She sat straight up with the force of a sudden decision. “I’m going to sell the dumb thing. I don’t need all that room. And I can’t afford the mortgage payments without Anatole. And I’m definitely not the landlord type.”

Dave took the popcorn bowl and set it on the table. “Where will you live if you sell your house?”

“I’ll find another house. One that’s more suited to me.”

He slid his arm across her shoulders and pulled her close. There was strength to her, he thought. Even as a little girl, as a young musician, she’d known focus, discipline, and passion. It had made her resilient and proud and vital. But there’d been a price. She’d never iced a cake, probably never thrown a football, never papered a bathroom. She lived all alone in an empty house that might be more representative of her life than she realized. He rested his cheek against her silky curls and felt emotions warring inside him. Lots of desire. And an equal amount of protective tenderness. Wonderful, Dave, do you want to protect her from yourself? He smiled behind her back, feeling foolishly euphoric.

She snuggled into him, her breasts firmly pressed against the wall of his chest, and her hand splayed at the base of his ribs. He couldn’t remember a woman ever seeming so right in his arms. He’d been wanting to hold her since he’d first seen her in the awful black coat. He’d always imagined there’d be fireworks. The brittle, bright light of a sparkler. A flash of fire. But he’d been wrong. When he held Kate it was slow heat. Relentless, inexorable heat. The sort of heat that turned a man molten… and when he cooled down he would never be in exactly the same shape as before.

He nuzzled the curls at her temple and kissed her just above her ear. When she turned her face to him he felt the air burning in his lungs. Her lips were parted in expectation, her eyes were trusting, and a pink flush had spread across her cheeks. He wanted to tell her he loved her, but he knew it would sound ridiculous. How could he be so desperately in love with someone after only twenty-four hours?

He kissed her with insatiable, almost painful hunger. Lord, if he felt like this now, where would he be in ten minutes? He’d be done, he thought ruefully. He’d set a new land-speed record for making love.

He pushed himself away from her and held her at arm’s length. “Time-out.”

“Is it hot in here? Maybe we should open a window.”

He looked at her face and saw she was just as rattled as he was. “You think this is infatuation?”