Page 45 of A Perfect Target

However, when he thought about Rachel’s betrayal and her utter abandonment of their son, the very thought of marriage was still quite sour in his mouth.

As the movie continued to play, Seth became more and more acutely aware of the woman next to him. When she sipped her drink, all he could think about was the last very hot kiss they had shared. Her body heat radiated out to him, and the familiar scent of wildflowers and vanilla that wrapped around him stirred him even more than usual.

He should have sat in his recliner instead of right next to her on the sofa. If he’d sat in his chair then he might not have been on the slow burn of desire for her that he was now experiencing.

When the movie ended, she took the last sip of her drink and then turned to look at him. The laughter in her eyes quickly left and was replaced by a flickering flame that sent him spiraling over the edge.

“Suzanna, I want to make love to you so badly.” The words fell out of him, speaking aloud what he’d been thinking of for so long.

Her eyes widened and the fire in their depths appeared to intensify. “Seth, I… I want to make love with you, too.”

He hissed in a quick breath and stood. He reached out a hand to her, and she allowed him to pull her up and off the sofa. Immediately, she came into his arms and he captured her lips with his.

She tasted of smooth whiskey and hot desire, and when the kiss ended, he held her hand and led her down the hallway to his bedroom. Tonight, he intended to finally make love to the woman who had tormented him practically since the night he had first met her.

Chapter 9

Suzanna was caught in a dizzying haze of intense desire. She felt as if she’d been in that state for a very long time. The kiss they’d shared last Sunday night had made her realize just how hot her hunger was for the handsome farmer who was keeping her safe.

She had wanted him since that first night when he’d walked into her classroom. She had imagined and fantasized about this moment for a very long time, and her heart danced with the knowledge that tonight those imaginings were finally going to come true.

As they walked into his bedroom, she had a brief vision of a king-size bed covered in an attractive black-and-red spread and matching curtains at the window. He turned on a lamp on the nightstand, creating a small glow of illumination.

That was all she saw before he took her back into his arms for another deep, long kiss. She loved feeling his big, strong arms embracing her as well as the hungry taste of his mouth against hers.

As the kiss continued, his hands moved slowly up and down her back, igniting fire wherever they touched. His scent wrapped around her, so familiar and yet so intoxicating.

His mouth left hers and moved down her jawline. She gasped with pleasure as his lips slid first behind her ear and then on down to the hollow of her throat. A couple of days ago, she’d removed the small bandage on her collarbone as the superficial wound had healed quickly. So there was nothing in his way as he explored her neck and throat with his nipping kisses.

His hands slid up and under the back of her T-shirt, caressing her bare skin. She was on fire, and what she wanted in the moment was to feel his bare skin against hers.

She stepped back from him and unfastened the buttons on his shirt. He stood perfectly still beneath her ministrations, his brilliant blue eyes burning with a ravenous hunger that threatened to consume her.

When the shirt was completely unbuttoned, he shrugged it off his shoulders, exposing the white T-shirt beneath it. He pulled the T-shirt up and over his head and tossed it to the floor next to the bed.

His naked chest was magnificent, firmly muscled and leading up to his broad shoulders. She splayed her hands on his chest, the warm skin tantalizing her. She leaned forward and rained little teasing kisses from his throat to his navel. She laughed with the utter joy of it as he growled deep in his throat.

“Woman, you are driving me crazy,” he said in a gravelly voice that caused a shiver of exquisite pleasure to sweep through her. He took her lips in a fiery kiss once again.

When the kiss ended, his hands moved to the bottom of her T-shirt, and in one smooth action he pulled it up and off her, leaving her in her white, lacy bra.

“Suzanna, you are so beautiful,” he said, his eyes glowing with a wildness and his obvious deep desire for her.

“So are you,” she whispered breathlessly.

A small gasp escaped her as his fingers went to the fly of her jeans. He unfastened the button and then unzipped them and then motioned for her to sit on the edge of the bed. When she did, he pulled her jeans off her and then took off his own, leaving him in a pair of black boxers.

He pulled down the black-and-red blanket, and together they got into the bed. They kissed once again, their naked legs tangling together as desire grew even bigger…hotter inside her.

She couldn’t remember wanting a man as badly as she wanted Seth. As they continued to kiss, he reached behind her and unfastened her bra. He plucked it from her, and then his hands were on her naked breasts.

His fingers raked across her hardened nipples, and when his mouth captured one of them, she moaned with pleasure. He continued to caress and kiss her breasts, and at the same time one of his hands moved down her stomach and to the top of her panties. His fingers moved back and forth across the waistband, and she was dizzied with her anticipation of what would come next.

“Take them off, Seth. I want to be naked with you,” she whispered breathlessly.

Not only did he take her panties off, but he also removed the black boxers he’d had on. His hand once again moved down and found the very center of her. Once again, she gasped with intense want as his fingers moved against her.

She raised her hips up to meet his soft touch as tension began to build inside her. His fingers moved faster and faster and the tension inside her twisted tighter and tighter until it exploded. She cried out his name as her orgasm crashed down. She shuddered and clung to him with the intensity of the release.