Taste Of Love: Loving Jenna #1 (2 page)

Jenna
may never consider herself a sex bomb and yet little did she know that was
exactly the image she exuded. Even when dressed simply in her trendy yet
sensible outfit, she carried herself with a confidence that many men found
sexually attractive in a woman. She also had the most alluring lips, full
bottomed and naturally puffy, tinted in perfect pink.

So far
though, Jenna had stayed away from the many heartbreak episodes her own friends
were victims of with their trial and error approach to relationships. She hated
getting “hooked up” by her friends with any of the guys they felt she’d like -
and Jenna was very firmly against blind dates or any of that online dating
stuff going on. Time and again she’d watched one pal or the other fall into
disappointment when that “dream date” with this or that guy didn’t go as well
as planned, or if he turned out to be the absolute shit.

Jenna
preferred falling in love the natural way. And even if she was to never have
that romantic adventure she secretly craved, she knew whatever happened it
would be something spontaneous, out of the blue. She deeply wanted to find that
elusive burst of passion she’d only ever read or heard about. It would happen
to her, she was sure of it; she was ready for it. She just wasn’t sure when.
One thing she knew though: she’d recognize it the moment it happened…

Chapter Two

“This
is fantastic,” Jenna exclaimed as she took a sip of her newly ordered cocktail.
“What on earth is in it?”

Seated
with a couple of her pals from the office, she hadn’t expected a stranger
seated on the other side of her to reply.

“Tequila,
jalapeno syrup, egg white, ginger and lime,” said a deeply throbbing voice from
her left, and Jenna turned in that direction with surprise.

Smack
. Face to face with a guy who looked
like he’d walked straight out of her darkest, hottest fantasies –
fantasies she’d never even known she’d had till now.

Icy-grey
eyes, so piercing they looked ready to cut through skin and bone. She virtually
shivered when he smiled, revealing perfect white teeth and a wolfish edge to
his handsomeness. Dark, wavy hair crowned his blindingly handsome face and if
she was staring, she knew no one would really blame her. Dressed in a
three-piece suit, he seemed to have come straight from work just like her and
her friends.

And
according to those friends, both male and both quite conscious of what was
stylish and “hip”, this was the place to come for the best themed cocktails and
a contemporary menu that served everything from braised short ribs to chipotle-crusted
ahi
tuna.

But
they’d never warned her that this was also the place to meet panty-wetting
hotties
like the one sitting casually on the
bar stool next to her. She’d have been coming here with them sooner!

How
could she have not noticed him walk in, or sit beside her? Had he been there
the whole time she’d been horsing around with her co-workers? They were just
her
friends,
guys who’d made their respective play
soon after she joined the publishing firm they also worked. But as soon as they
got the message that they weren’t her type – ever, they seemed cool with
being her pals and letting her be their drink buddy whenever they could
convince her. Tonight, she’d been bored and dreading going back home to the
apartment she shared with her friend Belle – who also happened to have
brought her boyfriend – a new one, to stay for the weekend. The noises
from their unfettered lovemaking had kept her awake all night, considering that
though it was a large flat, the walls were pretty thin.

Thankful
that she’d taken the decision to hang out with the “boys” tonight, she turned
to the man next to her with a smile.

“Oh?”
she said in reply to his first comment. “And how do you know?”

“Because
that’s what I have every time I come here,” he said drily, beckoning for the
waiter, who didn’t even ask him what he wanted before hustling up his cocktail.

Jenna’s
smile widened, unable to stop looking him over. He seemed so calm and collected,
especially in that suit of his. He had to be some banker or perhaps a lawyer.
And yet, even with the super refined clothes, the expensive wristwatch on his
wrist, the perfectly trimmed edges of his smooth, cultured hands…Underneath all
these, she could sense the beast within, just waiting for the right moment to
be unleashed. She drew in a shuddery breath at the prospect.

“So…you
come here a lot,” she said before immediately regretting saying that cliché.
Well,
she did want to keep up the conversation
,
she had to try
. She was totally ignoring her initial
companions, whom she noticed sent her good-natured grins before sliding off
from the bar, apparently to allow her more privacy. Not that she might need it,
considering this mirage of utter manliness could be disappearing into the thin
air he had emerged from any second.

Jenna
was hardly the type to act assertive or pushy no matter a guy’s looks or charm
– but there was something about this guy that appealed to her on a primal
level and she couldn’t wait to see how this played out as the breathtaking
seconds ticked by…

“Whenever
I can,” he said, regarding her with eyes narrowed in interest. “I can tell
straight off that you’re no regular, or I’d have noticed you. A girl like you
would be hard to miss.”

The
unmistakably warm timber in his words did things to Jenna’s insides. So…he was
flirting with her – he had to be. That smoky hue creeping into his
gorgeous blue eyes could not be anything else but a sign that he was closing in
for the kill. There was that part of Jenna that longed to play the target for
this predatorily sexy hunk. For the first time ever, she wanted to be pursued,
desired, claimed.

“Does
flattery get you very far with the ladies,
Mr
…?” she
asked him with a coy smile as she took a sip from her glass. Just then the bar
tender appeared with his drink, which he tasted before replying.

“Hmm,”
he said appreciatively as he placed down the cocktail, before adding mildly,
“Call me Morgan. And I can call you…?”

Anything
you like, handsome, should have been her reply, but Jenna quickly said, “Jenna.
My name’s Jenna.”

And I
must be crazy, she thought, grabbing another swallow from her drink. Why was
she so taken with this guy? He reeked of high class breeding not to talk of
looking loaded as hell. She wasn’t blind; that bespoke suit was worth more than
the whole lot of her wardrobe. That watch looked like it could fetch enough
money to feed a small third-world country – and then of course he sounded
just like those big shot guys from Harvard or any of those Ivy League schools.

