Christmas Male(54)

“Maybe. When I’m sixty.”

He laughed. Then taking her by the arms, he lifted her off her feet and twirled her around the small kitchen. “Thanks!”

Fiona’s head was still spinning when he set her back down. He kissed first one cheek and then the other, and her head did another spin.

“Thanks for what?”

“Your perspective is just what I needed. I made the right decision last night.”

“What did you decide?”

“I’m going to resign from the army on January 15 and seek employment elsewhere.”

Fiona simply stared at him.

He turned back to the stove and ignited the flame under the skillet.

“Where?” And why did she care? Why was there a tightening around her heart? A flutter of panic in her stomach?

He shrugged. “My brother would give me a job in Manhattan. Or I could talk to Chance and see if his firm might have a place for me. I’m not sure yet.”

“Doesn’t it bother you to have to leave the army?”

“I thought it would, but I like the idea of having a clean slate.”

Fiona firmly ignored the sinking feeling in her stomach. She didn’t want to think that what she and D.C. had right now would end all too soon. She couldn’t see the end, but dwelling on it, fearing it, would only spoil the present.

He adjusted the flame under the skillet. “Why don’t you get some plates and flatware? Once I put the pasta in the water, we’re nine minutes from dining.”

For now, he was here. And she’d wasted enough time. Slipping out of her jacket, she dropped it to the floor, then pulled off her belt. “Is there anything there that will spoil if you turn off the burners?”

“Spoil?”

When he turned, she let her slacks drop to the floor and stepped out of them. The linguine box slipped from his hand to the counter with a soft satisfying thud. Power rippled through her.

Without taking his eyes off her, he reached behind him and fumbled once before he extinguished the flames. Then he cleared his throat. “I planned on feeding you first and then seducing you.”

“As much as I appreciate a good plan, I have a different proposal to offer.” She shrugged out of her blouse and let it drop.

D.C.’s head began to spin, his blood pounding as his eyes moved of their own accord down her body and then slowly up again. Her legs were even longer than he’d imagined. And her skin was pale and delicate-looking, a striking contrast to the strength he’d already discovered. But it was her eyes that grabbed his attention. Was that a hint of mischief he saw? Surprise shimmered in the wave of heat that moved through him. “Yes, you do.”

“I figure if we wait to make love until after we eat, the anticipation might interfere with our enjoyment of the meal. And you’ve worked so hard on it.”

“Logical.” But there was very little logic to what he was feeling. To keep from grabbing her and finishing what she’d started, he leaned back against the counter and gripped the edges with his hands.

“One thing though.” She pushed her hair back over her shoulders. “It’s my turn to take the lead.”

“The lead?”

She closed the distance between them and ran one finger down the front of his sweater. “Since I’ve let you make most of the moves so far, Captain, I thought you might be interested in some of mine.”

“Sure.” She was weaving a spell around him. He couldn’t recall a woman ever doing that before. And the feeling was leaving him weak.

She tapped a finger on his chest. “There are some ground rules.”

“You know how I am about rules.”

The mischief showed itself again in her smile. “Then we’ll keep it simple. You can’t touch me until I tell you to. And you have to take off your clothes.”

The second one was easy enough. D.C. tugged off his sweater and dropped it to the floor. Then he unfastened his jeans and got rid of them and his shoes. It gave him something to do with his hands besides grab her and pull her to the floor. Or lift her onto a counter. The image of doing that and sinking into her teased at the edge of his mind until she stepped back just out of reach.

When she ran her gaze up and down his body, he felt the heat as intensely as if she’d touched him. An edgy ache began to build inside of him.

“I like your hands.” In a quick move, she captured one of them, meeting his eyes as she kissed each one of his fingers. Ice and fire raced along his nerve endings.

“They’re strong. Hard. I was watching them while you were chopping things up, and I was wondering…”

D.C. found he had to clear his throat. “Wondering what?”

“How they might feel on my skin.”