Forged of Steele Bundle (Books 1-4) - Brenda Jackson [147]
Reluctantly Bas broke the kiss, inhaled deeply before drawing her closer to him. He needed that. He needed her. He wanted to touch her a little while longer, let his hands skim slowly across her back. Apparently she felt at ease in letting him do so because she stood still, wrapped in his arms, in his heat.
Moments later, she pulled back, angled her head and gazed up at him and smiled slowly. Her eyes were still dark, her lips moist from his kiss. “If you’re trying to make me forget that I want a rematch, forget it.”
He released a soft chuckle and leaned down to let his lips brush against hers again, needing the taste, the feel, the touch. “Then I’m going to have to perfect my technique.”
She doubted he could perfect it any more, but she wouldn’t tell him that. “You can try.”
“And I will.” Bas smiled. He liked the art of seduction as much as the next guy, although he hadn’t had to contemplate a plan in quite a while. They weren’t talking about pinball anymore but something else, and they both knew it.
“Don’t consider it, Bas,” she warned, as if reading his thoughts. “We’ll drive each other crazy. I like enjoying life, having fun. You’re determined to work yourself to death.”
He shook his head. “Hey, I’ve loosened up some.”
She chuckled. “So I see, but you need to do it even more. Just think of all the fun you’re missing.”
He gazed at her for a moment. He had enjoyed the workout at the gym with Reese the other day. He had definitely relieved a lot of stress. And going fishing this past weekend had been great, and playing pinball tonight had been just what he’d needed. But nothing could compare to kissing her. That had been like putting the icing on the cake. An idea suddenly popped into his mind.
“You want to show me how to have fun?”
He could tell his question surprised her, and he watched as she lifted a brow. “Not sure that I can.”
He leaned closer to her and let his lips brush against her moist ones again. “Don’t you want to try?” he asked, nibbling on her neck. “Unless you don’t think you can handle me.” He knew that would be a challenge she couldn’t let slide.
“Oh, I can handle you, Sebastian Steele.”
“Prove it,” he whispered in her ear. “Teach me how to have fun, Jocelyn.”
A deep, gentle trembling in the pit of her stomach answered before her lips could. “Be careful what you ask for Bas…but since you did ask, I’m going to take you on.” She took a step back. “The first thing you have to do is stop work every day at five o’ clock.”
He looked at her as though she had lost her mind. “Five o’clock?”
“Yes.”
He thought again about the time he’d spent at the gym. He could do that a couple of days a week in the afternoons. No big deal. “All right.”
A frown drew Jocelyn’s brows together. He was being too agreeable and she was wondering what was going through his mind. “And you can’t arrive at the office before nine in the morning,” she decided to add just to cover all her bases.
She saw the defiance that sparked his eyes and grinned in spite of herself. He had only agreed to quit work at five because he’d intended to arrive at some ungodly hour every morning. She could tell he didn’t like that she was one step ahead of him.
“And next weekend, there’s a jazz festival in Memphis. You want to go have fun?” she asked, deciding to make him see that she meant business.
He shrugged. “Sure.” And then he asked, “When do I get to come up with some of our fun activities?” A gleam shone in the depths of his eyes. “I think we should take turns coming up with stuff.”
She nodded, thinking that would be only fair, but of course she would monitor the stuff he came up with. She knew men had a tendency to take advantage of what they perceived as a golden opportunity. “I don’t have a problem with that. Do you have something in mind?”
He smiled as he grabbed his jacket off the back of the chair and slipped his arms in the sleeves. His gaze held hers