“I want to bury my cock inside your warm body and slam into you until you beg me for mercy. Then I’ll turn you over and finish the job from behind. Later, you can ride me, or I’ll take you up against the wall. Hell, there are hundreds of ways I want to fuck you.” Explaining what I wanted in graphic detail distracted me from what I really wanted—or thought I did.

“And if I say no?”

“That’s your choice. The money isn’t tied to having sex with me, but if things advanced beyond friends to friends with benefits, I’d welcome the change.”

“You think we’re friends?”

“We don’t hate each other anymore. I’m working on the friends part.”

“You still blame me.”

“A little.” I spoke honestly. “Maybe my resentment and bitterness prevent us from ever having that special thing we had before, but it doesn’t stand in the way of sex. We were explosive together, and our chemistry is still there. Don’t you feel it?” I’d never planned on propositioning her, especially not following a discussion about money, but I wasn’t taking it back now. I made it clear where she stood with me. She had the power to say yes or no to a purely physical relationship.

She chewed on her lower lip, much like our daughter did when contemplating a decision. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t have to give me an answer right away. After all, you know where to find me.”

She nodded. Her blue eyes were troubled, and I fought off a wave of guilt at reducing our former relationship to something carnal and almost demeaning. She tugged again on my hands gripping hers, and I let go. Caro stood and walked into the kitchen. Unable to resist, I followed her and spun her around.

“You do make me crazy.” I put my hands on her waist and lifted her onto the counter. Before I knew what I was doing, my mouth was on hers, hot, hungry, and demanding. Instead of pushing me away, she gave it right back to me, wrapping her legs around my waist and pushing her crotch against mine. She whimpered into my mouth, and I groaned in response. She tasted of broken promises and no-strings sex with no expectations of a future. For reasons I chose not to explore, that saddened me. I’d set the rules of this game, and I’d be bound to live by them.

I didn’t know what I wanted beyond today, but I was pretty clear on the present. I needed this woman right now like a hockey player needs his skates. Okay, stupid analogy, but I wasn’t a fucking poet. I was a guy in the presence of a beyond sexy woman who was offering her body to me to do with as I pleased.

She felt so fucking good, writhing against me like she was trying to rub my clothes off. I slid my hands underneath her sweater, feeling her sweet, smooth skin against my palms. I ran my fingers up her rib cage, feeling every indentation, not stopping when I touched her bra. Upward my fingers journeyed. Her bra was one of those lacy things. Her nipples were erect against the thin material. I ran my thumbs over them, and she rewarded me with a gasp of pure pleasure.