He felt a moan of agony rise in his throat, the pain of denial. Whether he’d given voice to the agony, he didn’t know, but suddenly Amanda’s back stiffened. She whirled around. Bright spots of color rode high on her cheeks.
“What do you mean, sneaking up on me like that?” She straightened and faced him defiantly.
“I didn’t sneak. As a matter of fact, I made quite a bit of noise. You were so engrossed, you didn’t hear me.”
She pushed her hair back from her forehead, a gesture of frustration he remembered from years gone by.
“Well, why didn’t you say something?”
“And spoil all the fun? The view was absolutely entrancing.”
Her face flamed even brighter. “Tanner Donovan! That’s just like you. Always taking what you want without asking.”
“An apt choice of words.” Tossing his hat onto a chair, he left the doorway and stalked her. “I want something from you, Amanda, and I’ve come to get it.”
She moved out of his reach, putting the trunk between them. He had the nerve to laugh. She could have screamed.
“Didn’t you vow you’d never run from me?”
“I’m not running. I’m merely standing over here until you tell me what you want and until I can decide whether I’ll give it to you.”
“It’s no fun if I have to ask.” He feinted a pass, then closed in for a touchdown. Standing behind the trunk with her pinned against his chest, he smiled. “I forgot to kiss you good-bye, Amanda.”
“An oversight we could both live with.” She shoved against him. “Don’t be fooled into thinking that the Hershey bars softened me up. I’ve made up my mind. I’ll resist you or die trying.”
“I can think of better ways to die. For instance, this.” His mouth crushed down on hers. It wasn’t a good-bye kiss, it was an explosive assault.
Determined to hold him off, she struggled briefly in his arms. Then the drugging power of Tanner Donovan took over. She could no more have resisted than she could have flown to Tahiti without a plane. She welcomed him, reveled in him, feasted on him. The incredible joy of being held by him blotted out everything else.
Need flamed in her. She pressed closer, trying to merge her body with his. Vaguely she was aware of soft sounds, whimperings of desire that were her own. He’d know. The thought flitted through her mind. He’d know how much she wanted him, but she didn’t care. Nothing mattered at that moment except being in Tanner’s arms, being kissed by him.
She absorbed him, the familiar taste of him, fresh and delicious and somehow very masculine; the familiar shape of his mouth, beautifully molded and firm, exactly right for kissing; the familiar feel of him, broad and solid and enduring. Home, she thought. Home is being held next to Tanner’s heart.
She felt him pulling back, ending the kiss.
“No.” She wound her hands in his hair and pulled his head back down. She didn’t care what he thought: She had to have more of him. Something to get her through the rest of the day and the long night ahead.
His lips touched hers again. She could feel the lines of his smile. Let him feel triumphant, she thought. Let him think that he was the victor. She had won, too. She was taking what she wanted, and she would walk away in one piece.
The room became steamy with their harsh breathing. Jungle heat, Amanda thought. She and Tanner wanted each other in a basic, primitive way. Whether it had anything to do with love, she didn’t know. For her part, perhaps it did. But she knew his intentions. He’d made them plain enough. Love was not what Tanner Donovan wanted.
It was that last thought that made her brave enough to back away from him. She called upon an unknown strength to let him go, then broke away and stood back. “You can go now. I took what I wanted.”
He reached out and touched her cheek. She hoped he didn’t feel its heat. Like a fever, Tanner was contagious, and she’d forgotten to stay in quarantine.
“You were always especially beautiful after lovemaking.”
“I suppose your enormous ego makes it necessary for you to exaggerate a simple kiss.”
His laugh was mocking. “Nothing is simple between us, Amanda.” When he removed his hand from her cheek, she felt deprived. “The next time there won’t be clothes between us.”
He picked up his hat and strode toward the door, then he was gone. Amanda cupped her burning cheeks with her hands and groaned. Getting Tanner out of her system was going to be the hardest thing she’d ever done.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Tanner Donovan, if you prowl through this kitchen one more time, you’re going to wear the floor out.”