Page 31 of Alaskan Blackout
While he debated if it would be a mistake to make the most of their last hours together, McKenna removed all doubt about what she wanted by turning into him and placing a hand on his chest.
“Come home with me, Quinton.”
Ten
McKenna refused to question her passionate instincts as they drove toward her house after dinner.
Shifting restlessly in the leather passenger seat of the luxury SUV, she wanted Quinton with a hunger unlike anything she’d ever felt before. She’d thought she’d known attraction to other men in the past, but those experiences didn’t even compare to the desire that crawled all over her skin tonight. The need had been building all the days they’d spent apart. Then, his obvious efforts to provide a truly memorable evening for her had gone beyond the physical. He’d touched her heart.
Not only had he devoted hours of his time and talents to tracking the misdeeds of her bastard ex-boyfriend, but Quinton had also provided evidence the police would need to bring charges. All of which he’d shared during an incredible evening out.
Seated across from him over a meal cooked by a world-renowned chef, McKenna had felt special. As though she mattered.
Was it foolish of her to be swayed by that kind of attentiveness? Perhaps the gesture that had felt so unique to her was commonplace enough for him. No doubt Quinton Kingsley could afford to dine at exclusive gourmet establishments every night if he so chose. But McKenna wanted to believe there’d been more to the date than just a Kingsley using his fortune to dazzle a woman of far lesser means.
Quinton had earnestly tried to give her a special shared memory. Something she would keep with her long after he left Dutch Harbor.
And hewasleaving Unalaska soon. His inevitable departure came through in every word and action since he’d arrived on her front step. Tonight was obviously a goodbye that he meant to do well.
The thought caused a pang in her heart as they cruised the dark and windy road toward her house, a light rain continuing to mist the windshield. There would be an emptiness inside her once he left. Not just because she would miss him, but also because she understood that if it wasn’t for the baby she carried, she would almost certainly never see him again. She would never know if he stuck around because he craved more time withher. Was she delaying telling him that she was pregnant because she wished to see how the evening would play out before revealing the news that would change everything between them forever?
Maybe that was a part of it. Was it wrong to want some part of him that was just for her and not because he felt duty bound to their child? But she wouldn’t think about that now when they still had a whole night ahead.
By the time he steered the SUV into the driveway in front of her house, she was so keyed up she fumbled to get the seat belt unfastened, her hands awkward. After switching off the engine, Quinton reached across the center console to help her.
“I can get it for you.” His voice rumbled low and deep in her ear as he inserted a finger between her hip and the lap belt.
Her skin tingled under her dress where his knuckles grazed her. Longing pooled low in her belly. Her breath came in shallow pants. But this wasn’t anything like the asthma attack.
Her breath had simply been stolen by this enigmatic, sexy man who’d been a stranger to her just a few weeks before.
“Thank you,” she murmured distractedly, her attention snagged by the smoking look in his eyes as their gazes collided.
Her heart raced when his focus shifted lower, settling on her lips. He dragged the pad of his thumb across the lower one, a touch that set her on fire.
“Do you have any idea how much I thought about this mouth while you were away for two long weeks?” The rough edge in his voice thrilled her as much as his words.
Did the desire that consumed her plague him too?
“No, but I sure hope you came up with some ideas about what to do with it during that time,” she challenged him, very ready to act on the needs bottled up for too long.
Tonight might be the last opportunity they ever had to be together this way. And she couldn’t bear for him to walk away without touching her again. Without experiencing the thrill only he could deliver.
“I’ve got no lack of ideas,” he promised, tipping her face up toward his so that his breath huffed along her lips when he spoke. “Starting with this.”
When his mouth covered hers, she went light-headed. For a moment, she simply let him kiss her, soaking up the sensation of having his tongue slide over hers. His hands gripped her shoulders to steer her. Steady her. She’d never felt so thoroughly kissed by anyone else. Quinton focused on her like there was nothing else in the world except for her. Except for lavishing attention on her lips.
He tasted and nipped, licked and explored. Taking his time and making her crazy for more. She wanted his mouth everywhere at once, but at the same time, she never wanted the kiss to end. Her fingers clenched at his chest, holding on to him before she melted right into him.
In the end, she only stopped for a moment to catch her breath. Because honestly, when he was kissing her that way, she forgot all about breathing.
They stared at one another across the front seat of the SUV while the windows fogged. Dazed from that toe-curling kiss, McKenna gripped the lapel of his jacket harder, needing to anchor herself.
“We should take this inside,” she suggested, even though she had her doubts about whether or not her legs would carry her that far when her whole body tingled pleasantly.
Was it anticipation that made her feel that way? Like all her atoms shimmied and danced?
“You know what will happen if I start kissing you again,” he warned in a voice that bordered on a growl, his pupils so dilated they were almost black.