“I don’t intimidate so easily, Jake. And I refuse to jump through hoops like everyone else around you does.”

His hand slid around her throat, tipping her head back, forcing her face up to his. “You really want to play power games with me, Emma? Because I can feel your body responding to mine. Do you think I can’t tell when a woman wants me?” He pushed into her, nearly lifting her body onto his so that his heavy erection was snuggled into her hot mound.

“So I can be another one of your many cast-off sluts you can feel superior to? So you can get that look of contempt on your face every time you mention my name? Nice invitation, but really, no thanks.” She didn’t move away from him, or look away, matching him temper for temper. “My body may respond to yours—I’m not dead; and you’re very sexy, which you well know—but believe me when I tell you, my head is absolutely screaming ‘no way in hell.’ ”

All he heard were the words “no way in hell.” Fury burned in his eyes and he caught her by her upper arms, yanking her onto her toes, dropping his head to hers, his lips crushing hers, grinding them into her teeth. There was nothing sweet about Jake in that moment. He took what he wanted, making a statement, demanding her response, conquering her, branding her, the hot pressure forcing her mouth open so he could own her.

Heat and flames streaked through his bloodstream and what was meant as a punishment became something else altogether. Her body fought him, but her mouth didn’t, instead fusing with his, devouring hungrily, their tongues dueling wildly while her body struggled against his sudden weight. He pinned her against the wall, sliding one hand to her breast, finding her tight nipple and stroking and tugging as he’d wanted to do for the past two long years.

Emotion poured into him as if a dam had broken, shaking him, flooding his system with unexpected and unwanted . . . what? Not love. It couldn’t be love. The thought, the feeling, terrified him, but he couldn’t deny touching her, kissing her, feeling her body melting into his was unlike anything he’d ever come close to experiencing when he’d thought he’d known passion and great sex. Something about Emma brought out every male instinct he had—even tenderness—when he’d never known it for himself. He hadn’t expected the waves of feeling that came rushing over him, the joy bursting through him, sweeping him up with every bit of the intensity and adding to the strength of his physical need of her.

The jackhammers drilling into his head increased their tempo while his leopard leapt and roared for supremacy. She gasped for breath, going boneless under the onslaught of his hands and mouth. His knee slid between her legs, grinding into her, the junction like a furnace, inciting him all the more. He dragged her thin top down, exposing her breasts, his mouth never leaving hers, still feeding ferociously while his hands found bare flesh.

He jerked at her bra, desperate to feel the soft, creamy mounds spilling into his palms. The feel of the soft weight in his bare hands nearly made him weep. He wanted to know every single inch of her, needed to find a way to slow down to savor the taste of her. His mouth left hers and he blazed a trail of fire down her throat to her breast.

Emma gasped and arched to him as he took her in his mouth, suckling strongly, his tongue flicking the hard peak, his teeth biting down, sending shock waves through her body.

Emma heard her own keening wail and knew she was in terrible trouble. The chemistry between them was explosive, her skin so sensitive she could barely stand the touch of her clothing. She couldn’t stop herself from rubbing back and forth against his knee. Her mouth felt empty, just as her body did. She wanted him to fill her up, to relieve the terrible ache that was building and building until she needed to scream and plead for him to be inside her. This was Jake, the man she loved desperately, and she wanted him with every cell in her body.

He lifted her with one strong arm. “Wrap your legs around me.” He needed to be closer, needed to be inside of her, sharing the same skin.

Emma did as he asked, opening herself to him. A strange purring sound came from her as he rocked against her, and she rubbed her body hard against his thick bulge. The thin material between them frustrated her and she glanced down. She could see herself, her full breasts spilling out, her body flushed and needy, her hips bucking against him while her legs wrapped around him tightly. She’d lost her mind. She was attacking him.

“Stop.” It came out a whisper, a hoarse, needy whisper, her breath coming in ragged gasps. “We have to stop.”

“We have to get our clothes off,” he countered, his mouth greedy at her breast.

Her body nearly convulsed with pleasure. She was building to an orgasm, something she’d rarely had with Andrew, yet Jake hadn’t even penetrated her. “Jake, please.” She didn’t know if she was begging him to take her right there in the hallway or if she was looking for freedom. She’d never in her life felt so desperate to have a man inside of her.

She felt his hands tugging at the drawstring of her pants while his mouth continued to suckle at her breast. His teeth tugged and nipped while his tongue flicked back and forth. She felt each touch deep in her womb, so that her inner muscles gripped at nothing. She was empty and needy, aching for him. She needed to push him away but she couldn’t find the strength. “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself,” she whispered. “Or with you.”

He went utterly still. He even seemed to stop breathing for a moment, and she knew he was struggling for control. He held her tight against him, so tight she could feel his heavy shaft pulsing against her mound. His mouth reluctantly left her aching breast and he buried his face between her neck and shoulder. They stayed that way a long time, neither moving, fighting for breath, for a way to pull back, for a way to defuse what had just happened between them.