Something Wild (13 page)

Maybe he'd almost begun to believe her when she insisted she wasn't wild, when she said the limo incident had been an aberration. But now she was changing her story again, telling him just the opposite, and he suddenly understood—she couldn't be labeled. It wasn't that simple, and it complicated everything within him even further.

And yet, still more important was the fact that what he'd just said was so true: No matter who she was—June Cleaver or the sexy siren from the limo—he couldn't have her. Just couldn't.

"Have you talked to Martin yet?" he asked, just to say something.

"No. I called his hotel, but he hasn't called me back." She shifted her weight, the move jostling her breasts ever so slightly, and before he could stop himself, he wondered what kind of bra she wore under that T-shirt today.

"I'm sure he'll call soon."

"I hope so. I really want this settled. And this thing with
you
settled, too." Her resentful gaze shot through him.
You're not the guy for me,
she was saying again.
You're not the guy who'll give me what I need.

Ah, damn, he wanted to give it to her. And it seemed pure insanity that he'd turn down the offer of this beautiful woman to help her explore her sexuality, but she was right; the sooner the whole fiasco was settled, the better off they'd both be.

"I'm, uh, not gonna stay and work with you today," he said. "Sorry I didn't let you know sooner, but I didn't get much done this morning, so I don't have anything new to show you. I just came by to look at your floppy drive like I promised."

He walked past her, not bothering to shed his raincoat since this would only take a minute. She followed, but he didn't look at her, just dropped to his knees upon reaching the desk, then took out the miniature tool kit he'd brought in his briefcase.

Removing the computer's cover, he wrangled and toyed with the wedged diskette until it popped free. But one look into the empty drive told him it was shot. "It's broken," he announced.

"I knew that."

"I mean, I got the diskette out, but if you put another one in, it'll stick again." Grabbing a notepad to write down the specifics about her computer, he added, "I'll order a new floppy drive for you tomorrow, and see if I can locate a new modem, too."

She seemed taken aback by the offer.
"You
don't have to do that."

He still didn't look at her as he snapped the cover back into place and got to his feet. "I don't mind. Besides, I'm guessing most of your computer help has come from Martin lately, and you never know, after he hears that you're not gonna marry him, it might
never
get fixed."

She sighed. "You make a good point. Thanks … for the help."

He shook his head, at a loss for what else to say. But in his gut, he felt how easy it would still be to kiss her, and he smelled her damn shampoo again, even from a few feet away.

"I'd better go."

"Yes," she murmured. "Yes, you should."

Ryan returned his tools to his briefcase and snapped it shut, then picked up his umbrella. After pausing only long enough for one brief look into her pretty eyes, he headed for the door, but as he lowered his hand to the knob, he stopped and peered over his shoulder. "Penny, before I leave, I just have to know something."

"What's that?"

"The scent of your shampoo. What is it?"

"Uh … mango," she said, clearly bewildered. "Why?"

"No reason." He shook his head. "I just like it." Then he walked out into the rain.

Reaching the brick path below her porch, he put up his umbrella and trudged through the heavy drizzle toward the sidewalk that lined the quaint residential street.
Mango.
Sounded exotic. Erotic. Kind of … wild. Just like the girl he was leaving behind.

He was really doing that, leaving her behind—Penny the Sandwich Girl, Penny the limousine seductress, Penny of the lavender bra. Pretty Penny.

Just put one foot in front of the other. You can do it.

But at the very thought of feet, hers came to mind. Why did he have to find them so sexy? Of course, he'd gotten a little peek at her belly button beneath her knotted shirt, too. Equally sexy, and not as weird for him to be aroused by. It seemed impossible that he'd seen so much more of her just last night and managed to walk out the door, yet today these little flashes of skin were making him nuts.

Just keep moving, he told himself. You made it out last night, and you've made it out today, too. Piece of cake. Nothin' to it.

Though a disturbing image assaulted him as he trod up the sidewalk. It was Penny, back in the limo, but this time the lights were on. She was shedding her clothes, piece by delectable piece, before lowering herself into
another man's
lap, straddling him as she'd straddled Ryan. She gazed into the new guy's eyes, ran her hands through his hair, and whispered in his ear.
I want to be wild.

Ryan swallowed, all too aware of the raging jealousy pulsing through his body. Not to mention the nagging bulge that had grown beneath his pants. This woman was killing him. It wasn't even her fault, but she was driving him mad. "Damn it," he muttered, stopping. He turned and looked back down the street, realizing he'd passed his car, probably right around the time Penny had wiggled from her panties in his mind. "Damn it, damn it, damn it."

He started back toward the sedan, watching as it grew nearer through the rain, until he was almost there. The only problem now was that he wanted her more than he wanted to breathe. And he kept right on walking.

A moment later, he stood on her porch, one finger pressing down the doorbell, blood pumping through his veins like liquid heat.

Penny pulled open the door and stared at him through the screen.

"I'm back," he said.

"Why?"

"I'm weak?"

Her eyes, a dark, misty shade of blue that somehow matched the rain, widened with that moment of absorbing the unexpected.

Then, slowly, they turned sexy and oh-so-inviting as she bit her lip and reached for the door handle. "Come in."

6

«
^
»

A
s Ryan stepped in from the chilling rain, the heat in Penny's gaze hit him like a sledgehammer. Everything they'd done in the limo had been heaven on earth, but he hadn't been able to see her beautiful eyes then. The unspoken desire that shone in them now changed everything. And he was about to trade his career for the look in those eyes, but he didn't have an ounce of regret.

His briefcase thudded to the floor and his umbrella followed. Without a word, he stepped forward to kiss her. Cupping her cheeks, his hands were gentle, but his kiss was not. He felt like a man who'd just crossed a desert and she was his first drink of water.

