Buying His Bride (The Donovan Brothers Trilogy Book 1) by Alison Ashlyn Read Free Book Online Page A

she didn’t take his hand.
    “Don’t be silly.” She rose—a little unsteady. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you if I step all over your feet.”
    He suppressed a smile. He wouldn’t take advantage of her tipsy state. Except to hold her close.
    They threaded their way through the tables to the dance floor, which was situated at a tactful distance from the diners. There were only three other couples on the floor. Because it was so small and the lighting was dimmed, the ambience was intimate.
    Michael turned her to him, brought her arms up to his neck, and put his arms around her waist. “You think too much, you know that?” he said. “Just try to relax and move with me. I won’t eat you.” With that he tugged her to him.
    Some tension left her body.
    Better than nothing.
    And then they were moving together.
    Damn. The soft press of Sierra’s body, the brush of her thighs, acted like an aphrodisiac.
    His desire ratcheted up a notch when she put her arms around his neck. He brought her body against his, eliminating the space between them.
    He was taller than she, but in her three-inch heels she had added height that brought her lips within kissing distance of that little hollow under his ear. She could put her lips there…and suck.
    He wished.
    “Stop thinking,” Michael whispered as much to himself as to her, his breath heating her skin.
    That’s when he felt her shudder of awareness. In a moment, the mood became electric.
    He’d assumed his desire was one-sided. Their kiss in the office earlier that week had been a noncommittal test of the chemistry between them, a necessary ingredient of their deal. There was that kiss in the car a few hours earlier to set the tone for their first date in public.
    Nothing personal.
    But the shiver gave her away. She wanted him too.
    He imagined just how much harder he could make her shudder if they were lovers and he had an entire night to devote to her pleasure. As if in response to his unspoken thoughts, her nipples pebbled against his chest as they swayed together.
    God, she was something.
    His body hardened.
    “I’m not going to apologize,” he murmured, mouth at her temple. “There’s not much space on this damn dance floor, and you’re an attractive woman.”
    It wasn’t just that, though.
    She was anxious to appear professional at all times. Careful. Cautious. Around men in particular? Why did he even care? Theirs was a business arrangement.
    Sierra shifted. He felt her heart rate increase and heard her quickened breath. Desire banished thought.
    What it would be like to fit himself to her, with no clothing to bar their contact?
    A thready sigh escaped her and he groaned.
    “Do you know what you’re doing to me right now? How sexy that sound is?”
    “This is all part of your lesson in background research, I assume. How am I doing?”
    He didn’t buy her light tone. It was forced. “Too well, it seems. Any more dancing with you, and I won’t be accountable for my actions. Let’s get out of here.”
    She tensed and he pulled back to look down. She wore a deer-in-headlights expression.
    Really?
    “I’m taking you home, Sierra, that’s all.”
    “B-but the soufflé?”
    She was kidding, right? Who gave a damn about soufflé?
    He drew her close for one more moment. “Is it really soufflé you’re hungry for, Sierra?” he whispered, his lips just above hers. “Or is it something much more elemental and basic?”

Chapter Four
    Dessert was a silent and quick affair, underscored by the tension that still sizzled between them. Sierra couldn’t bring herself to take more than a couple of bites and Michael ate none, watching her as she ate, which made her self-conscious.
    “I’m done.” She felt the beginnings of a headache. Whether from too much wine at dinner or the tension of the evening, she couldn’t tell.
    Michael stood and escorted Sierra out of the restaurant, bidding a courteous good night to the maître-d and hostess at the front desk.