Dangerous Attraction Romantic Suspense Boxed Set (89 page)

Making Kelly blush was one of his favorite things and he fully planned to make her blush in their bed soon, too.

Chapter Twenty-one

Jack and Kelly pulled up to the valet at a wine bar in downtown New Haven. Phase two of Project Kelly was a night out with an intimate dinner followed by a show at the Yale Repertory Theater. Jack thought that Kelly would like the small restaurant and the unassuming theater instead of the big flashy events they sometimes had to attend for his business. He wanted her to relax with him and feel comfortable so he could spend the night showing her how much he wanted her, how much she did for him by being there when he came home each night.

Jack watched as Kelly walked into the restaurant. There was nothing assuming or arrogant about her. Everywhere she went, eyes were on her, yet she seemed totally oblivious. She didn’t preen or even try to draw more attention to herself. There wasn’t anything conceited about her and that made her all the more appealing.

Jack was far from oblivious to the attention being paid to Kelly as she walked past other patrons. He wanted to rip the eyes out of every man there and save her all for himself. He pushed down that urge and satisfied himself with a few warning looks at the worst of the oglers and placed a possessive hand at the small of her back as they followed the maitre d’ to their table.

* * *

The light contact of Jack’s hand on Kelly’s back sent tingles down her spine all the way to her toes. After Jack’s announcement that he planned to show her how attracted he was to her, Kelly had been unable to stop thinking about the hungry way he had looked at her, the way he looked at her like he was stalking his next meal. Maybe it should have made Kelly feel like a piece of meat, but it didn’t. It made her feel desirable, wanted in a way that no other man had made her feel. She began to believe Jack when he said that he wanted her, was attracted to her.

As they sat down at the table, Kelly felt Jack’s eyes on her and realized he hadn’t picked up his menu. He just stared at her.

“You look amazing tonight,” Jack said and Kelly was glad she had swept up her hair and worn a spaghetti strap dress that showed off her shoulders. She imagined what it would feel like to have Jack kiss her neck, her shoulders, even outline the thin straps of her dress with his tongue as he worked his way down to her breasts, searing her skin with each hot touch.

Kelly blushed as her thoughts sent heat coursing through her body. “Thank you,” she said quietly.

Jack gave her a puzzled look. “You know something I like about you, Kelly?” he asked her quietly, but didn’t wait for an answer. “You honestly don’t seem to know how beautiful you are or how much you affect me. It’s really not an act with you.” Jack shook his head.

Before Kelly could get her voice back, the waiter was at the table and Jack turned to listen politely to the specials. Kelly tried to listen to the waiter but all she could do was think about Jack and the effect his words had on her.

Kelly realized the waiter was asking her if she’d like a drink. Pulling herself out of her thoughts, she ordered a glass of Pinot Noir and opened her menu. When the waiter came back with their drinks a few minutes later, they each ordered the beef tenderloin – and crab cakes to split as an appetizer.

“So, why law school?” Jack asked Kelly while they waited for their food.

“When I was in high school, my best friend’s dad was indicted on money laundering charges. He decided to take a plea deal because the prosecution said they had some other charges they could bring if he didn’t agree to a deal, and he knew a trial would have been long and brutal on his family. He was innocent of the charges; we all knew it and believed in him but he said he couldn’t risk going to jail longer than if he agreed with the plea bargain. He wouldn’t put his family though the ordeal of a trial or a longer sentence,” Kelly explained as she sipped her wine.

They both paused as the waiter put their appetizer down.

“What happened to him?” Jack asked, offering Kelly a crab cake.

“Well, when it came time to enter the plea bargain, Judge Thomas, the judge presiding over the case said that he thought something wasn’t right with the case. He spent the whole week listening to the taped evidence the prosecution had based their case on. He scoured the tapes and poured through eyewitness reports and evidence that supposedly showed our friend’s guilt. He didn’t need to be that thorough, but he was.

“Based on what he discovered, he set aside all of the charges at the last minute instead of sentencing him to prison as the plea would have required. The judge said that there was no evidence to show any wrongdoing and that the evidence showed that the eyewitnesses were conspiring to frame him for the crimes because they had a personal vendetta against him and his family. It was this huge drama and everyone was stunned when the judge announced it, but I remember sitting there and feeling in awe of this judge and the system and the way he stood up for this guy and made sure that the right thing happened.”

