Seductive Reasoning (13 page)

Seth stopped for a moment, and she
thought he might back away, but suddenly his eager lips and his hot, wet tongue
licked over her neck. She closed her eyes while heat shot through her body
straight to her core. Her breasts pushed against her dress. If she’d been
standing up her knees would have buckled. Kate prayed for more, prayed that he
would never stop. Little flames of pleasure ignited over her skin.

Then he was gone. The breeze blew
over the wetness on her neck and a shiver ran down her spine. When he touched
her or was near her like that, he filled an empty place inside her, a lonely
place.

Kate gazed at him. He was trying
hard to look as though he hadn’t been affected by the kiss, but he failed
miserably. He clenched his jaw and stared straight ahead. Kate smiled in satisfaction.
Thank God, he had felt something and she wasn’t the only one who wanted to get
naked.

“Okay, my turn. What is it you want
most? Inside.” He pointed to his heart.

How could she tell him the truth?
How could she reveal that part of herself? The part that used her sexuality as
a shield, the part that longed for acceptance, love and understanding. The
thought shook her down to her toes. Since when had Seth Fallon’s acceptance
become so important to her? Had it begun on Friday night after seeing him again
after all these years or had it begun years ago when she was in college?

In the meantime, he had revealed
nothing of his inner self to her. She turned toward him and looked into his
fathomless blue eyes. Her heart clenched in her chest.

Would revealing her innermost wants
make her vulnerable to him? Would being so open scare him off?

Was she starting to fall in love
with him?

She’d never told anyone how she
felt. Not even Aunt Pandora. She’d never told her aunt her deepest fear that
she would end up like her parents. Still married after thirty-five years, but
they lived without passion.

They never raised their voices;
they never showed their anger outwardly, but kept it inside. They chose a more
civilized approach. She didn’t want to end up like them. She wanted to never be
afraid to let out her true feelings.

Now was her chance.

If she lied to Seth, he would give
her another dare, and it could be a dare that she not touch him again for the
rest of the week. That was something she definitely couldn’t afford. Not
because of the bet, but because she wouldn’t be able to have Seth so close and
not be able to touch him.

Time for honesty.

She wanted Seth to know more about
her than that she wanted badly to seduce him and she wanted to win a bet. Just
say it. “I want to feel good about myself and have my family accept me for who
I am, not who they want me to be.”

He gaped at her. Compassion burned
in his gaze. Seth reached out a hand and caressed the side of her face. He
rubbed the pad of his thumb against her cheek.

Something intangible passed between
them, as if two kindred spirits had found one another. But Seth couldn’t
possibly understand how she felt. He was a hotshot professor with a high I.Q.
She sold lingerie. “Is that the reason you accepted the challenge?”

She turned her gaze away from him,
unable to look at his gorgeous face another minute. Afraid that he saw what she
felt inside.

Seth touched her jaw with the tip
of his finger and turned her face toward him. “Look at me.”

Slowly, she raised her gaze until
once again she stared into his eyes. It was as if he saw everything. Every part
of her--even her soul. “Do you think that if you win this challenge you’ll
finally be accepted by your family? Is that it?”

She could only nod. He started to
shift toward her as if he might take her in his arms, hold her, kiss her, and
chase away all her worries and fears. But before he got close, he stopped.

To hide her disappointment from
him, Kate set the swing in motion and smiled. “It’s my turn. What do you want
most deep inside
your
heart?”

He was silent so long, she thought
he might not answer her, but just continue to sit there or get up and walk
away. If he walked away, she couldn’t bear it.

“If I tell you, you might use it
against me.”

Intriguing. “Let me see if I can
guess.” She gazed into his eyes. She saw desire, and a need so sharp it nearly
took her breath. “You want to let go.”

He jerked his face away from her.
“No, that’s not it.”

She wanted to hold him, to simply
hold him and not try to make him feel anything, but her chance at winning
loomed over the rest of the week. One of them had to win. Why shouldn’t it be
her? Besides, once this week was over, he would walk away from her without
looking back. She wouldn’t let her compassion for Seth stand in her way of
twenty-five grand and the chance to make a name for herself, the chance to have
her family finally notice her.

