Taste of Passion (Madaris Novels) (16 page)

He was still towering over her. And he was frowning. “Don’t I what?”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t you like your life the way it is?”

“Sure.”

“Well, then. The same holds true for me.”

“But I will admit that I do need a woman every once in a while,” he said.

Mackenzie chewed on the inside of her lip thinking
she really wasn’t surprised. “Only because you probably have a high testosterone level.”

“Are you saying that in the past five years you’ve never desired a man, Mac?”

Mackenzie broke eye contact with him to look out the window again. How could she explain that, in essence, she hadn’t until the night she had gone to that Brothers Auction and had seen
him
? Seeing him hadn’t really made her realize what she’d been missing, because in all honesty, once she had the chance to sit back and analyze her two-year relationship with Lawrence, she saw that their sex life had left a lot to be desired. What meeting Luke had done that night was open her eyes to all the possibilities and a whole lot of fantasies. But being the responsible and logical person that she was, she had eventually put both the possibilities and fantasies out of her mind. She felt if there actually were such things as red-hot passion, multiple orgasms, and all-night marathons, she was better off not knowing about them.

“Mac?”

She met Luke’s gaze and eased her chair back and stood up. “It’s getting late, Luke. I have to go to work in the morning and I still need to meet with Theo tonight as well as help you clean up the kitchen.”

He crossed his arms over his chest and gave her an agitated look. “You’re not going to give me an answer?”

She mimicked his stance by crossing her arms over her chest as well. “No, because it’s really none of your business, no matter how you’ve convinced yourself that it is. My life—with or without a man—is my life. And whether I desire one or not is
my
business.”

She made a move to walk around him and he reached out and touched her arm. She immediately felt the sizzle, the heat, and the sensual sensations that injected through her body from his touch. She drew back and shot accusing eyes at him. “What are you doing?”

“Proving a point,” he said, taking a step closer to her. “What you just felt is sexual chemistry of the most potent
kind. You desire me, Mac, the same way I desire you. You can’t deny it.”

Mackenzie nervously licked her bottom lip and knew that, no, she couldn’t deny it. Not when the object of her desire was right here, staring her in the face in the form of Luke Madaris. She suddenly realized just how close they were standing, and how heat seemed to be radiating from his body straight to hers. And then there was his masculine aroma. All male.

“Mac?”

She met his gaze and then wished she hadn’t. His eyes had darkened and the sound of his voice was deep and husky. Their bodies were close. Not too close but close enough. “Just what do you want me to say, Luke?” she asked shortly.

“What you know is the truth,” he supplied easily.

She still wasn’t sure that was the best thing. “But why does it matter to you? You admitted earlier that you’re not looking for anything long-term.”

“Yes, and you admitted to that same thing. You even said you don’t want happily-ever-after. Make no mistake about it, Mac, I don’t want happily-ever-after either. Maybe I will someday in the distant future, but no time soon and definitely not before I’m fifty.”

He took a step closer and she felt his solid muscular form press against her. She forced herself not to breathe in sharply, not to let him get next to her. But it was too late. He had gotten next to her and from the look in his eyes she could tell he knew that very fact.

“I’m not asking any woman to wait for me, so what I’m saying is that anything we share has to be short-term,” he continued. “I’m already married to the rodeo so when I leave to return to it, things between us will be over. If and when you do decide that you’re ready, all we’d be embarking on is an affair to satisfy our needs and wants. To work each other out of our systems. We can both honestly admit there has always been this burning fire between us. Don’t you think it’s time to put it out? And will you be able to
handle an affair that you know won’t have a future? One where I won’t make you any promises?”

Mackenzie knew things couldn’t get any plainer than that. In other words, Luke was telling her in frank terms that he was not the marrying kind. But she had already admitted that she wasn’t looking for anything long-term. And he was right. Although she didn’t engage in casual affairs, five years was a long time to go without sharing intimacy with a man. Her body did have needs. She felt them each and every time she dreamed about Luke. So why was she hesitating? Why not jump into an affair this one time with him? An affair that would end the moment he walked out the door to return to the rodeo world. What was stopping her?

The answer was simple and she was faced with it each and every time their gazes met. She had fallen in love with him. It wouldn’t do any good to try and figure out when it happened. The bottom line was that it had happened. Big-time. And the one thing she was faced with admitting was that life was short. It could be taken away from you at a moment’s notice. Luke could have lost his life when that bull had tried to attack him. So why not have an affair with him? Why deny herself the very thing she wanted, the very person she loved? The one man who could make her life totally complete . . . even if it would only be for a little while.

“Fine, I see you’re still not ready to make any decisions,” Luke said, interrupting her thoughts and taking a step back.

He was about to walk away when she reached out and placed her hand on his arm. Immediately, she felt the heat gathering in a hot and sensuous rush in the lower part of her body. Their gazes locked and desire was sprinting through her just as fast and furious as the blood that was gushing through her veins. But she kept her hand on him when she said, “I
am
ready.”

As if he needed to make sure they were talking about the same thing, he asked her, “And just what are you ready for, Mac?”

She was ready for her hands to touch him all over. Ready for her tongue to taste the passion he had promised, and ready for her body, which seemed to suddenly develop this intense hunger for him to get satisfied.

“What I’m ready for, Luke,” she answered in a quiet yet clear and distinctive voice, “is you.”

As far as Luke was concerned, Mackenzie didn’t have to say any more than that. However, to be certain she knew what being ready for him meant, just what it entailed, and to what degree she affected him, he reached out and eased his arms around her waist before shifting them lower to close over her bottom. He then urged their bodies closer and watched her eyes widen with the evidence of his arousal pressed hard against her stomach.