“I think I remember that from the papers,” Jack said. “I met Judge Thomas once at a fundraiser for a charity I’m involved with. He was the keynote speaker. I remember every person I spoke with about him or saw him interact with had a lot of respect for him.”

“What charities do you work with?” Kelly seized on his charity work, happy to find out more about Jack.

“Well, right now, I’m on the boards of two. One that provides funding for children who need major surgery and don’t have the insurance or means to pay for it. That’s the one I do the most work for because it’s still growing. We’re trying to expand to be able to offer assistance to more children and to be able to offer assistance for cosmetic surgeries as well as medical surgeries so that we can help children with deformities or with scarring, that type of thing. I’ve been working to drum up funds from my investors.”

“Wow,” said Kelly. “That sounds like a great charity. What’s the other one?”

She was surprised to see Jack look a little hesitant, like he didn’t want to admit what the other charity was. She seemed to be surprised more and more by Jack lately.

“It’s a rescue organization for dogs. It focuses on rescuing mixed breed dogs and re-homing them. I’m not as involved in that one, though. Though I haven’t had time lately for a dog of my own, I wanted to do something for dogs. I guess I keep thinking things will slow down and I’ll adopt a dog, but they never seem to. Slow down, I mean. Probably my fault,” he said grinning. “I tend to be a workaholic.”

“You aren’t too bad about work,” Kelly said, looking at the empty appetizer plate. “I mean, sure, you go in early but you’re home every evening by a decent hour.”

“Oh, that’s new. I’ve only started doing that since you moved in,” Jack said.

Kelly frowned. “Oh, Jack, you don’t need to change things for me. I never meant to keep you from your work.”

Jack grinned at Kelly over the table. “I like it, Kelly. I like coming home at a normal hour and having time for dinner with you. I think it’s a good change.” Jack didn’t tell Kelly that it actually made him think of the life his mom and dad had together; that it made him want what his mom and dad had had – an enduring love as strong and as genuine as theirs. Kelly was making Jack want things he never thought he would, but he’d consciously pushed those wants and needs down and focused on seducing Kelly. He didn’t want to address the feelings underlying his motivation for seduction…yet.

“Oh,” Kelly said, the surprise on her face clear. “Oh,” she said more quietly to herself and Jack laughed as she processed his confession.

After they enjoyed their meal and several glasses of wine, and split a dish of chocolate mousse, Jack and Kelly decided to walk around the green before going over to the theater. Jack took Kelly’s hand in his, causing a flood of warmth through Kelly’s body.

Kelly liked that Jack didn’t seem to need to fill the silence as they walked. If they ran into a lull in the conversation, they could just leave it there, comfortable not to fill all the gaps with nonsense or babbling. They talked some more about Kelly’s plans for law school and her hope to work in appellate law after she graduated. Jack also updated Kelly on some of his interesting projects at work. They laughed at Aunt Mabry’s blatant efforts to investigate their marriage and Jack told Kelly how Andrew nearly choked when Jack told him about Kelly’s big entrance the day they got engaged at his office.

* * *

They stopped to look at a church that sat along the edge of the green. It was an old stone church with one whole wall filled with stained glass windows. There were five tall panels in striking blue and teal, with reds mixed throughout and topped with a circle above them in matching colors. Even from the outside of the building, it was breathtaking and Jack wondered what it would look like from the inside with the sun streaming into the building. A small marker told them that the shape of the window was known as a Chrysanthemum window.

As they stood looking up at the church windows, Jack wrapped his arms around Kelly from behind and pulled her close to him, resting his chin on the top of her head. He dipped his head to her neck and nuzzled her soft skin, enjoying the feel of her softness against him and the sweet smell of her. She always smelled so good to Jack and he wondered if it was a perfume or just an exceptional combination of her shampoo and innate sweetness.

