Blindly, he turned toward the stairs. “Like I said, I think I can make it work. We should use the blank wall in the living room as a backdrop.”

She followed him. He listened to the soft friction of cloth, the sounds of her footsteps, light and graceful.

You can’t act on this. You can’t.

In the living room, the automatic timers on the lights had clicked on. She walked over to stand at the wall while he jerked out his phone and angled the camera for a headshot. Zoomed in. Watched the screen rigidly as she licked her bottom lip. Her gaze was shadowed with thoughts he could only guess at.

He had already taken a few shots before he noticed that the shirt collar had gaped enough to show the tip of her lacy bra. “Hold on,” he said tersely.

She held still as he strode forward to adjust the collar. The back of his knuckles brushed the tender skin at her neck. The sensation of touching her shot straight to his groin. They both sucked in a breath.

“Take the damn picture.” Her voice sounded low and strained.

He strode away, adjusted his camera again. This time when he looked at the screen, he saw the tension in her expression, the taut way she held herself.

Whatever else she thought of him, she felt this too. This inappropriate, all-consuming thing. How much more excruciating could it get?

“Try not to look like a felon,” he advised.

Surprised laughter brightened her expression, and there it was, a sparkling glimpse of just how beautiful she would be when she found happiness. As he stared, his thumb pressed down. He clicked several shots.

Her laughter faded. “Did we get it?”

He came back to himself and scrolled back through the photos. “Yes. These will do.”

Tension returned to her features. “Good.” She left the room.

He glanced out the window. Darkness had fallen some time ago. There was nothing like a dark night in the country. It felt like the house was surrounded in velvet.

They had barely touched, and it had still left him struggling for self-control.

I can’t stay, he thought. Having made that decision, he went downstairs. She had shut herself in the bedroom again. A moment later she reappeared, wearing his T-shirt and carrying his suit and dress shirt.

She held out the clothes. This time he carefully avoided any contact with her fingers.

Their eyes met.

He lunged forward the same moment she stepped toward him, and they didn’t kiss so much as collide together. He hauled her against his chest while she wrapped both arms around his neck, mouth slanting under his.

Her lips parted. With a deep sense of relief and excitement, he delved into her. Her mouth was soft, wet silk. The curved heat of her body shifting against his bare skin made hunger spike uncontrollably.