When the kiss ended, she looked up at him, her breathing labored. "You're not holding anything back."

"What?" he murmured.

Her lips trembled. "That night in the limo, I could tell you were holding back. Even though you kissed me senseless, I knew there was more of you I wasn't quite getting."

"I was caught off guard then. Hell, I'm always caught off guard with you."

She curled her fingers into tight fists, the fabric of his shirt crushed within. "Don't hold anything back
now,
Ryan."

Her words swept through him like wildfire. "Don't worry, honey. I couldn't if I tried." And he meant it; he hadn't come back here to do anything halfway.

He lowered his mouth to hers again as she pushed the wet raincoat along with his suit jacket from his shoulders. The clothing fell to the floor in a heap behind him and she started working at his tie. His breath came heavy as his hands roamed up from her hips to graze her breasts, his fingertips playing across the hardened peaks beneath her shirt to make her moan.

His aching erection pressed against the juncture of her thighs as he leaned her against the wall. She moved into him, a slight, teasing grind at first, then more urgent, until he lost himself in the hot friction. He kissed her with all the pent-up passion he'd harbored these past few agonizing days—it felt more like weeks, months—and his only thought was drinking in more of her, somehow taking her into his soul.

When he finally pulled back from the kiss, their hips still locked in rough need, Ryan witnessed such wrenching passion in her eyes that it shot straight to his heart, and he suddenly understood the truth.
This really mattered
to
her.

He'd known that before, known she was a woman who didn't take sex lightly, but he'd obviously underestimated her feelings. Yes, she was eager and anxious to explore her sexuality, but as he fell captive to the raw emotion on her face, he knew more than ever that her actions also had to do with her heart.

And while that might normally have had him pulling back, thinking twice, he couldn't pull away from Penny this time. He didn't have the power; her wringing need drew him like a magnet. And maybe that meant it mattered to him, too, but right now, he wasn't capable of thinking beyond this moment, and he wasn't even sure he
wanted
to look any deeper at his own response to the woman in his arms.

Unknotting her T-shirt, he pulled it off over her head to reveal a seductive powder-blue bra that matched her eyes. Her breasts swelled from the hugging fabric, her rosy nipples visible through the lacy edge. "You're so sexy," he murmured.

Nuzzling her, he dropped a few soft, lingering kisses on her neck, shoulder, and was just about to use his teeth to ease down one bra strap when suddenly she clung tight to him. "Ryan, don't leave me this time."

The whispered words stunned him at first, but then his heart broke for every time he'd left her, even in the limo. He wished now he'd stayed. "I won't. I promise," he answered, his voice strained, his chest tightening at his own words. This was surrender, total and complete.

Penny hated what she'd just said, how she'd let her resolve be diminished, but when he'd come back to her door, the thrill that'd rushed through her had been paralyzing, and now his touches had weakened her. She'd told him the truth—she didn't want a guy who didn't want the same things she did—but saying it and sticking to it were two different things. What she felt with Ryan right now went beyond any normal sort of passion. Just as she'd feared last night, she cared for him. And she also feared she'd just let him see her true feelings.

Yet still he held her, had not pulled away.

More than that, he kissed her, slower now, his lips playing gently over hers as his hands skimmed down her back and bottom.

When Penny finally unbuttoned his shirt and shoved it from his shoulders, one glimpse of his chest undid her. She'd felt its broad, smooth planes beneath her hands in the limo, had even seen it briefly after the light had come on, but now everything was different—every touch, every word, every glance went deeper.

"You're so beautiful," Ryan whispered, "you make me ache."

The compliment spread through her. "Don't worry. I think I can relieve that ache."

As he reached for the button on her jeans, Penny pulled in her breath, her entire body tingling beneath the lust in his gaze. She couldn't quite believe she'd just said that, and she couldn't quite believe that this was her, opening up completely, abandoning herself to such brazen desire. Then a knock came on the door.

She flinched and Ryan's fingers stilled. They exchanged startled looks and her heartbeat kicked up another notch. This was just like the phone call last night, which had ruined everything. "I won't answer it," she whispered. "They'll go away."

As if on cue, though, the knock sounded again, this time accompanied by a voice. "Come on, Pen, I know you're home."

Penny gasped. "Oh no, it's Patti. And she does know I'm home. My car's outside and I'm supposed to be here …
working
with you."

Ryan let out a frustrated sigh.

"I'll get rid of her," Penny said.

"Penny?" Her sister yelled through the door, knocking again.

"Hurry," Ryan whispered, and the urgency in his voice shot straight to the juncture of Penny's thighs.

"Coming!" she called, and she was just about to break free of Ryan's embrace and grab her shirt when the door burst open and Patti stepped in, Scott behind her.

"Scott got off work early and we decided to take in a, uh, matinee." Her smile froze on her face as Scott's eyes widened until they looked as if they might pop from his head.

Penny and Ryan stood equally frozen and Penny wanted to die. Scott's gaze was glued to her and despite the fact he'd probably seen women wearing frilly bras before, he'd never seen
her
in one. She could barely speak. "I
said
I was coming," she managed to choke out to her sister.

Patti's smile had faded to the same horror-filled expression the rest of them wore. "Oops. I thought you said 'Come in.'" Then she spoke quickly, wringing her hands. "We just wanted to see if you'd changed your mind about meeting us for dinner later, but I'm guessing for sure now you haven't."

This time, Ryan answered for her. "Yeah, I think she'll be busy."

"Sorry," Patti said, backing out the door, stumbling into Scott, who now studied his shoes as he repeatedly ran his hands back through his blond hair. "Bye."