Kelly tilted her head and opened her neck to him and Jack kissed a trail across the back of her neck as he slowly enjoyed the feel of her skin on his lips. Her skin was soft and warm and it made him linger to feel her more. He leisurely worked his way up to one ear where he quietly tugged her earlobe with his teeth before he caressed the same lobe with his lips to soften the bite. Kelly moaned and dipped her head, giving him better access.

Jack turned Kelly in his arms and kissed along the soft line of her jaw, then slowly worked his way to her mouth, with sweet, soft kisses. When he got to her mouth, he abandoned the gentleness and covered her supple mouth with his. Kelly responded to him, rising up on her toes to get closer to him. Her small fists closed in on his shirt and she gripped the fabric over his hard chest the way they had when he kissed her under the tree in her parents’ yard, but this time she didn’t stop, but kept pulling him closer, sending Jack’s body into overdrive.

Jack’s tongue swept into her mouth, first entering to play with the tip of her tongue, then plunging deeper. Kelly pressed her body against the hardness of Jack’s chest and torso and Jack felt her nipples brush against him sending a rush to his groin and he wanted to lay her down in the grass and feel every inch of her heated skin on his, to bury himself in her curves.

Jack ended the kiss, but held his forehead to her forehead as he caught his breath for a minute. “Sorry,” he said, his voice raw. “I forgot for a minute that we were in a public park.”

“Mm hmm,” said Kelly as if she didn’t trust herself with words.

Jack chuckled. “Maybe we should skip the show? I can always get us tickets for another time.” Kelly nodded and they turned to walk back to the car.

Neither of them noticed the dark sedan pull out from the curb as they walked away.

Chapter Twenty-two

The thirty-minute car ride seemed to Kelly like it took forever. They rode in silence but it was a comfortable silence and she laughed at Jack as he pushed the speed limit, trying to shave off the minutes to get them home and up to their room. His hand lingered on her thigh and his thumb brushed back and forth sending small shivers through her body with each teasing movement.

Kelly couldn’t believe that Jack had been telling the truth. She could feel his attraction for her as much as she could feel the pull of her attraction to him. When Jack had her in his arms, she felt beautiful, desirable and wanted – beyond words.

Jack pulled his car into the driveway and came around to open Kelly’s door. He offered her his hand and pulled her into his arms for a kiss in the driveway before he turned toward the house without releasing her hand.

Minutes later, they walked into their bedroom and Jack pulled Kelly into his arms.

“Have I told you how incredible you look tonight?” Jack asked Kelly.

Kelly laughed. “You mentioned it once or twice but I don’t think you can overdo that. Have I told you how handsome you are tonight?” Kelly asked as she ran her hands up the hard muscles of his biceps and onto his strong, broad shoulders. She could feel the power of his body beneath the soft, textured fabric of his shirt and she felt fragile in his arms.

Kelly pressed her palms flat against Jack’s shoulders and ran her fingers down his chest. She luxuriated in the feel of him and she spread her fingers to try to feel more, to feel it all. Touching Jack made her hands tingle, sent a rush of heat through her body, sent a tightening ache down her belly and through her thighs in anticipation of what would come.

* * *

Jack looked into her eyes until he didn’t think he could stand it anymore, then dipped his head to capture her lips. Kelly gasped and sunk further into him, pressing her body to his.

Jack reached behind Kelly, unzipped her dress and it fell in a puddle at her feet. He let out a long, low groan at the sight of her as his eyes traveled from her breasts down the smooth skin of her belly to her thighs and all the way down her sexy legs, marveling at the creamy texture of her skin. Jack dropped to his knees, his hands on her hips, mouth brushing softly on her belly, worshiping her as she let out a soft moan. He looked up to find her watching him and the image of her eyes on him as he kissed her sent new waves of arousal through him as more blood rushed to his insistent erection.

Kelly was sexy and alluring and powerful standing above him as if all doubts about her beauty had been washed away. She reached down and pulled him up to stand before her and began to unbutton his shirt. She moved slowly.

Jack watched her small hands work the buttons of his shirt. But when she finished and reached in to touch his chest, it felt as if her fingers would burn him. Jack scooped her up and brought her to the bed, then stood watching her as he removed the rest of his clothing.