‘Thank you.’
She tilted her head back to take a sip of her champagne and Matt’s gaze dropped to her throat. Soft and creamy skin. Completely exposed. He curled his hands into fists deep in his pockets to stop himself reaching out, pulling her against him and setting his mouth to the pulse thumping at the base of her neck.
Then she lowered her glass and shot him a languid look and a smouldering smile that set his body on fire. ‘Are you all right, Matt?’
He pulled himself together. ‘Fine. Why?’
‘You look a little uncomfortable.’
‘Just a trifle warm.’
‘So why are you glowering? This is a party. You shouldn’t be glowering.’
‘It’s my party. I can do whatever I like.’
Her smile deepened. Turned faintly knowing, and Matt’s pulse hammered. Would anyone notice if he hauled her away somewhere private to continue the party alone?
‘Well, you must be busy,’ she said, her voice unusually husky. ‘Don’t let me keep you.’
‘You aren’t.’
‘Great speech.’
Had it been? He couldn’t remember. Her gaze shimmered at him with something he couldn’t identify but made desire pound through him.
Matt’s head swam. What on earth had got into her tonight? Where had this sultry hauteur sprung from? And what was he going to do about it?
‘This is a lovely room,’ she said, looking up and giving him another view of her throat.
‘I don’t want t
o talk about the room,’ he grated.
If she was surprised by his tone, she didn’t show it. In fact her eyes began to sparkle with something that looked suspiciously like triumph. Which only wound him up further. ‘Then what do you want to talk about?’
He didn’t want to talk at all. ‘Why did you dash off like that earlier?’ he said, drawing on the first thing that sprang to mind.
Laura lifted her shoulders and Matt had to force himself not to glance down. ‘Things to do.’
His eyes narrowed. ‘Running away from me seems to be becoming a habit.’
‘Not at all. You simply reminded me of my place, that’s all.’
Matt frowned. What the hell did that mean? Her place was in his arms. Beneath him. On top of him. Whichever way, plastered against him was where she should be.
His jaw clenched as the desire pounding through him grew hotter, more insistent.
He’d had enough of this. Enough of the eyelash batting and the sultry little smiles. Enough of the hammering desire and tight tension keeping him awake all night and ruining his concentration all day. Enough of trying to resist her.
For whatever reason, Laura was in a dangerous mood tonight and, despite his best efforts to hang on to it, Matt’s control was slipping away like sand through an hourglass. He’d never felt such a need clawing at his gut. Never felt such desperation. Never had so little desire for conversation.
To hell with the entrepreneurs. He’d done plenty to ease their concerns. Now it was his turn.
Stepping forward, Matt took her elbow and pulled her against him.
‘What are you doing?’ Laura muttered, her breath catching.
‘We’re leaving,’ he said as the scent of her spun into his head and obliterated all rational thought. ‘We can’t.’