“It’s time for another experiment.
The chart is taking shape, the graphs are filling up. On Thursday, the couple
we chose should have their own results ready to add.”

Slowly, Kate unbuttoned the front
of her dress.

Seth’s eyes grew dark with panic
and arousal, but he held himself rigid on the swing with his hands at his
sides. When she’d released the last button just under her breasts, she unhooked
the front clasp on her bra. Her breasts sprang free.

A cool breeze swept over her skin
puckering the nipples. His gaze strayed to her chest and lingered. He wanted
her. And God knows she wanted his mouth on her. She lifted his hand and placed
his palm on her breast. His palm felt slightly rough, and absolutely delicious.

She watched his jaw clench tightly
as he tried not to feel anything, not to stroke her. Not to let go and do what
she knew he really wanted. How sweet it would be for him to let go now,
tonight, and make love to her here in her back yard.

His breathing grew faster, harsher
but he held himself in check. Finally, Kate decided to put him out of his
misery and drew back. “Nice try.” Without fastening her clothing, she rose up
on her knees and straddled Seth on the swing.

His blue eyes widened, and his lips
parted in surprise. “What are you doing?”

“Experimenting.”

She leaned forward and rubbed her
breasts against his chest, and then tilted her head and kissed him on the side
of his neck. His skin felt incredible against her lips, and he smelled of a
combination of light sweat and aftershave. She inhaled deeply, taking his scent
into her lungs, into her skin. She nipped his ear with her teeth, then soothed
the nip with her tongue. She heard him gasp, but still he didn’t let go.

His body felt rigid beneath her
fingers, the muscles bunched as her hands roamed his chest. He might try to act
as if he was unaffected, but she knew differently. What would it take to make
his control snap?

Kate spread open-mouthed kisses
over his neck. She laved his skin with her tongue, slid her mouth down to his
shoulder to the base of his throat where she dipped her tongue into the hollow.

She skimmed his neck and kissed him
under his chin, over his face, his eyelids until finally she came to his
beautiful mouth.

Kate stroked his lips, first with
her fingers, then with her mouth. She let her breath blow over his lips, nipped
lightly with her teeth, and then soothed the nip with a soft stroke of her
tongue. She suckled his upper lip into her mouth followed by his lower lip,
laving them with her tongue, teasing the corners of his mouth.

Kate slipped her hand inside his
shirt and rubbed her thumb over one of his nipples. The tip grew rigid and
pushed against the pad of her thumb. She smiled secretly at the knowledge that
she was getting to him.

Slowly, she slipped her tongue
between his lips and coaxed his mouth open. She swept her tongue inside, over
his tongue and the roof of his mouth, tasting, caressing.

In a heartbeat, one arm snaked like
a band of steel around her waist and the other under her buttocks. He pushed
her down onto the cushioned seat of the swing and pinned her with his body.

Yes, yes, yes, her mind screamed.

Finally, he was going to take her.
He would make love to her. She wouldn’t have to wait any longer.

Seth pushed one leg between her
own, nudging her legs apart. With his free hand, he gripped the hem of her
dress and shoved the garment upward until it bunched at her waist.

With a movement of his hips, he
prodded the apex between her thighs with the hard arousal that threatened to
burst from his jeans. His hand pushed the unbuttoned portion of her dress aside
and lifted her breast. Only he didn’t take her breast in his mouth. Instead, he
plundered her mouth in a hungry, desperate kiss that seemed to go on for hours,
a kiss that swept the air from her lungs.

The blood roared in her ears, her
breasts grew heavy with need. She writhed beneath him unable to voice her
desires, how much she wanted his tongue on her. Her core grew heavy. If only he
would take her. Take her now. She gripped the side of his head. “Seth, please.
Now.”

And yet he kissed her and wouldn’t
stop. His hand groped open her dress and found her other breast where he gave
it the attention she desperately wanted.

He held her breast and manipulated
the nipple until it stood hard and erect. He tore his mouth away from hers and
finally, blessedly, clamped his hot, wet mouth on her breast.

