Crystal Cove (Friday Harbor #4)(29)

He bent over her so that she couldn’t see his face. The low rasp of his voice raised every hair on her body.

“The reason I don’t want you to bring anything to my room, Justine, is because there’s only so much temptation I can handle. In case you haven’t figured it out yet”—a hard, intimate nudge caused her to gasp—“I want you. Every time I looked at you in that damned dress tonight, I imagined you naked. I want to—” He broke off, holding her tightly, trying to regulate his breathing. “Do not come to me tonight,” he said eventually, “or you’ll end up in my bed, and I’ll screw you to the Stone Age and back. That clear enough for you?”

Justine nodded in a daze. The thin layers of their clothing did nothing to conceal the shape of his aroused flesh, the aggressive hardness and heat. It felt so good, being caught tightly against him, that she was paralyzed. She could smell his skin, salt and amber and night air.

After a sweltering pause, Jason’s chest rose and fell unsteadily. “I have to let go of you,” he said, seeming to speak more to himself than to her.

Justine clung to him. “You could stay,” she managed to whisper.

“Not tonight.”

“Why?”

“You’re not ready.”

“Make me ready.”

His breath caught. His hand moved in a restless stroke up and down her spine. “Justine … have you ever had sex on the first date?”

“Yes,” she said instantly.

Jason took her chin and forced her to look up at him. After trying to hold his gaze for a few seconds, Justine flushed. “No. But stay with me anyway.”

He continued to stare into her eyes. The strong angles of his features were thrown into sharp relief by the lamplight, one side cast in shadow. “It’s too soon,” he said flatly. “Some people can hook up without feeling bad about it the morning after. You’re not one of them. No matter how good it was, you would regret it tomorrow.”

“I wouldn’t,” she protested.

“It’s written all over you. So we’re going to take it slow.” As she opened her mouth to argue, he said, “Not for my sake. For yours.”

Her body was a collection of hungering aches. She could hardly think past the desire that had turned her insides molten. A lifetime’s worth of desire, leading to this man, this moment. “But I want you,” she said, appalled by the plaintive note in her voice.

Something in his face gentled. He approached her slowly, reaching for her. His hands slid over her body, feeling her through the silky knit fabric, gently gripping the high curves of her hips. She lifted her face blindly as his mouth descended, her thoughts scattering in a rush of excitement. A moan stirred in her throat, and he licked deep as if he could taste the sound. His hand traveled from her midriff to her breast, cupping the firm curve while his thumb moved over the tip in teasing swirls. Perspiration bloomed on the surface of her skin until the synthetic fabric of her dress clung uncomfortably, and all she could think about was how much she wanted to strip it off.

Jason reached low behind her hips, grasping through the back of her skirt to curl his fingertips beneath the elastic strap of her thong. He exerted just enough light tension to pull the tiny crotch of the underwear taut between her thighs. Justine quivered as the scrap of silk cradled a hard, urgent throb.

“I can take care of you,” Jason whispered.

“You … you changed your mind?” she asked, her lips feeling swollen.

Letting go of the thong strap, he tugged her skirt higher and slid his hand beneath. He caressed the sensitive curve of her hip. “No. But I’ll make you feel good. Right here and now.” His thumb slipped beneath the elastic strap of the thong. “All you have to do is hold on to me. Tell me you want it. Just tell me…”

As his hand slid over her bottom, Justine reached back and caught at his wrist. “Wait. We’re not going to have sex, but you want to … go to casual third base?”

The phrase caused his lips to twitch. “I can’t remember the specifics of casual third base,” he said dryly. “But that sounds about right.”

“But I would be the only one getting off?”

“Yes.”

“No.” Scowling, Justine stepped back from him. “Condescending jerk. You turn me down for sex because you’ve decided that I’m too immature to—”

“Inexperienced.”

“Same thing.”

“No it’s not.”

“Too immature,” she continued heatedly, “to be able to make decisions about what I want to do with my own body.”

“It’s not an insult when a man wants to take it slow with you.”

“Then what is it?”

“A compliment.”

“It doesn’t feel like one.” Somewhere inside she knew she should give him credit for trying to be a gentleman, but at the moment she was too sexually frustrated to care. Scowling, she went to the door and opened it. “Go. And don’t bother asking me out again. I don’t give second chances.”

Jason grinned and obliged her, bending to pick up his jacket from the floor. Before leaving, he paused at the threshold and said, “You shouldn’t rule out second chances. Sometimes they come with interesting bonus features.”