Chapter 64

"Good friends? Ha! I don't know." Amaya chuckled and slipped her hand around his elbow, a casual gesture that shouldn’t have sent the blood rushing to his groin. But it did, and he could barely focus on anything other than the way she smelled and how she felt tucked into his side.

Having her stand so close to him, her signature strawberry vanilla enveloping him in seductive sweetness, was hard enough to tolerate without her smoky midnight eyes sending him signals he knew were all in his own head.

"So what did you want to show me?"

"It’s in here."

Chase all but dragged her through the back door into the dimly lit kitchen, knowing this was crazy but unable to stop.

Her soft laughter echoed in the empty room; it was his favourite in the house. He had a lifetime of family memories here: making ravioli from scratch while reading the Sunday newspapers; Amaya poking her tongue out at him from across the table as she lobbed a bread roll and feigned innocence.

Yeah, this room was a definite favourite, and he was about to add another treasured memory.

"Okay, apart from this place needing some light, what’s the prob—?"

Chase covered her mouth with his, cutting off her words and sliding his arms around her waist, marvelling at how right this felt.

Rather than protest and try to shove him off, she groaned and wrapped her arms around his neck, opening her lips beneath his, teasing him to pleasure her, taste her, and come back for more.

Damn it, she was not supposed to act this way; she was supposed to push him away and ignore the silly thought in her head. Ignore the warm tingle sensation; ignore the man; ignore his scent and his amazing kisses. But she didn't.

She thought how cruel hormones were.

Chase, however, was more than willing to comply, deepening the kiss to the point where he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, and couldn’t feel anything beyond this incredible woman at that unforgettable moment.

She hung on tight, her hands stroking his neck, tugging him closer until he could feel the heat of her skin through his dress shirt, the sizzling, wicked heat urging him to back her up against the table and do what he’d wanted to do for weeks now.

Make sweet love to his beautiful wife.

He must’ve moved a fraction, for she groaned, brushing her breasts against his chest, and he slid his hands around her ribcage, filling them with her full breasts, caressing them, skimming the peaks with his palms until she murmured incoherently, almost making him explode on the spot.

Alarm bells clamoured in his head—what happened to just business? What happened to getting her to make the first move this time? And he happily ignored them, allowing himself this one brief taste of pleasure before sanity returned and he’d be forced to apologise for making a complete jackass of himself.

She sensed his hesitation, for she broke the kiss only to snuggle into his neck and playfully nip the sensitive skin there.

"I can see your problem."

"What’s that?"

His hands glided over the slinky material of her dress to caress her buttocks, the heat of her scorching his palms through the thin silk of her dress.

"You’ve got the hots for me."

She raised her brow and chuckled—the small, sexy laugh of a confident woman who knew exactly what sort of schmuck she was dealing with.

"It’s your fault. You’re irresistible. But this is just mere business, right?" She asked with longing hope that it wasn't just business.

Chase sighed and nodded his head. "Yes, this is just business."

He kissed her again, softly, lingering, wondering how he’d ever had the willpower to turn this amazing woman down all those years ago and wondering what the hell he was going to do when she walked out of his life this time around.

She had his libido firing on all cylinders, but it was more than that. They’d reconnected on so many levels, and their special friendship was a thing to treasure.

But what has changed?

Career-driven Amaya would hightail it out of America six years ago without a backward glance, leaving Chase cursing the day he’d been foolish enough to let her back into his heart, a heart he’d deliberately closed off from ever loving any woman too much.

He might’ve obliterated memories of his parents and of his mother, but he’d never forgotten the pain of abandonment, the intense loss that had clawed at his insides, and the doubts that had plagued him for years that he wasn’t good enough to be loved forever.

"How irresistible?" She smiled as she thought that this time, it didn't matter if she got hurt again; she would risk it for a minute of his love.

Stupid, Amaya. Very stupid of you, she thought to herself.

But now wasn’t a time for doubts, deliberating, or questioning as Chase kissed her again and deepened the kiss, craving intimacy as the parched outback craved water to sustain life. The thought of losing her did it, prompting him to do all manner of crazy things like back her up against the table, wishing he’d had the sense to lock the back door.

Her hands dived into his hair, angling his head for better access to his mouth as she wrapped a leg around his waist, bringing him into delicious contact with her heat, and blind, raging need slammed through him to the point of no return.

He was out of his mind with the need of her, but he’d be damned if he took her standing up against a kitchen wall after all this time.

She deserved more.

She deserved the universe and then some.

Wrenching his mouth from hers with effort, he exhaled a long, ragged breath as he broke the full-length body contact he’d been relishing so much.

"Chase?"

"Not now, not here, not like this," he said through gritted teeth, desperate to rein in his libido as he tried not to focus on her swollen mouth, on the lips he’d tasted, on the lips he’d savoured, on the lips he’d kiss all night long if he had his way.

"Then when?"

You are foolish, Amaya. How can you ask him that? She chastised herself, wanting to just melt from embarrassment.

But then confusion clouded her eyes as Chase balled his hands to stop hauling her back into his arms, silently cursing and making a hash of this.

Desire pounded through his veins, untamed, undisciplined, and uncontrollable, but he’d subdue his ferocious need for now and bide his time, for when they gave into this tempestuous passion, he would stop at nothing less than making love to her all night long.

With great restraint, he settled for trailing a fingertip down her cheek and along her jaw, enjoying the instant flare of heat in her sparkling eyes and the soft little smile playing about her lips.

He cupped her chin, his gaze not leaving hers. "Soon. Very soon."

Something fierce, something wild, and something altogether terrifying flashed across her face before she nodded slowly.

"Good," she breathed in a sigh, setting his heart pumping with wild anticipation as he grabbed her hand and almost dragged her out of the door before he changed his mind.