Show & Tell

Admittedly, he’d always thought her gorgeous. The first time he’d met her, he’d felt the familiar tug of attraction. But then she’d blasted him with a frigid blue stare and she’d opened her sarcastic mouth, and he’d never entertained another amorous thought about her. That’s why he’d chosen her for this trip, dammit, and yet the moment his lips had met hers he’d gone into a molecular meltdown. He’d wanted to show her how hot she made him, tell her how much he wanted her and…

And seconds after that mind-blowing kiss, Savannah had calmly offered criticism and then just as calmly returned to her lunch.

Knox was unequivocally stunned.

He’d been too bowled over by the impact of that kiss to even regulate his breathing, much less pretend that he hadn’t been affected…and she’d not only been unaffected, but apparently had been so unmoved by the experience that she’d been able to remain detached and offer advice.

Heat spreading up his neck, Knox loaded his own plate from the buffet and inwardly fumed. He’d always considered himself an attentive lover, had always prided himself on learning what techniques turned a woman on, what would give her pleasure. He liked a vocal partner, one who didn’t expect him to be a mind reader. He liked hearing what made a woman hot and enjoyed doing it for her even more. Throughout his career in the bedroom, he’d heard countless breathy pleas—harder, faster, there and there, and almost and oh, God, there! Touch, suck, lick and nibble, even spank, he’d heard it all.

But never—never—had he ever had a woman criticize his kiss.

His kiss had always been above reproach, with no room for improvement. Though most men considered kissing as a simple means to an end—Knox included, most of the time—he’d nonetheless made it a point to excel at that particular form of foreplay.

Ask any man and he’d tell you that, given the choice of having his tongue in a woman’s mouth, or his hand in her panties, the panties would win hands down every time. That was the ultimate goal, after all, and men were linear thinkers. Point A to point B in the most economical fashion.

Sure they might get distracted by a creamy breast and pouty nipple, might even linger around a delightful belly button for a few seconds, but settling oneself firmly between a woman’s thighs was always, without question, the ultimate goal.

While kissing Savannah a few moments ago—though the kiss couldn’t have lasted more than thirty seconds—Knox’s thoughts had immediately leaped ahead to the grand finale. He’d already imagined plunging dick first into the tight, wet heat of her body. Had been anticipating her own phenomenally cataclysmic release as well as his.

While she’d been critiquing his kiss.

Knox had never anticipated being attracted to her and had known that she wasn’t attracted to him, had chosen her for that particular reason. But having the knowledge confirmed in such a humiliating fashion wasn’t an easy pill to swallow. Particularly since he’d all but devoured her and had made such a horny ass out of himself. Jesus. After that lusty display, there couldn’t be one shred of doubt in her mind about how he’d reacted to her. How hot he’d been for her.

All due to a simple kiss she hadn’t even enjoyed.

Simmering with indignation once more, Knox cast a sidelong glance at the object of his present irritation. Savannah’s cheeks were a little pink—obviously embarrassed by his zealous response to their “test”—but aside from that, she appeared completely composed. She absently nibbled a cracker, her perceptive gaze roaming around the room people-watching, presumably looking for fodder for their story.

Which was exactly what he should be doing, Knox realized with an angry start. He mentally snorted. Undoubtedly she was already forming an angle, had already thought of an intro to their piece. Well, he’d have the most input, thank you very much. This story had been his brainchild, and if there had been any way he could have done it without her, he would have. And he wished he could have. They’d scarcely begun this damned workshop and already he’d become too distracted by the supposedly undistracting female he’d brought with him.

How screwed up was that?

“I hope you don’t plan to pout the entire afternoon,” Savannah said with a sardonic smile. “Honestly, Knox, it was only a small criticism. Surely that enormous ego of yours can take one minor unflattering assessment.”

Ignoring a surge of irritation, Knox mentally counted to three, then arranged his face into its typically amiable expression. “Pout?”

Her eyes narrowed, clearly seeing through his innocent look. “Yes, pout. You’ve been glowering at the room at large for the past five minutes. Jeez, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” She neatly bit the end off a stalk of celery. Her lips twitched. “Frankly, I wasn’t aware that you had any.”

Ah…back to familiar ground. Knox forced a smile, affected a negligent shrug, though he longed to wrap his hands around her throat and throttle her. He’d learned to appreciate her acidic sarcasm, but right now he wasn’t in the proper humor to applaud her clever witticisms. He ignored her last comment and decided a change of subject was in order.

“So, what’s your initial impression of the Sheas?” Knox asked.

Savannah winced, wiped a bit of salad dressing from the corner of her luscious lips. “They’re what I expected…but then again they’re not.” She paused consideringly. “I don’t know. It’ll take more than a welcome speech for me to make an accurate assessment.”