She arched against the onslaught of
sensations that buffeted her with sensual need. She rode the current as his
tongue played wicked games with her breast. Her nerve endings sparked, and need
careened through her body.

This is what she had wanted and
needed ever since the moment she’d met him. She started to pull her dress over
her head when she heard a very familiar voice.

“Kate, darling. Are you out here?”

They both froze. Seth jerked his
mouth from her breast. He lay fully on top of her with his head between her
breasts. He sat up, a startled look on his face. His hair was mussed, his lips
swollen from her kisses. His shirt was askew, his trousers wrinkled, and he was
impossibly aroused. He stood up quickly.

“Who is that?” he whispered, his
voice still harsh with desire.

Kate straightened on the bench and
pulled her dress back down. She buttoned up the front of her dress, then
realized that she’d forgotten to hook her bra. Her breasts still hung free,
swollen and aroused from Seth’s mouth. There was nothing she could do now. Aunt
Pandora’s steps sounded over the stone pathway in the early twilight.

“Well, there you are.”

Kate smoothed a hand over her hair
and tried to look innocent. She darted a glance at Seth and nearly smiled. He
looked so adorable standing there mussed, frustrated, and embarrassed at nearly
being caught making love. There was no doubt in her mind that if they hadn’t
been interrupted they would be making love at this moment. She adored Aunt
Pandora, but she couldn’t have shown up at a worst time. Kate rose from the
swing and walked to her aunt. “Hi, when did you get back?”

Aunt Pandora, being the sharp old
broad that she was, studied Kate, then her gaze darted to Seth. She lifted a
hand and fingered a button on the front of Kate’s dress. “Missed one.”

Kate glanced down at the front
placket of her dress and readjusted the buttons.

Her aunt smiled and walked over to
Seth. She held out her hand. “Hello, Dr. Fallon. I’m Kate’s aunt. Call me
Pandora.”

Seth stuck out his hand. “Nice to
meet you.”

“Well, I won’t ask how the week is
going. It seems to be going like gangbusters.” She looked at Seth. “Dr. Fallon,
you must know I want my Katydid to win. So I won’t mince words, be polite, and
wish you luck. I don’t wish you luck with the bet, but I do wish you luck with
Kate.”

Oh no. She was playing matchmaker
again. “Aunt Pandora, please.”

She waved a hand at Kate. “We all
need to be honest here.” She turned to Seth. “I set Kate up in her business,
but she has been the one to make a go of it. She needs that money. With another
wad of cash, her designs will be in every department store in America. My
Katydid will be a household name. I want that more than anything, but I also
want her to be happy. Come stand together you two.” She motioned with her hand.
“I’m sorry I interrupted.” Kate heard Seth groan. “Please don’t be embarrassed,
Dr. Fallon. Nothing could be more natural between a man and a woman than good
old-fashioned sex.”

“Uh, Miss uh, Pandora, we
weren’t--”

Aunt Pandora laughed, a thick,
husky sound. “Of course you were.”

Seth scooted around her aunt.
“Excuse me,” he mumbled over his shoulder, making a beeline for the house as if
the hounds of hell were on his heels.

Pandora held her hands out, palms
up. “Did I say something wrong? He is a bit squeamish, isn’t he? But I like
him, Katydid. He’s quite different from the other men that have come in and out
of your life. Not to mention gorgeous. He could tempt a nun.”

Kate remembered what she’d said
about finding a man who would ring her chimes and capture her heart. She
wondered if Seth were that man, or if her feelings were just wishful thinking.

“You were worried about the right
tools not working for you. I think you can put that particular worry to rest.
From what I just saw, Dr. Fallon doesn’t have the least bit of problem with
your
tools
--or his, for that matter.”

Kate smoothed down the front of her
dress and shook her head. Her Aunt stopped shocking her years ago. She was used
to Pandora’s blunt perspective on life, her way of saying things and putting
her thoughts on the table for the entire world to see. “Dr. Fallon is here for
the money and so am I. What you saw tonight was my attempt to win the bet.
Nothing more. Dr. Fallon isn’t interested in me as a woman. I’m a means to an
end.”