Best Of Makeovers Bundle Part 69

When she leaned forward, rising up onto her toes to kiss him, he didn't pull away. She was right. He'd been wise for far too long. The recklessness he struggled to keep buried deep inside of him broke free.

In that instant all his careful plans to remain aloof-to resist Jane-vanished.

As soon as he felt her lips pressed to his, he wrapped his hands around her bare arms and pulled her to him. He barely registered her gasp of surprise, but the low moan that tore through her told him all he needed to know.

Her mouth was unbelievably hot beneath his. He remembered how she'd tasted the last time. Hot and sweet, like the peppers. This time, she tasted sweet and crisp-like champagne-and he couldn't help wondering if she'd sampled some to build up her courage.

Aching to feel her generous curves against him, he found himself pulling her even closer. He felt the weight of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s brush his chest, felt the gentle slope of her tummy against his hardening p.e.n.i.s. Felt her hands tugging at his clothes, shoving his jacket off his shoulders.

He released her only long enough to shake his jacket free, and pulled her back to him before it even hit the floor. He wrapped one arm across her back, grabbing her b.u.t.tocks to raise her up to him.

One of her hands clung to his shoulder. She buried the other in his hair, urging his head across her mouth. Following her lead, he tore his mouth from hers to trail kisses down the length of her neck.

"This is insane," he gasped between kisses.

"No." She raised one of her legs up to his hip, deepening the contact between them. "This is perfect. Just perfect."

She gasped as she rubbed the apex of her thighs against his erection. The blood pounding through him quickened as he felt a shudder course through his body.

His fingers itched to pull her dress from her body, to unwrap her like a present, to lose himself in the exploration of her body. An even deeper need pulsed through him. The need to possess her completely. To bury himself inside her and feel her shudder with pleasure.

The image from her drawing flashed through his mind: The picture of a man cradled between a woman's thighs, her hips bucked up towards him. His erection surged at the thought of laying Jane on the floor and feeling her legs wrapped around him.

Instinctively, he backed her up, step by step, towards the swath of carpet in front of the fireplace. He didn't lift his mouth from her body. With each step, her moans of pa.s.sion heightened his own arousal.

A shudder coursed through her and she arched towards him. "Yes," she panted. "Oh, please, yes."

The pa.s.sion lacing her words nearly drove him over the edge. He'd never make it to the fireplace. He had to have her now.

Grabbing the hem of her dress, he lifted it up and over her head in one fast motion. Though he ached to explore her body slowly, that would have to wait. He'd need hours, maybe days, to learn all her secrets. He had neither the patience nor the self-control to wait. For now, the feel of her velvety skin would have to be enough.

As he lowered her to the floor, she sought the closure of his pants. As her fingers brushed against his erection, he squeezed his eyes closed and bit back a groan.

When he felt her thighs clench his hips, he could only mutter, "Oh, Jane, you're killing me."

He lowered his mouth back to hers, but found her lips stiff and unyielding beneath his. He pulled back to see her expression. She gaped at him, wide-eyed.

It took his l.u.s.t-addled brain several beats to catch up. "Jane, what's wrong?"

Her hands shoved at his chest. Instinctively, he braced his palms beside her shoulders, giving her enough room to crab walk back from him.

"What did you just call me?"

CHAPTER SEVEN.

SHOCK AND CONFUSION reeled through Jane. "What did you call me?" she repeated.

Reid's expression was clouded with pa.s.sion. Clearly dazed, he rocked back onto his heels. "Jane. I called you Jane."

Hearing her name on his lips was like a splash of cold water. Unfortunately, the water hit only her mind, not her body. Her body still trembled with awareness and ached for completion.

She staggered to her feet. "You knew?"

Scrubbing a hand down his face, he said, "I realized today. This morning in the break room."

"And you didn't say anything?" Her words came out like an accusation.

Instead of answering, he studied her as he stood. Though several feet separated them, she felt his gaze like a caress. She wore only her bra, panties, garter, and stockings.

She suddenly felt intensely aware of her near-naked state. She'd always thought her body was far from perfect. Too round. Too soft. But the appreciative gleam in Reid's gaze made her feel lush and desirable.

Without the warmth of his body over hers, the cool air in the room chilled her skin, hardening her nipples even more. Suddenly self-conscious, she longed for something to cover her body with.

Before she could even reach for her dress, he spoke. "Unless you want to pick up where we left off, I suggest you put your dress back on."

"I was just about to." She pointed to his feet. "You're standing on it."

He handed her the dress, watching her as she turned it inside out and slipped it over her head. When she'd finally tugged the dress into place, he turned his attention to the champagne and the gla.s.ses.

"You're pouring yourself a gla.s.s of champagne?" Her voice rose with indignation.

"I think we could both use a drink. Unless you've got a bottle of Scotch hidden away somewhere, this will have to do."

He poured two gla.s.ses and handed her one. She held the gla.s.s in both hands to keep her trembling fingers from spilling it. The unsated desire still churning her blood turned to agitation.

Maybe he was right. Maybe a drink would calm her nerves, but she couldn't bring herself to raise the gla.s.s to her lips. After all the times she'd dreamt of sipping champagne with him, it seemed a travesty to drink this now.

