She knew in that moment she was seeing a different Wes. This one was almost entirely unguarded. No games, no secrets, no hidden agendas. Only truth and desire existed between them. Her heart gave a sudden beat, as though it had been dead for centuries and was humming back to life, shaking dust off its tomb. Her body was already well on the way to its own decision. She would make love to him. Not right away, but soon. Fenn was gone. There was no childhood dream left to capture. She would make new dreams, ones with other men in them.
“We can go slow?” she asked. “I’m not ready tonight, but…I want to be with you.” She didn’t want to let him win the bet between them, but she knew now what was burning between them was inevitable. And he had known from the start. Maybe that’s why he’d made the bet to begin with, because he’d known it would come down to this and she’d give in. A flicker of guilt moved through her, but she shoved it away. She refused to think of the bet, and her losing. Not right now.
Before she could say anything else, he was kissing her again. This time he shifted his whole body over hers, pinning her completely to the bed. He pressed one knee between hers, so that she could grind against his thigh. The hand at her breast slid down to her waist, then went back up under her shirt. He deftly tugged the bra cup down and then palmed her bare breast. Callie moaned against his lips, the intoxicating feel of his large hand covering her breast under her clothes was intense and erotic. She ground her jean-clad pelvis against his leg, her clit throbbing, almost stinging with the friction.
He seemed to sense her urgency and he moved his hand away from her breast to cup her mound, rubbing in just the right spot. She exploded inside like a bucket of firecrackers with sparks and burning heat. Panting, she went limp beneath him, legs trembling as little aftershocks of the sudden, unbelievable powerful climax rippled through her.
Wes moved his mouth down to her neck, teasing her skin with delicate nips and little licks. The hard press of his erection against her stomach was impossible to ignore.
“Do I…do I rub you?” she whispered nervously.
He lifted his head and she noticed his lips seemed fuller from their kisses. She’d marked him with her nibbling kisses. That subtle show of her effect on him pleased her and she couldn’t stop smiling.
“Not now. If you get anywhere near my cock, I’ll lose control.” His voice was ragged.
She shivered at the way he’d said the word “cock.” It made her want to purr and wriggle against him. A blush worked its way up her body as she wondered if dirty talk was something she liked. Was it?
“I love it when you blush.” He sighed like a man lost in a favorite dream.
“That’s good, because you make me blush all the time,” she retorted a little grumpily. She’d like to see him blush for a change.
He bent and nipped her bottom lip before teasing her. “There’s a little sass in you. I like it. Keep it up and I’ll spank you.” He winked and she nearly rolled her eyes. He was bluffing. He wouldn’t spank her. The threat was made too often for him to really mean it.
“What time is dinner?” she asked between languid kisses. It was wonderful to lie on a bed with a man, one who was all hers in that moment. Her body was sated and she was simply enjoying the pleasure and intimacy of his kisses.
“Hmm…an hour and a half.” He finished on a growl of delight as he rocked his hips against hers as though determined to excite himself like she had, but Callie sensed he was much better at mastering his body’s responses than she was hers.
“Should we get dressed?”
He nuzzled her throat before he puffed out a sigh and pushed his body up so he could look down at her. “Unfortunately you’re right. I don’t want to be late meeting with Dimitri.” He stole one more kiss from her before he got off the bed. Callie propped herself up on her elbows and watched him head for the bathroom. He paused, resting his palms on the frame of the door as he glanced over his shoulder at her.
“Wear the navy blue dress and the kitten heels that match. The yellow overcoat, too.”
And just like that he was gone. Callie flopped down onto her bed, body still loose after that intense encounter. Everything had changed. One day in Paris and she was already giving herself to Wes, or at the least had agreed to at some future time. So much for her belief that she’d win in the wager they’d made. She was crumbling like the walls of Jericho. It wasn’t like her, but then again, the girl she’d been before had been alone and unhappy. With Wes, she was someone new, someone sexy and exciting. She wanted to be this new woman, and while she was in Paris, she had the chance to and not worry about what anyone would think.
Her dreams were coming true and yet she was still nervous about tonight. She was going to meet one of Wes’s clients and then she’d get to visit the Louvre. After that…well…she smiled. She would just have to wait and see. She glanced out the window at the distant Eiffel Tower. This was Paris, a land of dreams, a city of love…a world where she could be someone else. Someone she was meant to be.
Chapter 7
Wes leaned against the front door of his apartment, waiting for Callie to come down the stairs. He heard the soft click of her heels and then she came into view. The dark blue dress was cut conservatively but was sexy in a classy way, enhancing Callie’s natural style. The bright yellow overcoat was a perfect counterpart to the dress, which flared out slightly at her knees to give her more mobility. The navy blue heels had gold buckles on the toes and had enough height to accept her shapely legs but were not too high that she’d be uncomfortable. He knew his little cowgirl well now. She’d rarely worn heels, if ever, and was a stranger to dresses and heels.
He waved a finger in a circle, indicating for her to twirl. Callie blushed but performed a graceful pirouette. She’d pulled her long blonde hair into a ponytail at the base of her neck with a thick navy blue ribbon. Wes fought off the wave of desire as his body jumped into overdrive. A few hours earlier he’d had her beneath him in a bed, kissing her, his hands exploring her full curves. He’d almost come right there when she had. The look of shock, of delight, as she climaxed had blown his mind apart with thoughts of what would come soon. She wanted to be with him, and so long as he could take it slow, he would have her in his bed. What he hadn’t expected, however, was the series of strange emotions running through him like quicksilver. He shoved these soft emotions, ones of tenderness and sweetness, aside. They would not help him and he didn’t need them as a weakness.
“How do I look?” she asked when she reached him at the door.
He caught her by the lapels of her coat and leaned down to nuzzle her cheek.
“More tasty than whatever I had planned to eat tonight,” he growled softly and Callie made a tiny little noise between a whimper and a throaty purr. The sound went straight to his cock.
“Dinner, remember?”
He licked the shell of her ear and nibbled the lobe. She gripped his shoulders as he continued the sensual torture by kissing the sensitive spot just behind her ear. “We can be late.” His hands dropped to her back, pulling her closer.
“Won’t your client get upset?” Her husky tone made him momentarily forget everything besides her. It was so easy to lose himself when he was with her, like being pulled into the gravity of a bright sun.
“Wes, dinner,” she reminded more sternly. That barely cut through the warm haze of desire cloaking him. Dimitri Razin wouldn’t want to be kept waiting.
He exhaled, a little irritated that he couldn’t keep kissing those delightful little spots on Callie’s skin that made her shiver.
“Very well. There’s just one thing missing before we go.” He curled his hand in her ponytail and tugged slightly, forcing her head back so he could plant a lingering last kiss on her lips. Could he last a few hours without tasting her?