Seeing Stars by Vanessa Grant Read Free Book Online Page B

morning."
    "Chicken? I'm not chickening out! For heaven's sake, I'm being sensible! I was crazy to suggest it."
    "Why is it crazy? You want something. It's low-risk. Why not?"
    "I don't want anything! That's what I'm trying to tell you!" She heard her own voice screaming—screaming at him. Standing in a public parking lot shouting at a man, telling him she didn't want to have an affair with him. She gulped and said, "I had too much to drink. The wine, after that punch. I never would have said what I said, if..."
    "Maybe." He stepped closer.
    "So you... what are you doing?"
    He cupped the back of her head with one hand.
    "Blake, I-I..." But she didn't twist away, didn't put her hands up to push him away, did nothing, not one thing to stop those lips.
    He tasted salty and strong, enticingly musky when his lips played over hers, then settled. Her mouth opened, welcoming him from somewhere deep inside, accepting the way his kiss drew strength from her muscles and left her clinging.
    He shifted and her hands framed the angles of his face as he deepened the kiss and drew a moan from deep inside her. When he lifted his head, he didn't release her. A good thing, she thought wildly. She would have sunk to the ground in a puddle.
    She'd never understood what they meant when they talked about a woman surrendering to a man... this overwhelming ache to be possessed.
    "Tell me," he demanded, his voice lazy, dangerous.
    "Tell you what?"
    "That you don't want anything."
    Want.
    She jerked back. The castle. The man. Her hair, tumbled around her face. Blake and Lydia making out in the gym.
    "All right," she said raggedly. "I lied about not wanting anything, but it's not practical. It's not... I'm not... I should have had the sense to clear out last night."
    His laugh unsettled something deep inside her. "I'm glad you didn't. You're not the only one who wants, Claire."
    "You want me to do some magic with Jake."
    "Partly, but I remember back in high school, the way you would never meet my eyes. I had a few fantasies about your eyes, and now you're here, head up and eyes meeting mine, and I want more than one kiss."
    She wished she could look away. "It's not a good idea."
    "Why?"
    Because right now, she wanted nothing more than to step right back into his arms.
    "It's too fast," she said soberly.
    "Speed isn't necessarily a bad thing." His thumb brushed her cheek.
    She shivered and stepped farther back. "I'm not the sort of person who has impulsive affairs. I live on a mountain, work on a mountain. I like my life. I love the sky." He didn't want to hear about her love of the stars, for heaven's sake. "My life doesn't have room for a man."
    "I'm asking you to spend time with me, Claire. No commitment, just a few days out of our lives. If you hadn't started it last night, I probably wouldn't ask, but you did."
    He brushed another strand of hair behind her ear. "You're tempted," he said softly. "And it's a low-risk deal. You don't want a man in your life, and I don't have room for a woman in mine. There's no danger of us falling in love with each other, hurting each other. Give me your week, Claire. We'll fulfill a few fantasies. While we're at it, you'll end up spending some time with a troubled kid. You could do something worthwhile there."
    How many crazy things had she done in her life? Not nearly enough, according to Jennifer. And he was right, wasn't he? This was low-risk: a man who didn't want a permanent woman, and a woman who felt exactly the same. One week, and there was no reason they ever had to see each other again.
    "Yes," she whispered.
    "What did you say?"
    She cleared her throat and repeated, "Yes. I said yes."
    She thought he would smile, but he stared at her with something dark in his eyes, and she parted her lips, on the verge of taking her words back.
    "Follow me down to the shipyard," he said abruptly. He swung back to his bike, tossing over his shoulder, "With luck, Jake might turn up. Then we'll grab lunch before you go back