He had no such compunction. Then again, he hadn't been fantasizing about tonight for five years.

She crossed to the pair of chairs by the window and lowered herself into one of them. She set the gla.s.s on the side table and rested her head in her hands.

"I can't believe you knew who I was and you still came." She murmured the words, more to herself than to him.

"I can't believe you honestly thought I wouldn't figure it out." He followed her across the room and sat in the other chair.

Her gaze snapped up to his. "It was a logical a.s.sumption," she defended. "You didn't recognize me that night on the roof."

"It was dark. And you looked different."

She couldn't argue with that, so she didn't bother trying. "Why did you come here tonight?"

He took another drink, then answered without meeting her gaze. "Curiosity, I guess."

G.o.d, this was worse than she'd thought.

Suddenly glad she had something to do with her hands, she raised the gla.s.s and drank deeply. Then she nearly choked when he said, "I know about the drawings."

She set the gla.s.s aside carefully. "What drawings?"

"The Butler Steam Vac pitch. I know that's me in the drawings."

"It's n-"

"It's my ring." He held up his right hand, twisting it to show off the ring, and then the side. "It's my scar."

"I..." Her heart pounded as she realized the impact of his words. Her breath came in short, fast bursts and her mind raced. As if she had no control over herself, words burst forth. "Oh, G.o.d. This is bad." She stood and began to pace. "I can't believe I did that. I can't believe you noticed." Oh, how embarra.s.sing.

She glanced in his direction and noticed he was smiling as he watched her. "This isn't funny," she snapped. "If you figured it out, other people could, too."

He stood. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm sure no one else would notice. The scar is barely visible."

She hardly registered his words. "And then," she rushed on, "I invite you up here to seduce you. And then, you came? Oh, this is so bad."

"Calm down," he murmured rea.s.suringly. "It's not that bad."

"Not that bad? I could get fired over this."

"Fired?" he asked with a laugh. "I'm not going to fire you."

She glared at him. "This isn't funny."

"Actually, it kind of is."

"Yeah, well, your job isn't at stake."

When she turned back around, she found him standing beside her. He rubbed his hand up her arm in an action he must have meant to be calming. "I promise I'm not going to fire you."

His hand felt warm and strong against her skin. His touch sent shivers of pleasure through her body. Far from rea.s.suring, it only reminded her of how close they'd come to having s.e.x.

And now she would never get to sleep with him. She was suffering all the negative repercussions of sleeping with her boss, without getting to experience any of the mind-blowing pleasure. This sucked.

She shifted her gaze from where his hand rested on her arm up to his eyes. This close, his eyes were an even more vivid green than they normally seemed. As she studied his face, she realized that-despite his relaxed demeanor-he was still aroused. She could see it in his eyes and in the strain of his smile.

His hand slowed to a sensuous caress that she felt all the way to the tips of her toes. She felt herself swaying towards him, when he jerked his hand from her arm and put some distance between them.

As he crossed back to his champagne gla.s.s, he said, "Stop blaming yourself for this. It's my fault." He took a long drink, then added, "And stop worrying about your job. Whatever would have happened between us, it would have been safe. I need you too much to let you go."

Something deep within her responded to his words. Something she didn't want to a.n.a.lyze.

Turning away from his scrutiny, she wrapped her arms around her waist and went to stand by the fireplace. "Thank you. That's very kind."

"I didn't say it to be kind. I said it because it's true." His voice was edged with just a hint of exasperation.

She turned back to study him, but the lighting in the room was too dim for her to read his expression.

"I've annoyed you," she said.

"No."

"Yes, I have. I can hear it in your voice."

"Okay," he admitted. "I like it better when you're being honest with me."

"Honest? I've tried to pa.s.s myself off as another person. This isn't me at my most honest."

"Bad word choice. Not honest, exactly. More open, I guess. Less timid. When you're not trying so hard to be the perfect employee."

"I see." So he liked her better as Sasha than as Jane. That wasn't surprising.

So why did it hurt?

"Look, Jane, you're an important part of the company. Your team does some of our best work."

"Well, Teresa-"

"Teresa is a good team leader. She's a great presenter, but we both know you're the creative mind behind your team's work."

"We do? I mean-" she swallowed, trying not to sound too hopeful "-you know that?"

He came to stand beside her by the fireplace. "What kind of CEO do you think I'd be if I didn't know that?"

"I'm sorry," she said. She wished he weren't standing so close, but he made it hard for her to concentrate on his words. "I didn't mean to insult you."

"You're doing it again."

"What?"

"Being timid."

"Well, I'm sorry." This time her words were sarcastic rather than apologetic. "I'm not used to talking back to the CEO."

He smiled. "That's better." He brushed his knuckle down her cheek. "Don't forget, I may be the CEO, but the job you do is much more important than mine. This company wouldn't work without you. The most important thing I do is make sure the creatives are happy."

"And that's more important than...oh, say, running the company?"

"Without people like you, there's no company to run."

"I've never thought of it that way."

He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Tonight was a mistake. We both know that. But I don't want it to make you feel nervous or uncomfortable. I don't want it to affect your work."

"It won't." She wished, though, that she felt even half as sure of that as she sounded.