"Come for me babe. Here. In the darkness. Let me share it...press your b.r.e.a.s.t.s against my hand. Openyour legs wide...don't hide it, don't stop it...don't fight it. Come for me. It's okay..."Well, darn it. How could she refuse a request like that?His arms tightened around her as her breathing faltered and shivers of arousal trailed over her body. She was there. She was ready.

And she let go.

The music from the screen blared and obliterated her squeak of release as Jack held her snug against

him, his mouth plastered to hers, his fingers moving deep inside. She came, rattling herself from her shinbones to her back teeth, and clenching around Jack's touch with a ferocity that amazed her.

She shook and shuddered in his arms, gasping for air and biting back sobs of pleasure. It was a blindingly intense o.r.g.a.s.m, and one like Daphne could never have imagined in her wildest dreams.

Until now. Until Jack.And it went on-and on. Just when she thought it was over, Jack moved a little, stroked another placeand sent her ricocheting off into the ether again-and again.

Holy multiple o.r.g.a.s.ms.

He was making her body do things she'd thought were strictly reserved for the fervid imaginations of s.e.xual counselors, or overheated romance writers. Certainly not relatively down-to-earth librarians.

And he was with her, all the way. She could sense him as she rolled the waves of her climax, breathing

with her, holding her tightly, sharing the intensity with her and knowing-somehow-exactly how to prolong the moment and bring her the maximum pleasure.

And that only added to her ecstasy.Knowing that her every whimper, every little twitch and gasp, was being shared and observed by a mansolely focused on her,Daphne , was the most arousing thing of all.

She had no idea that a man could do such a thing. It was...overwhelming in its implications.

The ability to consider those implications vanished as she subsided into a boneless heap of contentment inJack's arms."OhG.o.d .""Oh Daph..." He sounded-moved."Jack...I don't know what to say."His lips feathered little kisses over her jawline and up to her ear, making her shiver with delight. "Don't say anything. That was amazing, Daph."She managed a tired giggle. "Easy for you to say. I'd prefer the word 'earth-shattering' myself."She felt his mouth curve into that grin she loved. "See? I told you date night at the movies could be fun."He slid his fingers from her body and she sighed at the loss. He'd felt so...so...rightwith his hand between her legs. Dear G.o.d, she'd become a wanton s.l.u.t. And she loved every minute of it."Fun? Jack...this isn'tfun . This is..." She sought for words.None came to mind. She simply reached for his cheek and ran her hand softly over its smooth surface, letting her fingers brush his mouth. "Thank you."

She leaned forward and kissed him gently, letting her lips say all the things that her heart felt and her mind couldn't find the words to express.

His own kiss told her he understood. Little brushes of his skin against hers, light licks of his tongue

around her mouth...he petted her with his touch, calmed and soothed her, and sent her into a warm place she never wanted to leave.

It was heaven. Sheer, unadulterated, post-o.r.g.a.s.mic bliss.And Daphne's heart nearly thudded to a halt at the implications.Oh...c.r.a.p.She was falling in love with Jack Foster.No. Check that statement. She'd gone and done it. She wasalready in love with Jack Foster.He confirmed it when the light from the movie screen touched his face and she saw the grin she adored curve his lips. "You know something, Daph?"She shook her head, happy just to look at him."I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."His timing was perfect. The final words of "Casablanca" echoed through the theater and into her heart.Oh h.e.l.l. She was lost, for sure.Chapter Ten "Please?"Daphne looked shocked. "But Jack, for goodness sake..."Jack grinned. "I swear by...by Humphrey Bogart...I've never asked a woman this before. Honest, Daph. Please? Be my first?"

She blushed. f.u.c.k, she blushed like a schoolgirl and Jack loved making those pinks and reds flood hercheeks. "I don't know...""Aw, c'mon babe. Is it so much to ask?""But Jack. Mythong ?""Yeah. Yourthong . I want it.""But...butwhy ?"They were gathering their possessions together in the now fully lit theater, and Daphne's blushes were clearly illuminated by the old-fashioned sconces on the walls.

Jack held up the teeny white sc.r.a.p of lace, and rubbed his cheek against it, letting the scent of her bodyfill up his nose all over again."Jaaaaack...""I love the way you say that." He grinned.She snorted. "Well you keep doing things that...that shock me silly." She flashed him an embarra.s.sed smile. "I'm not complaining, mind you, but honestly Jack...what else do you expect me to say? I'm so out of my depth with you."

