I want you.

I know.

I want you, too.

When he finally anchored a hand in her hair and tilted her face up for his kiss, it was both a pain and a relief. Her lips opened under his with a breathy little moan. He would kick himself later for his angry assault on her mouth. There was no gentleness, no finesse. He held her captive against him as he took her mouth, capturing her tongue and sliding it against his own.

She was warm and soft in his arms, her breasts pressing against his chest as he held her against him. He was holding her too tightly but she didn’t push away. She clung to him, her long legs snaking around his waist to hold him in the cradle of her thighs.

“Jackson,” she pleaded.

“Hold on, baby. Just wait.”

He groaned as she arched in his arms, rubbing her core against him. She was perfect, so soft and responsive. He worked her, angling so he could rub right against her sweet spot. Damn if she didn’t catch his rhythm right away, rocking her hips up as he ground against her.

“Jackson. Please, please, please—” She broke off with a strangled cry when he slid her down so she was riding his thigh.

She went rigid in his arms before her head fell back against the wall. Her eyelids drifted down as she shuddered beneath him.

“Oh yeah, that’s it,” he whispered.

That look. Damn if she wasn’t the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen, with her head thrown back, ecstasy all over her face as her most intimate muscles clenched against his thigh.

He’d be seeing that look in his dreams.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” he gasped, then took her mouth in another crushing kiss, kissing her deeply until he again had to pull away just to breathe.

He ripped his mouth from hers, the sight of her swollen lips almost making him dizzy.

“I told myself I wasn’t going to do this. You need someone to lend a helping hand not take advantage.” He pressed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.

It should have been better with his eyes closed, when he couldn’t see the way she looked up at him, so soft and trusting. But even with his eyes closed, he could still see her face. The way she looked at him made him feel powerless. He could literally feel his self-control oozing out, drop by drop.

“Oh, that’s right. You’re supposed to stay away from me. I’m a vulture, remember?” She licked his bottom lip and he groaned.

When she kissed a trail from his jaw down to his neck, he flinched and set her down. “That was my brother talking. I know better. But that doesn’t make this a good idea.”

“You really are a nice guy, aren’t you?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” he grumbled.

“Well, the fact that you don’t seem any happier about it than I do,” she stood on tiptoe and wrapped her arms around his neck, brushing her body against his, inch by inch, “makes me feel a little better. My ego anyway.”

He stopped thinking the instant she plastered herself against him. It took a moment for him to direct enough blood to his brain to translate what she was saying.

“I’m definitely not happy about it, beautiful. I’m just trying not to be what you think I am.”

She pulled back and looked him in the eye. “Jackson—”

He cut her off before she could continue. “I have a family picnic tomorrow so there’s going to be a lot of people around. But we always have tons of food and good music. You’re welcome to join us. I want you to make yourself at home while you’re here.”

It was asking for trouble but he couldn’t stop himself from taking another kiss, bending her back over his arm until she was forced to cling to his shoulders to stay on her feet. Then, while she was still dazed, he turned and walked off.

There was a cold shower calling his name.

CHAPTER NINE

THE NEXT MORNING, Ridley threw her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. Thank god. Even though she’d been awake since the early hours, she’d been waiting for the sun to rise so she could move around the house. It was bad enough that she was a forced houseguest. She definitely didn’t want to wake her host too early on a holiday.

She stretched and tugged the edges of Jackson’s tee shirt further over her cotton shorts. A warm feeling spread through her as she remembered the look in his eyes last night when she’d asked to borrow something to wear. He had a way of looking at her that made her throat go dry.

The worst part was that she’d not only been restless and itchy after their hot little interlude, but because she’d been so keyed up, she’d heard every noise the house made. Every bump made her think someone was scaling the wall outside her window, every creak in the hallway sounded like footsteps. She’d had to turn on all the lights and ram the chair from the dressing table under the handle of her door before she could even begin to relax.

Even after her makeshift security measures, she’d still spent most of the night staring at the intricate designs in the ceiling. Who would have thought you could create so many different designs with plain white paint?

The thought of seeing Jackson after she’d all but molested him last night was just too embarrassing for words. Not that she didn’t agree with him. Sleeping together would have been a huge mistake. She was only in town for a short time, and he didn’t even know who she really was. But that didn’t mean she liked being turned down. He’d just been so… reasonable. And yes, she was petty enough to hate him for it. She hoped he’d regretted it as soon as he got to his empty bed.