Dark and Deadly 00 - Secrets Exposed by Lisa Renée Jones

meeting Williams, talking about the crimes so like those involving Hudson, would be harder than it was. It’s strange, but just being with you somehow made things easier.” She looked down at her lap as if she wasn’t sure how he was going to respond.
    Using his index finger, he tilted her chin up so he could see the expression in her eyes. And so she could see his. He knew what she would see in them. But it was what he saw in hers that took his breath away. Emotions, raw and hot, danced in her gaze, there for his viewing. Now, while she was in this mood, he wanted all he could get from her. “That was a major confession for you, wasn’t it? To admit needing me?”
    She nodded, her lips trembling. For a fleeting moment, he thought he saw fear in her eyes. He smiled at her, intent on making it go away. “Well,” he said, “guess what?” He didn’t wait for her to answer. “I’m damned honored.”
    Her face was blank for a moment before her lush, tempting, sexy-as-hell lips curled into a smile. Her hand moved to his cheek, cupping it. There was something so tender about the action, it pressed him over the edge. With a low growl, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him, their mouths so near their breath intermingled. “I want you more than I remember ever wanting a woman.”
    “You do?” she whispered.
    “Yes,” he said. “I do.”
    Her reply was so soft he barely heard it. “I want you, too.”
    He absorbed the words as he would a needed breath of air, taking them in, and allowing them to fuel his desire. His lips brushed hers, once, twice, a third time , soft, tender, and passion-driven. She tasted like wine and a special something that was simply, perfectly her. With sensual strokes, their tongues met, languidly caressing each other.
    His hands cupped her face as he pulled back to look into her eyes, dipping his head for one more taste. He slid his hands down her neck and started making soft circles with his thumbs. This woman was connected to him in some way beyond Williams, beyond Paxton, and beyond understanding.
    For now, he just wanted to experience all that they could be together, here, now, tonight.
    * * * * *
    Lindsey rested her hands on his chest and allowed her head to slowly roll backwards. Her breasts tingled with his nearness, making her wish he would move his hands. Thinking she could deny herself this amazing man had been crazy. His lips pressed against the sensitive flesh of her neck, making a shiver of desire dance along her skin.
    She wanted this, wanted him . . .
    He nuzzled her ear, his tongue and teeth both touching the lobe. “I can’t begin to explain what you do to me.”
    Lindsey pulled back a bit, wanting to see into those fascinating brown eyes of his. She liked knowing he wanted her. This gorgeous, sexy man wanted her . Of course she had seen desire in a man’s eyes before . . . but not the live, heated burn she saw in Mark’s. “Tell me why you want me, Mark?” She looked at him, waiting for his answer. For some reason, she needed to know.
    Maybe she wanted him to say something wrong, to push her so she could run. Deep down she knew she was scared of Mark, of his powerful nature, and the way it resembled other men in her life. Yet . . . he was tender, and sensitive, and made her feel respected but still sexy. Was it real or just a good act, this way he treated her?
    “I wish I could answer that question,” he told her, and there was so much honesty in his voice and eyes, it made her stomach flip-flop.
    She so wished she knew the answer as well. Right now, she wanted Mark, and she wanted him in a way that went beyond words. No more holding back. He’d passed her test. “Mark,” she said, and the one word said so much. It was packed with her desire.
    She moved then, rotating so that she straddled him. His hands went to her hips, helping her settle on top of him, feeling the evidence of his arousal. Their eyes locked, and the knowledge of what was