“I’m not your baby,” she grated out.
“Wait! Don’t go. I need to talk to you.”
The alley was dark, making it impossible to read Tyler’s expression. She knew she should turn and walk away — hell, stomp away was more like it — but for some reason, she found herself waiting.
“What do you want?” She was on the verge of tears.
“I was an asshole in there. I only did it so my friend would quit pawing at you like that. I could see it was making you uncomfortable.”
“Why should you care?”
“Because we’re at a gentleman’s club. We should act as such.”
Elena was too stumped to know how to deal with that remark.
“You’re drunk,” she told him. “I’d suggest that you go home.” And she turned away.
“Wait!”
She stopped again. What was wrong with her? “I really want to get out of here. I just got mauled by your friend, insulted, and then fired. I’ve had better days,” she said.
He was suddenly right in front of her. Elena took a step back, and her heart was thudding in her chest. He was far too close.
“Come have a drink with me. You can talk about it and I’ll help make it better.”
He lifted his hand and trailed his fingers down the side of her cheek, making a shiver race all through her body. She wasn’t a little girl any longer, and this wasn’t a childhood crush.
“There’s no way I’m going back into that place,” she said. Her voice and her body were trembling with disgust.
“I have my car right here. Come sit with me and have a drink.”
His voice was mesmerizing, and without much thought she found her hand in his as he led her to the car. It wasn’t until they climbed into the backseat — it wasn’t a car, dammit; it was a limo! — and she found a glass with amber liquor in it in her hand that she realized what she was doing.
“What about your friends?”
“They’re going to be busy for quite a while. They won’t even notice that I’m gone.”
“Is it a special occasion?”
“My buddy is getting married,” he said with a laugh. “We’ll celebrate next at his divorce.”
“That’s an odd thing to say.” She drank the brandy and didn’t think twice when he refilled her glass. She was too pleased with the way it helped numb her overwrought emotions after such a dreadful evening. A buzz wasn’t such a bad thing.
“I don’t believe in marriage, little lady. My parents’ marriage was a disaster, and I don’t see the point to a piece of paper. We all make our own paths. I choose to be free. Besides, I’m not very trusting.”
“I’m probably too trusting,” she said with a sheepish smile. “Some people say that trust is something that has to be earned. I disagree. I think that trust should be given freely until a person proves unworthy.”
“Hmm. That’s interesting,” Tyler said as he moved next to her on the seat.
“What are you doing?”
Her heart was thumping erratically as he put his hand on her leg.
“I’m going to kiss you now.”
Chapter Two
Elena was paralyzed. This was Tyler Knight – her childhood love who was touching her. And she was incapable of pulling away from him.
His lips touched hers and she was lost. This was her fantasy come true. No other man had ever stacked up to Tyler. He’d gone from being her best friend, her lifeline when her father had left her, to being another guy who’d left her, just like her father had.
And now he was back. And he was kissing her. His tongue traced her lips, and she sighed against his mouth. And then he burned her up. She’d been kissed before, but never like this. Her body was on fire.
“You’re so responsive, baby,” he groaned as he pulled her onto his lap, her legs straddling him. Heat pooled inside her as he began undoing her coat.
She should stop this from happening. But as her coat parted and then he pushed it off her shoulders, she couldn’t seem to say anything. No sound came from her lips except inarticulate cries of pleasure.
Tyler pushed up against the silk of her panties, and his hardness both frightened and excited her. Maybe he did know who she was; maybe he remembered.
His lips trailed down her neck and then his fingers were on the front buttons of her uniform, parting it slowly as his lips followed.
“Why were you hiding this, darling?” he said in appreciation as his tongue trailed across the top of her breasts.
With way too much familiarity, he unclasped the front of her bra and then filled his hands with her aching breasts. His lips followed as he cupped them and then sucked first one hard nipple and then the other into his warm mouth.
Elena pushed against him. She’d never wanted a man so much. This was wrong, and she knew she should stop it. But she couldn’t.
His mouth skimmed back up her neck and then he was kissing her again while reaching between them and sliding his fingers inside her panties.
“You’re so wet, baby. Do you want me?” he growled against her lips.
She didn’t know how to respond. It was more than obvious that she did. Still, she knew this should stop. She had to tell him she was a virgin. Didn’t it hurt the first time a woman had sex?
Before she could speak, Tyler answered his own question. “Yes, you do. It’s okay to be a little shy. I’ll take care of you.”
And then she was moving. He lifted her from his lap and spread her out along the seat. He now lay on top of her and pulled up her leg so he was inside the cradle of her thighs.