And hey, might as well admit to the fact that he totally had the hots for her physically, too.
Long russet lashes and smoky green eyes. A soft red mouth. Stretchy black dress pulling tight around slender thighs. Her elegant neck left bare by thick, upswept hair, small neat ears and delicate, pointed jawline.
So sexy. Even her awkwardness appealed to him, suggesting a sensuality just waiting to be discovered.
Joseph stopped in the middle of the room, staring down the hallway toward the bathroom.
Perhaps she was sick. Perhaps there was something majorly wrong. Perhaps he should be going to see if she was okay.
Not stopping to think, he just headed straight down the hallway to the bathroom. The door was open so he walked right in.
She was standing in front of the vanity, her gaze flicking to his in the mirror as he entered. There was something vulnerable about her, about the look on face. Something uncertain. It hit him like a punch to the gut.
“Hey,” he said softly. “You’re not okay, are you?”
She looked away. “I’m fine.”
No, she wasn’t. Any idiot could see that. “Then why did you leave?”
Naughtygirl turned from the mirror. “Would you believe women’s problems again?”
“Not really, no.”
“I’m sorry,” she muttered. “I’m just…”
“Just what? Look, if you don’t want to take this further we don’t have to.” Fighting his own disappointment, he made himself say it. “I could take you home if you’d prefer.”
Her head came up at that, her eyes wide. “You really want to take me home?”
“No. I don’t. I’m just saying that if you want to leave, then you can.”
For a long moment she stared at him. “But…I don’t want to leave.”
Joseph stepped into the bathroom. She didn’t move as he came closer, just kept staring at him.
He halted mere inches from her. “Good,” he said, his voice thick. “Because, honey, I really don’t want you to go.”
She blinked, white teeth sinking into her luscious lower lip. Nibbling on it. And he couldn’t seem to stop staring at her mouth, wondering how she would taste. What sounds she would make if he bit her there.
And the look in her eyes changed, became determined. As if she’d made some sort of decision.
Before he could move, before he’d even had time to think, she’d closed the gap between them, rising up on her toes to press her mouth to his.
Electricity shot through him. As though he’d been plugged into a power socket, the current shooting straight to his groin. Jesus Christ. He’d never felt anything like it.
He reached for her but she was already pulling away, her face gone bright red, the sound of her breathing loud in the confined space of the bathroom. Staring at him in utter amazement.
So she’d felt it, too. God, they didn’t just have chemistry, they had the whole bloody science curriculum.
“Oh, I’m s-sorry,” she began. “I should never have done—”
But Joseph didn’t care what she should never have done. He only had one thought in his head: he had to kiss her again. Unable to stop himself, he took her face between his hands and covered her mouth with his. She shuddered, a small, shocked sound escaping from her.
Champagne. She tasted like champagne. And she was delicious.
He kissed her harder, deeper, exploring the heat of her mouth. She gave a soft groan, melting into him, her hands on his chest, responding to his kiss with the kind of abandon reserved only for lovers, not strangers who’d only just met. It took his breath away. The scent of her flooded his senses, lavender and underlying that, a sensual musky smell that made him think of arousal, of sex.
Helpless desire grabbed him by the throat. His hands found her hips, tugging her tall, slender body hard against him. The feel of her was incredible. So warm.
She sighed, her arms around his neck as though she never intended to let him go, beginning to kiss him back uncertainly, as if she didn’t know quite what she was doing.
It was the hottest thing he’d ever experienced.
The kiss began to burn out of control and it was only when he felt something soft against his hands that he realized he’d pulled her hair out of her bun and that it was coming down, raw silk against his skin. He pushed his fingers into the softness of it, gripping tightly as he slid a hand up from her hip, cupping one small, round breast. Then he circled her nipple with his thumb, feeling it harden beneath the stretchy fabric of her dress.
She gasped, arching into his hand, slender body shivering against his. So he did it again, circling then brushing over the hardened point with the pad of his thumb as he kissed her.