Leaving her and Ronin alone.

First thing he did was back her against the wall. The kiss started out slow. A lazy twining of tongues. But it picked up steam and soon they were kissing like maniacs. He stopped kissing her long enough to say, “Need you naked.”

“Which is an awesome idea, but we have to clean up and put this food away first.”

“Can’t it wait an hour?”

“No. Because once I hit the sheets with you, I won’t want to crawl back out. And the thought of facing this mess on a Monday morning is crazy-making enough that I won’t enjoy getting naked with you if it’s not done.”

“Fine.” Ronin backed up. “What do you want me to do?”

“Be my pack mule. Take the tables and chairs from the roof back down into the office.”

He made a braying sound before he disappeared up the stairs.

CHAPTER TEN

AFTER she’d finished setting the kitchen to rights, Amery drained the remnants of her wine cooler and tossed the bottle in the recycling bin. When she turned around, Ronin was so close she bumped into him. “Hey there, ninja.”

“You really had no idea I was behind you?”

“No. You are just too damn good at that stealth thing.”

“Years of practice.” Ronin tucked a tendril of her hair behind her ear, then ran his finger down the arch of her neck. “This is so pretty and tempting, but I’ll admit I like your hair worn down.”

“Why?”

“Because a true strawberry blond is such a unique color. It complements your beautiful face so well and gives it an extra glow.”

“You say the sweetest things sometimes, Ronin.”

“The other reason I like your hair down is that I’ve fantasized about having these silken tresses wrapped around my fist as I’m f**king you.”

A curl of need unfurled in her belly.

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

“I like everything you do to me.” Amery pressed her palms against his pectorals and rubbed the heels of her hands against his ni**les. “But that brings up a point I wanted to talk to you about.”

He said nothing. Some of the warmth bled from his eyes.

“Thursday night was amazing.” She raised her chin a notch. “You’ve been stingy on giving me equal time in touching you. So if you’re staying with me tonight? I demand full access to your body. I expect you’ll let me touch and kiss and play with it as much as I want.”

Ronin placed his hand on the side of her face, letting his thumb trace the lower curve of her lip. “Demanding something that intimate from me when you’ve got a pretty red blush heating your cheeks is enough to make a man lose his head entirely.”

“But not you.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I want your hands on me.” His gaze dropped to her lips. “I’ve imagined my c**k buried in your mouth many times. Dreamed of your hair teasing my skin as you’re jacking me off. So, beautiful, you can drag me to your bed right now and do what you will with me.”

“Really?”

“With one exception.”

His thumb made those gentle sweeps on the inside of her lip, and her blood heated as she remembered him stroking her pu**y the exact same way.

“I direct how you use this mouth when you blow me.”

Amery didn’t bristle. In fact, his demand for control took the pressure off her. She wouldn’t have to worry if she was doing a good job, because truth was, her experience in that area was pretty slim. “Okay.”

“You humble me.” Ronin kissed her. “Is everything locked downstairs? Because once we’re in your bed we’re not leaving until morning.”

“All locked, including the door between my office and my loft to keep Chaz out.”

“Good.” He let his mouth drift over her ear and whispered, “Take me to your bed, Amery.”

She threaded their fingers together and led him to her bedroom. No nerves, she sternly told herself. No holding back either. She’d touch and taste to her heart’s content.

Normally she’d only leave on one lamp for softer light, but tonight she flipped on the overhead track lighting. She wanted to see every inch of him.

Before she could command him to start stripping, he said, “You look gorgeous in this dress. I believe it’s my privilege to take it off.” He tugged at the sash tied in the back; then he unzipped her. The sound seemed so loud in the expectant silence between them. The material slipped down her arms, clearing her br**sts and hips before the dress pooled on the floor.

His fingertip followed the waistband of her poppy-colored panties. Goose bumps broke out across her skin when he traced the back band of her bra. “Pretty.”

“I like my bra and panties to match.”

His breath teased her ear. “I was talking about your skin.”

“Oh.” Amery stepped out of the full skirt at her feet and bent over to pick it up. She draped the dress over the ladder-back chair and faced him.

When she started to remove her bra, he shook his head. “Leave your sexy lingerie on for a bit.” He swept the back of his knuckles down the swell of her scant cle**age. “It’ll serve as a barrier to keep me from f**king you blind.” That intense black gaze locked on hers. “For a little while anyway.”

She gestured to his dark brown polo. “Off.”

Ronin yanked it over his head and threw it on the floor.