Finally, she said, “We both know I’m a sure thing tonight,” one side of her mouth moving up into a little smirk. “You don’t need to spring for dinner first.”

He wasn’t ready for the spark of anger that lit in him at the fact that she still seemed to think sex was enough for him, wasn’t ready for the impulse that had him challenging her with the words, “You want to have sex?”

Her eyes were tormented as she lifted her chin and came right back at him with one tortured word.

“Yes.”

His mouth came down over hers, but even then he was careful with her, despite the fact that he was pushing down her shorts and panties.

“Chase,” she moaned against his mouth, urging him on by pressing her hips into his hands, helping him strip her lower half bare.

He gauged her desire, her need, and knew that it was as big as his before saying, “I promised to always give you what you want. Tell me what you want.”

Her eyes were dilated almost to black and he could see everything she was trying to block out, everything she was trying so desperately to hide from.

“Please just take me.”

He pulled open her shirt, his mouth finding the tip of her breast through the pink lace bra. At the same time, her fingers were on his zipper, pulling, yanking and then he was in her hand and she was wrapping her long, slender fingers around him, stroking him so that he was impossibly hard.

He’d just promised her anything she wanted, vowed one more time to give her everything. And even though his heart felt like a bomb had hit it at the way she kept trying to put distance between them, he lifted her ass with his hands and told her, “Wrap your legs around me.”

He drove into her before either of them could take their next breath and her flesh tightened, grasped, clenched around him. He knew she wanted him to drive into her mindlessly. He knew she wanted to pretend that what they had was just attraction.

But damn it, he couldn’t do it.

Even for her, even when she’d just asked him point blank to do her, he couldn’t just take her like an animal against the front door.

“Chloe.”

Her eyes, which had been closed tight, opened slowly, blurry with lust. And all that emotion she didn’t want to feel. All that emotion that she was trying to push away because it hadn’t come at the right time or place. Because she wasn’t ready for it. Because she thought she needed to be strong and walk away from him tomorrow morning.

“I can’t do it, sweetheart. I can’t pretend this is just sex.” Chase needed to look into her face, wanted her to have to acknowledge the truth of what was between them as he said, “I love you.”

She sobbed out his name before kissing him like she’d die without his kisses.

His body took over, then, pure instinct as he drove into her, as she lifted herself up over him, then down so that they were connected utterly. Perfectly.

He felt her inner muscles go a split second before she gasped against his mouth. And then her head was falling back and she was driving her pelvis into his, entirely lost to the pleasure, to the way their bodies sparked and charged together.

Somehow he rode out her climax, every pull and tug of her clenching heat against him. He never wanted to have to leave her, never wanted to have to let her go.

But when she pressed her mouth against his shoulder and said the word “Love,” so softly he almost couldn’t hear it over the beat of his own heart in his ears, he fell all the way over the edge.

* * *

“Chase?” He’d carried them over to the couch and pulled a blanket over them. She’d only just caught her breath. “I know I’m always asking for this, but can we start tonight over again?”

She could feel his smile against her ear.

“Of course we can.”

Chloe shifted so that she was partially sitting up on the couch, but still in his arms. “They’ve all just left and now it’s time for me to say, ‘I’m really going to miss everyone.’”

His eyes were steady on hers. “This is my part, right?”

She knew he was teasing her and was amazed by how forgiving he was, rather than lashing out at her for trying to reduce what was between them to just sex.

“Yes, this is your part.”

“I’ll miss them, too, but I’m glad we’re alone now.”

She wanted to say she was sorry for hurting him. For the way she kept hurting him. For the fact that she wasn’t saying “I love you” back.

But all she could say was, “I’d like to go out on a date with you, Chase.” When he didn’t immediately respond, she took a shaky breath. “Please say yes.”

His eyes were still dark, still intense as he said, “Yes.”

Her chest, her stomach, everything hurt. Ached for this beautiful man. She made herself smile. “I should probably put on a new shirt.”

He looked down then, seemed to notice the torn fabric for the first time. “I was too rough with you. I didn’t mean to do that.”

She silenced him with a kiss. “No. You would never be rough with me.” She climbed from his lap and pulled a dress from the rack of clothes before leaving the living room. “It will just take me a few minutes to shower and change.”

* * *

Chase sat with his head in his hands. What the hell had he just done? He’d all but attacked her up against the door. Chloe didn’t deserve to be treated like that. She was precious. He should have been gentle, no matter what.

And he should stop blurting out how much he loved her over and over. It only made things worse. It only made her feel more cornered. More like things were out of her control.

Knowing he’d only end up taking her against the bathroom tiles if he joined her in the shower, he went into one of the bathrooms neither of them had used and quickly soaped down. He was already thick and throbbing at the thought of Chloe naked, with water streaming over her body just down the hall.

He turned the water to cold and forced himself to stand beneath the icy spray.

He really wanted this to be a date. A real date.

Not just a prelude to more sex.

Chapter Fifteen

“Wow, this is stunning. I don’t think I would ever get used to this view.”

They were sitting at the corner table at Auberge de Soleil, high in the hills of Napa Valley, and Chase knew exactly what she meant. But it wasn’t the view he’d never get used to admiring.

He couldn’t manage to drag his eyes from his date.

The waiter came by and handed them each a glass of champagne. “Your brother, Marcus, wanted to let you both know that he hopes you enjoy your evening with us.”