Any Way You Want It by Kathy Love

hands tangled in the silkiness of his hair.
    Silk, steel, heat and desire—all she could comprehend.
    She moaned again. And this time, Ren lifted his head to look down at her.
    “Damn,” he murmured, the word almost reverent, and Maggie pulled in a ragged breath. Yes, that about summed it up. She’d never, never experienced anything as intense as that kiss.
    Desire sizzled in her limbs, in her very skin.
    “Maggie.” His voice sounded huskier. “Come back to my place.”
    She nodded. Yes. She wanted that desperately. She wanted to keep kissing him. She wanted to touch him. She wanted to feel him deep inside her.
    As soon as the thought registered in her brain, it shocked her. She’d never had thoughts like that about a man. Not even Peter, and she’d been with him for over five years. She’d planned to marry him. But he’d left her.
    “Come on,” Ren said as he rose and held his hand out for her. “I only live a block from here.”
    She remained on the bench, all her certainty gone.
    She couldn’t do this. She didn’t have the tools to deal with a fling. She’d dated Peter for nearly six months before they even got into heavy petting.
    Her gaze moved from Ren’s extended hand to his face. His hair was brushed back from his face in long waves, his cheeks and chin were starting to reveal hints of five o’clock shadow. The black shirt he wore strained against the muscles of his chest and shoulders. He was truly beautiful, and so far out of her realm of knowledge.
    She was willing to bet big money that he’d never even used the phrase “heavy petting,” much less waited six months to get to it. One-night stands were a way of life for him. She knew that as surely as she knew that they weren’t for her, as much as she’d wanted to believe otherwise.
    Especially when she looked at him.
    “Maggie?”
    She pulled in a deep breath, trying desperately to calm the conflicting emotions churning inside her. Begging her to go back into his arms, and in the next breath telling her to run as far away as she could.
    She couldn’t go with him. She was too…scared.
     
    “Ren, I can’t.” She pulled in another breath as her body ached at her words. “I just don’t think I’m a one-night stand kind of girl.”
    Ren didn’t speak, and for some reason, his silence hurt. Even though she hadn’t honestly expected him to offer her anything else. And what could he offer, really? She was here on vacation. He was a musician, who would have a new woman lusting after him tomorrow night, and the night after that.
    That idea solidified her decision. She couldn’t handle that. Other women. That would kill her.
    He stepped toward her, his heat reaching out to encompass her. He took her hands, tugging her to her feet.
    He leaned in and brushed his lips across hers. A brief fleeting touch that he didn’t deepen.
    Instead he straightened, studying her in a way that made her feel as if he could see right into her soul. Into her heart.
    “I know you aren’t,” he said, his voice resigned. She thought, hoped, that she heard disappointment.
    “I’m sorry,” she said. “I thought I could.”
    He stared at her for a moment longer, then looked away, his expression hidden in shadow. “I-I wish I had something different to offer you.”
    She wasn’t sure if he meant that, but the words were bittersweet consolation anyway. He didn’t have anything, and he wasn’t going to pretend. She appreciated his telling her the truth. She just wished the truth didn’t have that invariable habit of hurting like hell.
    “Come on,” he said after clearing his throat, “let me walk you back to your hotel.”
     
    Ren led Maggie down the street. He’d considered for half a second trying to persuade her to stay.
    He could. Easily. Vampires had that way about them. Especially the type he was.
    But instead, he widened the space between them, trying not to feel her energy. Trying not to crave it. Which was virtually impossible.
    Damn, she had