His gaze moved over her face before settling on her mouth. Jess drew her bottom lip between her teeth. Was he going to kiss her? Conscious of the way he was studying her, his penetrating blue eyes gauging her reaction to his closeness, she shifted restlessly, but he pressed down on her, preventing her from escaping his intimate hold.

Her entire body felt hot, her nipples achingly hard when she lowered her eyes. His close proximity and scent were doing delicious things to her senses. Even though she’d written out a few explicit fantasies in her private journal, ones that shocked her and left her quivering with need, Jess had never experienced such lust before, her body craving something far naughtier from this sexy cowboy.

Did she dare?

“Is what you have in mind legal?” she asked, trying not to sound as breathless as she felt. She cocked her head, giving him a knowing smile.

His lopsided grin turned her inside out. “I’ve never done anything illegal in my life.”

“I was there that day, remember?”

“Okay, okay, so I jacked a licorice when I was ten. But only because I’d already spent my allowance and you really wanted one. I paid it back the next week.”

Her eyes widened. “You did? So did I.”

With that they laughed. When he gripped her legs, pushing them open, the laughter died. A quick tug, and he pulled her closer to the pool’s edge. Bracing his hands on either side of her thighs, Mac hoisted himself higher, aligning her body intimately with his. Her dress rode high on her thighs and she trembled, fully aware that the only thing separating their private parts was her skimpy panties and—her gaze dropped to the waistband of his underwear and then lower—his wet boxers, which showcased his hardness, despite the cold water.

“You want to touch me, Jess?”

Her eyes snapped back to his and then quickly away again, heat staining her cheeks at having been caught checking him out. He rocked against her, once, just hard enough to let her know what she was doing to him, then leaned down, the rough drag of his stubble scraping her cheek as he whispered, “I’ll let you. Anywhere, anytime, and anything you want, for as long as you want. As long as I get to do the same to you.”

She swallowed, and the corners of his mouth lifted.

He put his finger under her chin and lifted it until their eyes met. Heat rose up and spread across her neck, the prickle heightened by the rasp of his beard. She clasped her hands, wishing she at least had the nerve to brush away the beads of water dripping down his chiseled face.

When she didn’t answer, he said, “Nothing to say? Then let me tell you what I want.” The pad of his thumb grazed her bottom lip. “This mouth. Like I said, it’s haunted me since that kiss.” He leaned in, stroked his tongue down the path his thumb had taken. “I’ve been giving a lot of thought to this mouth. If it’s still as soft, still tastes as sweet.” His mouth brushed over hers, dragging a tiny sound from her throat. “Ummm, yes,” he dragged the word out on a hiss of pleasure.

Heat consumed her, raced through her veins, and settled with a throbbing ache between her thighs.

“One week,” he said, his voice deep, rough, intimate. His hand trailed up her thigh, and there was nothing impersonal in the way he touched her when he added, “One week to explore this connection between us.”

A fine shiver moved through her, and it took a bit of effort to redirect her thoughts. Common sense told her to say no, because everything in the warm, intimate way he looked at her, the things he said to her—Lord, the things he said—warned that she could fall hard for the boy she’d crushed on back in the day. Except she had no doubt that by the end of the week, Wildman Mac, a man always on a quest for excitement, would get bored and move on to someone else.

But there was another part of her, one that was a little curious to know what it would be like to spend a week with him and play out a few of her journal entries. It wasn’t like she hadn’t thought about that kiss over the years, or imagined what it would feel like to have those rugged hands of his on her body, touching her in ways she craved, ways she’d written down but never had the nerve to explore.

The more she thought about it, and well, yes, the way he kept using that scruff on his jaw as a weapon of temptation, the better it sounded. She was a big girl, knew the score. She’d be a fool to pass on an opportunity to have her sexual fantasies acted out by a man who’d played a lead role in them more times than not. As long as she knew what she was getting herself into, was careful not to get too close to a man known for his love ’em and leave ’em playboy ways, she could walk away with her body thrumming from satisfaction and her heart completely intact.

The truth was, with no yoga classes scheduled for the next week because her business was failing, and no man waiting to warm her bed, she had no reason to return back home. She pulled the country air into her lungs, letting it relax her as she warmed to the idea of staying. There was no doubt she could use a break from the stresses at home, and the thoughts of losing her business scared her. She’d worked so hard to start it, and after investing every cent she had, watching it fail would tear her apart.

“What do you say?” he asked as he angled his head and twirled a strand of her hair around his thumb.

The back of his fingers grazed her cheek, and desire stirred within her, urging her to experiment with another side of herself, to put herself in this man’s hands. She swallowed and worked to sound casual when she asked, “What are your terms?”

He gave her his infamous bad-boy grin, and need settled deep into her core as his eyes devoured her with heat and hunger. “Let me lead the way, no questions asked.”

She sucked in a quick breath and considered what he was saying, what he was asking of her. Honestly, it was so outrageous. So exciting. So utterly tempting.

“What if I don’t like where you’re leading me?”

His sexy grin widened. “You will.”

“But what if I don’t?”

“All you have to do is say stop.” His eyes held hers, full of promise and sincerity. “If you’ll trust me, I’ll give you a week you’ll never forget.”

A shiver of heat moved through her as his self-assured, dominating attitude awakened something primal inside her. “Pretty confident, aren’t you?”

His eyes flared hot. “Yes.”

With him caged between her legs as that one word bounced around inside her head, she thought about the places he could take her, all the deliciously naughty ways Wildman Mac could draw her out of her shell and help her find the courage to do things she’d only ever dreamed of doing.

“Say yes.”

She opened her mouth, and while that little voice in her head told her to say no—everything inside her screamed that his proposal was ludicrous, and that she should get on the next plane and go home—there was another part that urged her to kick caution in the ass and say, farewell my old friend, but you are outta here! After all, what had her shy and quiet, bore-me-to-tears nature done for her? She was still single and her business was on the brink of bankruptcy. As for her love life? Well, hell. It was bankrupt, too.

“Well?” he asked, and leaned in closer, his body brushing hers in the most provocative ways.

“So I have to do everything you ask?”

“Everything,” he said. A long pause and then, “Do we have a deal?”

Her heart raced, heat and desire zinging through her bloodstream. Even though she was nervous, completely apprehensive about the whole situation, the ravenous way he was looking at her told her she’d be crazy to turn down such a delicious proposition. After all, when would another one like it ever present itself?

Suddenly excited by the prospect of giving herself over to Mac for one full week and realizing how eager she was to experience something new and to discover what he had in store for her, she fought down the unease and wet her bottom lip.