Not
that she felt intimidated or anything, but truth be told, he was not the kind
of guy she was used to. He exuded the air of a man used to wielding power,
giving orders and getting his way whether it had to do with business or women.
There was also a hard edge to him that should have scared her off but didn’t,
not when he smiled like that. He was obviously a tough guy, but even she could
see beneath the hard shell that he could be as endearing as he wanted to be.

“Nice
to meet you, Jenna,” he said, holding out his hand. She shook it and it was an
easy, friendly gesture that packed a lot of heat and promise. He didn’t let her
go as promptly as he should, which made her whole arm tingle up to the pointy
tips of her breasts. She squeezed her thighs tighter together, biting on her
lip in consternation at the strange sensations coursing through her secret
core. Was this how it felt to be deeply, dangerously aroused, so much so that
she was ready to turn her back on decorum and common sense and do something
really, really crazy?

Jenna
was almost too scared to want to find out.

“Those
two guys you were with…”

“Oh,
I’m not with them,” she said quickly, then shrugged with a wry smile. “I mean
,
I’m with them, but not like that. They’re just guys I work
with. You know, sometimes we like to hang out, have a few brews,” she
added,
glad when he chuckled with humor at her goofy
expression.

“You
sound pretty cool,” he told her, with a grin and an, ‘I’m impressed and
intrigued’ look playing on his face.

She
huffed. “That’s not what my girls say – my friends; they think I’m
boring. They keep telling me that I need to come out of my shell more, and live
life outside of those books I love reading.”

“Books?”
he asked with curiosity. “Funny, that’s my thing, too.” Again, he flashed that
killer grin and it was all she could do not to fling herself at him. Damn did
any guy have the right to look so physically attractive? Everything about him
just…clicked. And she felt herself tripping even harder when he started telling
her about the kind of stuff he enjoyed reading; turned out they had a lot of taste
in common when it came to literature.

The
time seemed to tick by and he ordered more drinks as they chatted about their
personal interests, and laughed over different topics based on their favorite
titles. But then at some point he paused, looked into her eyes and made the laughter
die in her throat with the heat swirling in his gaze.

“You
don’t really want us to go on talking about books the whole night, do you?” he
asked softly, his gaze locked on her lips, and alternately shifting down to the
fullness of her breasts heaving beneath her open jacket.

Jenna
swallowed, and managed to say lightheartedly, “No, that would definitely make
me feel like I’m really boring.”

“You’re
not, trust me,” he told her with throbbing simplicity. Her heart warmed to him
more than ever. “But you see, there’s something about you that’s been pulling
me in ever since I came in and saw you laughing and talking with your friends.”

Jenna
couldn’t help chewing on the same bottom lip he seemed to be staring so fixedly
at. How on earth was she going to handle this unexpectedly heated-up exchange?
Already her suit felt like it was choking her and she needed to rip it off
– rip everything off because all she really wanted to do was get
gloriously naked with this hot, virile and yes, mysterious man. She had to keep
reminding herself he
was
just a
stranger so she’d better keep her suddenly rampaging hormones in check…

And
yet, that longing part of her couldn’t help saying, “Something about me? Well,
care to tell me what that “something” is?” She was leaning in close, as if
drawn by a magnet to him.

“I
could
tell you,” murmured, moving in
just as close, propped with his elbow on the bar’s surface. “But it would be
far more fun to show you. Could you leave now, Jenna? With me?”

Heart
rate speeding at a thousand miles an hour, Jenna felt filled half by panic and
half by desire. She was ready to say “yes” to whatever he was offering but she
couldn’t help a little spurt of consternation at what she was getting herself
into. Nothing and no one had prepared her for a man like this and the last
thing she wanted was to embarrass
herself
….

“It
depends on where you’re taking me, hot shot,” she purred, wagging a slightly
wavering finger at him. Just how many cocktails had she had? She’d better lay
off the alcohol, considering she wasn’t such a big drinker normally.

“We’re
going dancing, Jenna,” he said with a tilt to his grin while his eyes teased
her. “During our conversation you told me how much you like to dance. Well, I
know a great place you can let your hair down and shake your tail feather all
night if that’s what you wanted. Though…I’m hoping you’ll be down for much more
than just dancing by the time the night is through.”

He’d
risen to his feet and had taken her hand in his. Jenna felt the warmth of his
touch and the laser-like heat from his gaze. His meaning was in no way lost on
her. If she left with him now, she was agreeing to two things:
first we dance, and then we fuck
.

Right.

Did she
need any more incentive to shrug off her common sense?
Or any
of those cemented-in suppressions, which had so far kept any unacceptable
desires or thoughts at bay?

Jenna
found she was fed up with being self-inhibited. No one was holding her back but
her and tonight, she didn’t want to hold back.

“I’ll
just go…find my friends and tell them I’m leaving,” was her breathy reply. He
nodded, looking pleased at her answer. Jenna didn’t even let herself think
twice, holding his gaze as she backed away. She finally turned and made for the
crowded seating section, heart pounding at how recklessly she was about to act,
leaving with some guy she’d only just met. But wasn’t that what her friends
were always egging her on to do? To live life on the edge, to stop drawing
outlines for every facet of her existence before she even lived it?

Life
had so far been much too predictable, she decided. Meeting a man like Morgan
could be just what she needed to lose the sense of sameness she now realized
her world had become. Something told her that after a night with Morgan,
nothing in her world
will
ever be the same again…