Chapter 20
Daniela underestimated how difficult it would be to sit in Caleb’s class on Wednesday morning and pretend that nothing had changed between them.
She couldn’t look at him, prowling back and forth in front of the lecture hall, without remembering the way his body had felt under her, over her, thrusting in and out of her. And, unless she was imagining things, she wasn’t the only one with a problem.
Caleb’s dark gaze seemed to land everywhere in the room but on her, though she sat directly in his line of vision in the second row. Every time she thought for certain he’d look her way, her mouth went dry and her heart lurched crazily, only to have his eyes skim over her as if she were invisible.
It was one of the most frustrating, nerve-racking experiences she’d ever endured.
And she was going to do something about it.
When class was over, she told April that she had to meet with one of their professors. Then she made her way over to Caleb’s office in the law faculty building, fervently hoping he wouldn’t decide to have coffee with Shara first.
While she waited for him to arrive, she sipped her bottled water and studied his spacious office, committing every detail to memory, as if by doing so she could gain deeper insight into the man himself.
Oak-paneled walls contained rows of law books, encyclopedias and every kind of dictionary imaginable.
Books and papers covered almost every available surface of his desk, and near the end of one wall, his framed Juris Doctor degree was quietly displayed, as if he’d hung it there as an afterthought, or at someone’s cajoling.
No family photographs graced the walls or desk, nor did the office contain a single plant, poster or favorite engraving.
The absence of personal effects intrigued Daniela, heightening her curiosity about a man who remained as elusive as the dark secrets she’d been sent into his life to unveil.
She heard the deep timbre of his voice in the hallway as he responded to a colleague’s friendly greeting, and then he strode briskly through the door. When he saw Daniela seated in one of the visitor chairs, his steps slowed a little, but his expression betrayed no emotion.
Without a word, he closed the door behind him. When Daniela heard the soft click of the lock, her pulse thundered.
Caleb rounded the corner of his desk and dropped his messenger bag to the floor before lowering his big body into the leather chair, his dark gaze holding hers in silent appraisal.
“How are you feeling?” he asked quietly.
Daniela smiled. “I’m almost back to one hundred percent,” she replied, crossing one long leg over the other and watching, with a twinge of deep satisfaction, as his eyes followed the movement.
She’d dressed with extra care that morning, donning a midriff-baring white halter top with a brown ruffle skirt.
The front of the tiered skirt curved upward to show off the smooth, shapely expanse of her bare legs—which, in her opinion, had always been her greatest asset.
Completing the bohemian look were a pair of wide hoop earrings, simple bands of gold that encircled her wrists and sexy platform sandals with crisscross straps that laced up the ankle.
Caleb’s lazy gaze ran the length of her before returning slowly to her face. In silence he watched her raise the bottled water to her lips and take a long sip, tilting her head back to swallow deeply.
“What can I do for you this morning?” His voice was like gravel.
“Nothing, really,” she murmured, her tongue snaking out to chase a drop of water from her lower lip. Her belly quivered when she saw the way his pupils darkened. The air between them crackled with raw sexual tension.
“I missed being picked on in class today,” she told him.
His gaze lingered on her mouth. “Did you?”
Daniela nodded slowly. “And I missed you.”
Caleb closed his eyes and groaned softly, as if he were in pain. “Daniela—”
“I’m just being honest.” Suddenly restless, she set aside her water, rose from the chair and wandered over to a floor globe mounted on a gleaming oak stand.
Idly she gave the globe a quick spin, saying simply, “My mother always taught me to speak the truth, so that’s what I’m doing.
I missed you, and I won’t apologize for it. ”
“No one’s asking you to apologize for anything, Daniela,” Caleb said quietly. “If anything, I’m the one who should be apologizing for—”
Without turning around, Daniela held up a hand.
“I already know what you’re going to say.
You’re going to tell me that making love was a mistake, that you never meant for things to go that far.
And you’re going to apologize for taking advantage of me when, if anything, I probably took advantage of you.
I wanted to be with you, Caleb, and I have no regrets about what happened between us.