"And I'm out of my depth with you too. Maybe that's why I want this." He tucked the lace into his pocket. "It's my anchor. My lifeline. I can look at it, touch it, and think of you. Of where it touched you." He kissed her ear as he helped her slip her jacket on. "And how I took itoff you."

"Ja..." She bit back the word on a choke. "You're outrageous.""Yeah, ain't I though?""What am I going to do without them? I have to go outside...""Yep.""But...I...""Who's gonna know?"Daphne considered this. "Well, I...""You're wearing a very lovely skirt, sweetheart. I told you already how nice you looked this evening.

You look even nicer now, with your hair all mussed, your lips kinda soft and kissable, and a certain...something...making your eyes shine..."

"d.a.m.n it Jack, stop saying things like that.""Why? I mean them. I'd never let you prance through a theater lobby with no underwear if I thoughtthere was even a chance anyone would guess, Daph. No way in h.e.l.l would I let that happen."

A sudden bolt of emotion rocked Jack at the mere thought of another man looking at Daphne's a.s.s.Uh-uh. No way. It washis . His fingers clenched down onto the lace in his pocket. "I just want you sittingin my car with your naked skin against my leather seat. Do you have any idea what a turn-on that's gonnabe for me, honey?"

Wide-eyed, Daphne shook her head. "I have no clue about guys and cars."He smiled. "Trust me."She shrugged. "I do."Those two words went into Jack's brain and quietly destroyed it with all the force of a small thermonuclear detonation.

She trusted him.

Him. Jack Foster. The ordinary guy who'd done nothing more fancy than take his girl out to a movie on a

Friday night and engaged in some heavy petting in the darkness. His heart twisted, turned, and shattered into a million pieces, then rea.s.sembled itself into something new.

Something Jack wasn't quite sure he understood.

"You scare me, babe," he muttered."I do?" She blinked as they clattered down the old rickety stairwell and back into the foyer of thetheater. "Why?"

"Dunno." Jack lifted her hand to his lips and brushed a quick kiss across her knuckles. "You just do, that

's all."He led her out to Big Red and shuddered as she slid onto the seat. His thoughts were filled with thenotion of her nakedness warming that leather.Fuuuuck . He wondered if he'd get arrested for driving with a flagpole between his legs. He could probably hit the clutch with his c.o.c.k and shift into third withouta hitch.He bit back a groan and slipped behind the wheel. "So. Where to? Ice cream? It's traditional, isn't it?"Daphne laughed. "Jack, nothing about you is traditional. For heaven's sake, I'm sitting here with my bare behind on this darn seat...which is an odd sensation, I have to tell you...so I'll leave it all in your hands."

She shot him a wicked grin. "Your verycapable hands."This time the groan couldn't be silenced. "G.o.d, Daph. You have no idea what that thought is doing tome. I suppose we could find ourselves some ice cream, but I'll be honest. The cream I want right now isn't iced."

"It isn't?"

"Nope. It's hot. And slick. And...and..." He choked back another groan as his c.o.c.k reminded him thateverything had its limits and he was fast approaching his.Daphne, bless her, was blushing again."s.h.i.t. I'm going too fast, aren't I?"She bit her lower lip. "Weare going fast, here, Jack, but I have to be honest. I'm not quite sure whose foot is on the gas pedal." She looked at him, warmth in her brown eyes. "You bring out something in me. A...a...wanton woman, if you'll pardon the phrase. You make me feel...things...wantthings ...I don't know. It's hard to put into words because I've never felt like this before. Ever."

He stared back at her, struggling with new thoughts, new emotions, ideas he'd never considered before,and a hard-on that threatened to rupture his spleen."Daphne...I...uh...me too.""You too what?"

Jack sucked in a breath. "I've never felt like this before either."She raised her eyebrows. "Jack. Comeon . I may be naive, but I have a hard time believing that. You'revery obviously...um...experienced. You know your way around women. I would guess that with yourgood looks-a car like this-well, heck. You must have women falling over themselves to be with you."

Notme . They fall over their t.i.ts to be with Big John Johnson.Not me .He started the ignition and let Big Red idle quietly, while the Toni Braxton CD filled the small car with soft romantic melodies. He found it soothing to his confused brain as he fought to find theright words, foronce, not the standard phrases he'd used so many times before.This was-different. Important."Sweetheart, you told me you trusted me."She nodded. Okay.So far so good.

"I'm asking you to believe me, too. Believe me when I tell you that being with you is like...like nothing I' ve ever experienced before."

"Haven't dated many librarians, huh?" Daphne attempted to lighten the moment.

