could hold back her tears even though she promised herself not to shed one more tear over him years ago.
He chuckled. “I like your enthusiasm, but you’re going to have to save it for later because we have to be at Sweet Basil in less than an hour.”
“Oh shit!” She said, jumping off the bed and running toward the bathroom. “Why didn’t you say something earlier?”
“You’re very distracting. But don’t worry, you still have twenty or thirty minutes to get ready,” he answered, following her in the bathroom.
“Oh my God,” she said, looking into the mirror seeing her tangled hair and puffy lips. “I look like I just woke up.”
“Not even close.” He moved behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her toward him until her back was pressed against his chest. “I love the way you look.” He buried his nose in the crook of her neck, nuzzling and kissing her.
She closed her eyes, ready to agree to anything if he kept touching her like that. His hands wandered up her sides, cupping her breasts. “Are you sure we have to go?” she whispered, savoring every touch.
He stepped back, releasing her, and she had to force herself not to beg him to touch her again. “Unfortunately, we do, but I’ll make up for our interruption when we get back here tonight.” Walking backwards out of the bathroom, he winked at her. “See you downstairs in twenty minutes and wear a dress.”
“I thought it wasn’t formal,” she said, covering her torso with a bath towel.
“It’s not, but a dress has other benefits.”
Chapter Nineteen
“So are you sure you can’t squeeze a round of golf in tomorrow afternoon before your flight?”
Jack was definitely living it up while vacationing without his wife.
Lucas shuddered as Jack flagged down the waiter for another glass of Stranahan’s on the rocks. “As much as I’d love to play a round, we have a couple things to finish up before we leave.”
Jack shook his head before draining the last drops of amber whiskey from his glass. “You should live life to the fullest before you settle down and get married. God knows, once you get married you might as well hand your man card over to your wife. You’ll only get to do it if she agrees to release you from the marital prison.”
Regan held her hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh.
Jack’s eyes focused in on her. “Sorry, no offense.”
“Not taken,” she responded.
“See, even Regan knows it’s true. She’s not even going to bother arguing otherwise.” Jack slammed his glass down on the table, and Lucas cringed fearing it would shatter. “So, now that I have a captive audience and I’m being double billed for the pleasure of your company, why don’t you update me on the case.”
Lucas picked up his glass and took a drink of water, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. Drinks, salad, appetizers, and a main course and now Jack wanted to discuss the case. They’d already done that this afternoon and at least twice this week.
Briefly, he glanced at Regan, who was sitting in the booth next to him. She didn’t look the least bit annoyed that Jack wanted to draw out this dinner for another hour. In fact, she appeared mildly amused the entire course of dinner and that made him absolutely crazy. He made damn sure she wasn’t aroused and unfocused the entire dinner. Maybe he shouldn’t be so considerate next time.
Lucas launched into a long-winded explanation that was nearly identical to the one he’d recited that afternoon.
Jack nodded, more interested in his fourth or fifth drink than the conversation.
“Regan is investigating any social connections between Jennings and any principles at North Relief.” Lucas moved his hand from his lap to her bare thigh, his fingertips moving in a circular pattern. “Have you made any progress?”
“Progress?” she asked, turning to look at him, her eyes wide.
He cocked his head to the side, a hint of amusement in his smile, as he moved his fingers under the hem of her dress. “With your investigation of potential personal relationships between Jennings and anyone at North Relief.” Regan didn’t respond, and he liked that he finally had her attention again. He was becoming addicted to the way she looked at him. “Are you feeling okay? Your cheeks are a little flushed.”