Whatever feelings you may have about the experience are entirely your own, but please don’t let guilt be one of them. ”
After several long moments of silence, she heard the slight creak of his chair as he got up and came toward her. “Since you’ve become such an expert at reading my mind,” he murmured, “can you tell me what I’m thinking right now?”
The low, husky timbre of his voice sent erotic images tumbling through her head.
Deep in her belly, a knot of hunger unfurled and spread wicked fingers of heat through her body, curling her toes.
As he came nearer, her breasts grew heavy, her nipples hardening against the lace of her bra.
She was vaguely aware of the room growing dimmer, as if Caleb had closed the blinds.
He stopped directly behind her, and her pulse went haywire as gentle, callused fingers swept her hair over one shoulder, then cupped the back of her neck and began stroking her skin in slow, tantalizing circles.
She wanted to hear him say he’d missed her too, but then he lowered his head and brushed his lips across her nape, and she closed her eyes with a helpless little sigh and let her head fall forward, limp as a ragdoll.
“You always smell so incredible,” he muttered thickly as his mouth trailed down the exposed column of her neck, nipping and raining hot, bone-melting kisses along her sensitive skin. “What’s the name of your perfume?”
Her lips curled in a private smile he couldn’t see. “It’s a secret. If I tell you, you might run out and buy some for your girlfriend.”
“I don’t have a girlfriend,” he murmured distractedly, nuzzling her throat.
“Don’t you?” Much as she was enjoying the sexy interlude, some reckless part of her wanted to punish him somehow, wanted to torment him as she was tormented by her overwhelming need for him.
She turned around slowly. Allowing herself only a glimpse of the smoldering heat in his gaze, she began to edge past him. “I should go,” she announced, the firmness in her tone belied by the wobbliness of her legs.
She got as far as the desk before he caught her by the waist and pulled her back against him. “Stay,” he whispered, his warm breath in her ear making her shiver. Resistance was futile.
Suddenly she found her bottom pressed against his straining arousal, her palms braced on the surface of the desk.
She felt flushed and dizzy as his massive hand glided possessively over her hip, inching the material of her skirt higher while his other hand sought the smooth flesh of her exposed midriff.
Her heart hammered in her chest as his mouth skimmed her ear, her neck and her jaw while he reached under her skirt, his fingers burning a path up the inside of her leg to the juncture of her parted thighs.
She ached with a savage need to have him inside her, and shamelessly rubbed her ass against his crotch, drawing a rough sound of hunger from him.
She could feel her body trembling as his fingers eased beneath the elastic trim of her lace panties. A breathy moan of pleasure escaped her mouth when he parted her pussy lips and slid one long finger inside her.
“You’re so wet,” he groaned against her neck, the sound both tortured and appreciative.
Tiny spasms shook her thighs as he teased and stroked her, his thumb simultaneously caressing her nerve-rich folds and circling the slick knot of her clit until she gripped the edge of the desk so tightly she almost broke every nail.
She felt as if she were about to be torn apart by an internal force she couldn’t contain, like her body might fly right out of his grasp.
Though she tried to be mindful of where they were, and how disastrous it would be if anyone overheard them, she felt a desperate sob welling up in her chest.
When he added a second finger and scissored them, she moaned and went up on tiptoe, riding both fingers as he angled his head to suck the side of her neck. Her heart and lungs threatened to explode, her stomach and legs quivering uncontrollably.
His lips found her ear, his voice a low, silky growl. “Come for me, Daniela.” He pushed a third finger deep inside her and thumbed her clit. “Let go.”
Her back arched sharply, vision blurring as stars burst behind her eyes. With masterful ease, Caleb turned her in his arms and covered her mouth with his, capturing the wild cry that tore from her throat as she came apart in an explosion of hot clenching pleasure.
He cradled her protectively in his arms as she slumped against him, boneless and spent, convinced her body and mind would never be the same again because he owned the first and consistently invaded the other.
His breathing was uneven as he straightened her skirt, stroked her back and kissed her damp temple. As he gazed down at her, tenderness shone in his dark, glittering eyes.
“I missed you, too,” he said huskily.
Her heart soared into the stratosphere. “You don’t have to say that just because I did.”