Double Dare. Tawny Weber

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СКАЧАТЬ you have to deal with that a lot? I’d think a woman as gorgeous as you are wouldn’t need blind dates.”

      “You know how that goes. You have to kiss a lot of toads before you nail a prince.”

      Thanks to the geek—or Dave, as he’d introduced himself—being a nervous wreck, she’d lucked out and wouldn’t be locking lips with any toads tonight.

      Would she be nailing this prince, though? Audra gave Jesse the once-over out of the corner of her eye. He sure looked like a prince. Hot, sexy and ready to be crowned.

      They reached her car and she dropped Jesse’s hand to fish through her purse for her keys.

      “I’ll bet you’re going to have a few things to say to whatever supposed friend set you up, huh?”

      “Why?”

      “What kind of friend sets you up with a loser?”

      “The kind who think they know best and are afraid I might break away from the gang.”

      “Gang?”

      Audra frowned at the edge of cynicism in his tone. “Gang, club. You know, a group you hang with regularly? I take it you’re not into clubs,” she asked with a tilt of her head.

      “I’m not into anything that pushes me to do things I’m uncomfortable doing.”

      She pursed her lips and gave him a long look. She’d bet she could push him to do quite a few things he hadn’t been comfortable with before. And have him thanking her afterward. But she wasn’t the kind to give away secrets, so she just smiled and gave a dismissive, one-shouldered shrug.

      “Your date with that dork wasn’t your idea, I take it?”

      Audra grimaced. “Not hardly. More like I gave in to pressure and my need to keep my standing with my friends. And almost ended up with a very regrettable evening. Although—” she clicked the lock button on her key fob “—I have to say I came out the winner here. If not for them, I wouldn’t be here with you, would I?”

      Audra turned and in a smooth, easy move, pinned Jesse between her body and the car. She almost purred aloud. Even in heels, he still towered over her, the hard length of his body inviting her to lean into his warmth. Very nice. This dare was turning into pure pleasure, no longer a means to prove her Wicked Chick status to her friends. She wanted to get closer to Jesse. Just for herself.

      With her slowest, most seductive smile, she watched him from under her fringe of lashes. His eyes had that slightly glazed look that assured her he liked the feel of her body against his. She shimmied a little, just to be sure she had his attention.

      As she slid her free hand up his biceps, this time she did purr aloud. “Yum. You’re in fabulous shape. What do you do for a workout?”

      “A little weights, some martial arts,” he replied, his attention more on her caresses than her question. Both hands settled lightly on her hips, clenched, then gripped her curves fully. “So what made you pick this club tonight?”

      “Hmm? Wild Thing? It’s a fun place, one of the best in Sacramento. I’d planned a little celebration, although it didn’t turn out quite the way I’d hoped. But I think you’re the perfect celebratory present to myself.”

      Audra wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned further into his welcoming body. She brushed her lips over his, more a teasing temptation than a real kiss. Heated excitement swirled through her, making sensation spiral from her lips to the damp center between her legs. God, if he got her this turned on with barely a kiss, how would she feel when he put his hands on her? When he put his mouth on her body?

      Desire was edged with impatience. She wanted to know. She had to know. She was sure Jesse would be a delicious lover. The kind that rated at least an eight on her “O” scale. She’d yet to find a perfect ten, but a solid eight could definitely be coached.

      Backing off a little, she leaned her head back to see what he’d do. How he’d react.

      “That’s not much of a present,” he commented.

      Then he took her mouth. Took it in a way she’d only dreamt of before. His hands, gentle yet firm, cupped her head and held her where he wanted. Just for his pleasure. He nibbled at the corners of her mouth softly. Then, as she was smiling at the sweetness of it, he plunged his tongue between her lips in a swift, powerful move.

      She was so used to being the aggressor that for the first couple of seconds she remained passive out of surprise. Then, pleasure shooting through her like an arrow, she met his tongue with hers in a dance of sexual delight.

      Audra clenched her thighs to intensify the sensation. More. She definitely wanted more from this man.

      “Wait,” he breathed, breaking away from her mouth. “We should get to know each other better. You know, talk or something.”

      “I vote for ‘or something.’”

      “Did you say you got stuck on an almost sort-of date with that dork because your friend threatened you?” he asked, his words coming in a gasp as she pressed the beaded tips of her breasts against his chest. “Doesn’t sound like much of a club to me.”

      “They’re just worried about me.”

      Maybe they had reason to worry, too. Audra hadn’t realized she wasn’t much interested in meaningless sex and constant partying until tonight’s fiasco. After all, at twenty-five, she was damned hot, exciting and interesting, even if she didn’t get as wild as she used to. Maybe a part of her—deep inside—worried there wasn’t any more to her than her bad girl persona. But as a rule, she tended to ignore that snarky worrying part. Even when snarky turned to screaming, as it had tonight.

      “You know how it is when you get in tight with friends, people who’ve known you, like, most of your life? They want you to stay in their tidy box, keep with their perception of you. Sometimes you have to pacify them with proof you’re still a part of the gang, you know?”

      To distract them both, she pulled away a bit to run her hands up the delicious, hard expanse of his chest. “Why are we wasting time talking about this? Let’s move on to more exciting subjects. Like, say, how you look naked?”

      3

      JESSE SWORE his heart stopped. All blood rushed from his head to his…well, other head. Damn, he’d never been as turned on or as unable to do anything about it as he was right this minute. Audra, with her promise of hot, sticky-sweet pleasure, was technically off-limits.

      But her hands were doing incredible things to his body. Long, delicate fingers traced a path from his shoulders, over his nipples and down to his belt. Jesse wanted to say screw police procedure and guide those fingers lower. He breathed in the rich scent of her perfume and tried to remember she was still a suspect.

      And after her comments, especially her confession of gang affiliation, Jesse knew she was Davey’s crime ring connection. And it was his job to find out exactly how she fit into the organization and use it to break the case. He might prefer to do that job behind a computer, but there were definite benefits to this unfamiliar fieldwork. The temptation of Audra’s body pressed against his was proving to be an almost irresistible benefit.

      “So СКАЧАТЬ