“I’ve been concentrating on winning the title back this year so it’s been a while for me too,” he explained in a low voice.

And because he knew she probably wouldn’t ask, he said, in a lower voice still, “Almost a full year.” He decided not to mention that he hadn’t touched a woman since he’d seen her last at the Madaris family reunion. For some reason he hadn’t wanted to.

And because he thought they had done enough talking for a while, he lowered his head and let his tongue sweep across her lower lip before boldly sliding into her mouth. He felt the exact moment a shiver raced through her body. His heart was pounding in his chest. And when he deepened the kiss, a voracious sensation erupted in his gut and he responded by kissing her with a hunger he had never known before. Her mouth seemed to open wider and he took advantage by tasting every area of it that his tongue
could touch. He captured her tongue, entwined it with his, sucked on it hard.

He reluctantly dragged his mouth away and took a step back to roam his eyes over her, seeing how good she looked in her pantsuit and thinking of the quickest way to get her out of it.

“Luke?”

He glanced down into her face and saw the question in her eyes. “I want you naked.”

He doubted he needed to explain further. She had to be fully aware that the air surrounding them had thickened and the temperature had risen a notch.

“Uh, Luke, we’re in the kitchen.”

He smiled. “I know. What better place to cook up a little heat? What better place to give you your first taste of
real
passion?” It might be a bit presumptuous on his part to assume Dixon hadn’t fulfilled his job in that area, but he had a gut feeling the man had failed miserably. Luke could tell by the way Mac had returned his kiss. It was as if she weren’t sure how far she could go, and he intended to show her there were no limitations.

With a blush visible on her cheeks, she tilted her head at an angle that would hold his gaze. He watched as she slowly began unbuttoning the suit jacket to reveal a chocolate-brown colored camisole underneath. She let her arms slide out of the sleeves of the jacket and held it in her hand while she pulled the camisole over her head. He tried to remain calm and in control, but felt his body throb all the way to his bare feet when moments later she tossed both items of clothing aside, clad only in her pants and a chocolate-brown bra.

Even with the lace bra covering her breasts he could tell they were perfect, full and firm, and would be a total delight for any man’s hands and mouth. He could just imagine stroking his finger all around them ever so lightly before lowering his head and replacing his fingers with his mouth, taking a nipple between his lips and having his way with it.

His gaze shifted lower when she dropped her hand to her waist to unsnap her pants and he struggled to keep his ragged breathing under control.

“How am I doing, Luke?”

He jerked his head back up to her face. It was hard to get air through his lungs as he said, “You’re cooking rather nicely. Trust me. I don’t have any complaints about how this meal is going to turn out.”

She smiled as she stepped out of her shoes and kicked them aside. “Glad to hear it.”

His gaze then lowered to her hands as she eased the pants down her hips, thighs, and legs. She stepped out of them and for a moment he nearly lost his breath. She was standing directly in front of him, in the middle of her kitchen, wearing nothing but her bra and matching panties—and a very sexy pair at that.

“Should I stop now?”

“No.” The word sliced through the air.

At her raised brow, he said in a low, husky tone, “Please continue.”

And she did while steadily holding his gaze. He leaned against the kitchen counter for support, fearful he would lose his balance when she tossed her bra and panties aside. He could only stand there with his hands in the pockets of his jeans and stare. She had to be the most beautiful woman ever created. Her breasts were so flawless that he wondered why she bothered wearing a bra and the dark area between her thighs had his entire body throbbing.

“Are you interested in joining me in the bedroom?” she asked in a quiet voice.

Oh, he was interested all right but he doubted he could make it that far. He wanted her now. “Come over here, Mac.”

They silently stared at each other a moment before she took her first step. When she began walking toward him he withdrew his hands from his pockets and pushed away from the counter. His gaze continued to roam all over her, zeroing in on the area between her legs. Never had he
seen anything so beautiful and thought of all the things he wanted to do there. He groaned just thinking about them.

When she came to a stop in front of him, she reached out and grabbed the front of his shirt. She then looked up into his eyes and said in a seductive voice, “You called, Luke?”

Oh, yeah, he had called all right. Now if he could only get out of his clothes real quick and in a hurry. But first . . .

He leaned toward her mouth and she opened it the moment their lips touched. He immediately deepened the kiss, went on a taste frenzy, almost gobbling her up, practically devouring her. His mouth was hot and hungry, the taste of her was driving him wild, nearly insane. The thought of making love to her had him weak in the knees. Her scent filled his nostrils, made him want to taste her all over.

She drew back from the kiss and whispered, “Now you’re the one who needs to get naked.”

He had no problem with that and nearly ripped the buttons on his shirt trying to take it off. He tossed it aside and then sucked in a quick breath when she leaned down and kissed the area of his chest that displayed a bruise from his injury. She then lifted her head, met his gaze, and said in a soft tone, “I’m sorry you got hurt, Luke.”

The sincerity in her words made an ache that he couldn’t define ruffle his emotions. He had to clamp down on his lips to keep from saying something really stupid, such as he wasn’t the least bit sorry because if he hadn’t gotten hurt he would not be here with her. Although he wouldn’t say it, he was thinking it and that was just as bad.

Needing to get out of his jeans quick, he went for the belt, unbuckled it, and eased it through the loops before placing it on the counter. He then took the condoms that he’d placed in his back pocket earlier and put them on the counter as well.

He saw her gaze at the condom packet and then waited for her to say something, but she didn’t. Instead her attention was drawn back to his hands and how they were easing down his zipper.