One Perfect Night
Page 9

As her hesitation gave way to a smile, his breath caught in his throat. Beautiful didn’t even begin to describe the woman standing before him. Stunning didn’t cut it, either.
She was perfect.
"Finding you again like this proves what I’ve known since the moment I saw you." He caressed her cheek again, pausing with his hand just cupping her chin, loving the anticipation in her gaze, the way she was all but begging him to kiss her with that hungry look in her eyes.
"What did you know?" she asked, barely above a whisper.
"That we were a perfect fit." He leaned in close, close enough that he could have kissed her. Instead he said, "And that we belong together."
He could almost taste the sweetness of her lips, was about to pull her soft curves against him, when a flicker of doubt flashed in her eyes at the very last second and she pulled away from him.
Just as she had on the ski slopes right before she’d left him.
He watched her force a laugh, as if he’d been kidding about being soul mates. "I’ve never heard a pickup line quite like that one before. Does it usually work?"
She was clearly pushing for a reaction, trying to see if she could get him to walk away this time. But he wasn’t going anywhere.
"I don’t know," he said softly. "I’ve never said it to anyone before."
He heard her breath catch, watched as her cheeks flushed an even deeper rose. "But we hardly know each other."
Noah wanted to find out who had put that wariness into her eyes. Not only was he going to kill the sorry bastard, he was also going to spend the rest of his life making sure no one ever hurt her again.
"What if I can prove to you that it’s true?"
Interest sparked at his challenging words, but too quickly the wariness came back. "How could you possibly do that?"
"You gave me one perfect day in Lake Tahoe. Now I want one night." He moved closer again and took one of her trembling hands in his. "One night with you." He entwined his fingers with hers and she stopped shaking as he held her tight. "One night to love you the way you’ve always wanted to be loved." He dipped his head down so that he could whisper in her ear. "One perfect night to make all of your secret desires and dreams come true."
When he pulled back slightly to take in her reaction, he could see the pulse point at the base of her neck moving wildly beneath her creamy, smooth skin. She shook her head, desire now warring with wariness in her beautiful blue eyes.
"You could do all that in one night?"
Noah had always followed his instincts, whether with family or friends or business. And right now, his instincts were telling him to stop thinking, stop talking, stop trying to convince Colbie of his intentions…and just do.
Gently cupping her face with his free hand, her skin so soft beneath his palm, the heat from her skin searing him, he tilted her face up to his and whispered, "Yes," right before taking her mouth with his.
Chapter Six
Noah kissed her the way she’d always wanted to be kissed. With passion. With decadent, sinful purpose.
And more sweet emotion than she’d even known was possible.
Even though it was their first kiss, he wasn’t afraid to sweep his tongue between her teeth, and his boldness gave her the courage to take what she wanted.
Him.
Their tongues danced, mating so beautifully that she heated up as much behind her breastbone as she did everywhere else. It was blissful being with a man who wasn’t worried about moving too fast or too slow, only with making love to her mouth.
He led their dance, and although she was more than glad to follow wherever he took her, she was tasting him, too. Learning the corners where his lips came together with the tip of her tongue, gently biting his lower lip between her teeth and sucking it into her mouth.
A groan of pleasure vibrated from his chest to hers and she was powerless against the urge to press her br**sts against his hard chest. His groan turned into a growl of desire and then his hand moved from her face to thread through her hair as he tilted her head back so that he could have better access to her mouth.
Noah didn’t ask her to tell him what she wanted. He didn’t stop to ask if what he was doing was okay, if it felt good. He simply gave her pleasure, knowing exactly what she wanted without her having to spell it out for him.
And the truth was that standing in a crowded bar while a gorgeous man kissed her senseless was every fantasy she’d ever had come true.
"Come home with me, Colbie."
Missing his kiss already, instead of answering his request, she put her hands on either side of his face and pulled his mouth back down to hers. This time, she was the one kissing him as if her life depended on it.
When they finally drew back from one another, he asked, "Is that a yes?"
She’d never wanted to say yes to any question more. But hurt—and the fear of being hurt again—was a tricky thing, she was learning. Tricky enough that even Noah’s kisses couldn’t completely eradicate it.
"You’re so sure," she said, "so certain. But what if one night ends up being a mistake?"
Another man might have gotten frustrated, might have tried to rush her from the bar to his house so that they could get out of their clothes and get down to business. Noah simply stroked her gently with his hands still in her hair and asked, "Do you remember what I said to you up on the ski slopes?"
Of course she did. She hadn’t been able to forget any part of the wonderful day they’d shared in Lake Tahoe.
When she nodded, he said, "Tell me, sweetheart."
The endearment, so pure and sweet, warmed her in places that had been cold for so long. At the same time, his eyes were dark with desire.
It was a combination that turned her knees to mush and made her head spin. This was it. The moment of truth. Was she going to be brave or was she going to be tormented by sinfully sexy dreams that never went far enough? For the rest of her life was she going to regret leaving Noah here in this cocktail bar, just because there were no guarantees that everything would work out and that they’d end up together forever? Especially when the dangerously wicked look in Noah’s eyes made her feel more alive than anything else ever had?
"You told me all I needed to do was listen to my body. And that you were going to show me how." She licked her lips and his gaze followed the path of her tongue, making her lips tingle as if he’d kissed them instead. "And then you asked me to take your hands, to close my eyes...and to trust you."