“Oh, but you do.” He unfastens my bra. Changing the pace he slowly pulls it down my arms. His fingers dance over my nipples and I feel myself flush as he looks at me. “We all have to explain ourselves, no matter how strong or independent we think we are.”

“Do we?” As his fingers continue to toy with me and his tongue tastes my ear, I find myself wriggling in my seat, my words coming out as a staccato whisper.

“Yes.” His free hand runs up and down my thigh. “In the end we’re all just pieces of a puzzle. Your piece may be more decorative in its imagery than others, but you still have to find a way to fit into the world, just like the rest of us. We all have to make our connections, link our lives to the people and places that fit us best. Otherwise we’re nothing more than fragments.”

I smile, my guard temporarily slipping. “You’re always such a philosopher. Always seeing the world in metaphors.” His fingers continue to circle my nipples, making them hard as my breath catches in my throat. I hear more voices in the hall. A lost visitor tries the doorknob before being redirected by a companion to the correct room. “Perhaps we shouldn’t do this here,” I whisper.

“The door’s locked,” he reminds me. He takes my skirt and pulls it off me, carefully putting it on an empty folding chair near him.

“But someone might hear us . . . And if they see us walk out together . . .”

“Then they’ll be envious.” His hand moves between my legs, and his fingers slide under the fabric of my panties. “They’ll know I’ve been inside the most sensual woman in the world.”

“I’m not the most . . .” I lose my words as his finger slips inside.

“I’m learning you, Bell,” Lander repeats. “I’m learning your rhythms, your moods and tempers.”

As his finger continues to explore I feel myself rock against him.

“I know you like risk,” he says. “I know that you use the air of mystery you’ve cultivated as a shield. And I know how to break through that shield now. I know how to make you lose control.”

His thumb rises to toy with my clit and he continues to move his finger inside me as I get wetter and wetter. I can hear voices in the hall. I have to press my lips together to keep from adding my groans to the sounds around me. Once again my hands rise to his shoulders, but this time I’m not digging in my nails, I’m simply holding on for support. The day, the odd errand Travis sent me on, seeing Edmund for the first time in years . . . Even with all my planning, it was enough to make me dizzy and unsteady on my feet. But Lander, he’s here, he’s solid.