He grinned. "Not a one. A defect in my romantic entanglements, I guess. But seriously, Daph..." He took her hand. "Being with you is...unique. There's something about you-about us-when we're together, that makes me feel..."

"Feel what, Jack?"

"Uh..." f.u.c.king A. He was stuttering like a teenage idiot.Think, you a.s.shole. Think! " Makes me feel...happy."

s.h.i.t. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

"Really?" Her face lit up.

Okay, maybe not stupid after all.

"Yeah, really. When I'm with you, we seem to be able to have fun, without...without trying." He ran a hand through his hair. "It's hard to explain...there's just something between us that happens, that makes my day brighter. That drives me crazy with wanting to see you again when we're apart and makes me not want to let you go when we're together."

He heard her gulp. "Really?"

"Oh yeah, really. I'm not explaining this very well, I know. It's just that from the first moment I met you in the store, you seemed...fresh. New. Someone who came from a different place, and who found a new place in me that had been empty up until then...and I never knew it. And now it's filled. And it feels...right..."

She opened her mouth to speak, but he held up his hand. "Let me finish here, honey. I can't tell you I've lived like a monk, because I haven't. I've dated. A lot, in fact, and you're right. The car, the body...h.e.l.l, I'm a guy. We use what we have, you know?"

She nodded, eyes wide, hand firmly clasping his.

"And yeah, I know my way around women." And wasn'tthat an understatement. He could probably pa.s.s a preliminary exam and qualify for a gynecological residency on the strength of his films alone. "But with you...it's all different. All new. I feel things, like you said...that I can't understand, let alone explain. Things that make me crazy. That make me want your underwear." He rolled his eyes. "I swear to G.o.d I' ve never asked another woman to give me her panties in my entire life."

She smiled at him and squeezed his hand. "Oh Jack..."

"But it's not just the...physical attraction thing, Daph, although that's hotter than I ever could have imagined. It's more. It's...special. You're special."

Her eyes filled with tears, glittering in the soft light of the dashboard. "Thank you, Jack. I don't think you could have said anything that would mean more to me. And you're right." She reached out her hand and rested it against his cheek. "It is special."

She leaned over and kissed him lightly. "And I believe you."

He reached for her...

And the cell phone rang.

Daphne didn't know whether to be glad or sorry for the interruption. The phone chimes jerked her

attention away from Jack with a wrench, and she did her best to swallow her heart back down into her

chest where it belonged.It had risen to her throat as she'd listened to him talk about the two of them. He'd used words that anywoman would have given her eyebrows to hear. And yet...somehow, she didn't think he'd have said anyof it if he hadn't meant it.

She sighed. She had no idea if she could trust her gut instincts or was just in the middle of a pheromone-induced stupor.

Jack, meanwhile, was barking into the phone. "Well, Christ above, Chuck. What the h.e.l.l happened?"

A male voice grumbled back out of the small unit.

"Can't you fix it yourself?"

His face had hardened somewhat, and Daphne watched as the man she was dating turned from loving escort into single-minded businessman.

"I don't care. We have to do what it takes." He frowned. "I'mas aware of that deadline as you are.Yeah, I'll hold..."He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel and waited, glancing over at her with a shrug."Problems at the store?" She raised her eyebrows.

"Uh...kind of. Sorry..."She shook her head at him. "Don't be silly." She shifted slightly, unsticking one b.u.t.t cheek from the seat.This going panty-less was all well and good in the heat of the moment, but once the heat subsided, therewere other-less pleasant-issues to be dealt with. Like the imprint of fine Corinthian leather which wasprobably going to be branded into her skin for about a week.

She fidgeted.

"Look." Jack glanced at his watch. "I can be there in twenty. Don't do anything else, okay?" Hesnapped the phone shut on a grunt of frustration."Trouble, huh?"Jack's face was a study in conflict as he turned his head towards her. His green eyes softened as he looked into hers. "Baby, I'm so sorry. Truly. You have no idea how sorry I am."

Daphne couldn't resist. She glanced down at the hard ridge distorting his fly. "Well, actually, that is anincorrect statement."He grinned. It was taut, but it was a grin. "Daphne, you're going to be the death of me. Yeah, I'm so turned on right now, that I could whisk you into the backseat-if I had one-and spend the rest of the

night making us both scream. And not for ice cream, either."

She laughed, easing the tension a little. "I understand. Really, Jack, I do understand. You haveobligations. Life goes on, regardless of what's happening between us. That's the way it is.""G.o.d, babe, I..." Jack seemed at a loss for words. He sighed. "I have to go fix this. I'll drop you home first, okay?"