Midnight Jewels

dragged off to bed like this." "It seems to be the only way to get you there." She didn't use her heel this time, she used her whole foot. Mercy hooked it around his ankle and tugged violently. Croft didn't lose his balance, but he finally lost his temper.
    "That does it," he said between clenched teeth. "If you want to do this the hard way, we'll do it the hard way." He swung her off her feet and into his arms, ignoring her wriggling, twisting efforts to free herself.
    In two strides he reached the bed and tossed her lightly down across the rumpled sheets. Her bare legs dangled over the edge. Before Mercy could scramble out of the way, Croft stepped between her knees. He spread his own legs into a wide stance that had the instant effect of prying Mercy's thighs far apart. Her prim cotton nightgown was scrunched up around her buttocks, providing no modesty or protection at all. Mercy lay open and vulnerable, her hair tumbled around her shoulders, her eyes widening with the realization that she might have gone too far. Hands on hips, Croft stood looking down at her.
    Mercy caught her breath at the implacable, deeply sensual expression that etched his mouth and filled the bottomless pools of his eyes. She could feel the new level of tension radiating from him. He was no longer the cool, calculating lover who had entered her bedroom intent upon a cold-blooded seduction. She had his full attention now, on every level. She tried to tell herself it was what she had wanted, but the assurance didn't do much to cut through the belated sense of wariness that was growing in the pit of her stomach.
    When all was said and done, she knew very little about Croft Falconer. She was taking chances with a stranger that she hadn't ever taken before in her life with any man. She was trusting her instincts when she probably ought to be listening to reason.
    "Anything else you learned in that self-defense class you'd like to try before we stop playing games?" Croft asked with silky menace.
    Mercy levered herself up on her elbows, aware of the crisp hair of his legs against the inside of her wantonly spread thighs. She felt so very vulnerable. "If you think I'm going to give you any advance notice of the next move, you're indulging in wishful thinking. You'd better be very careful of what you decide to do next."
    His eyes glittered as he shoved his briefs down off his hips and kicked them aside. "Don't worry, little witch, I'll be very, very careful." He reached out to touch her with one hand.
    Mercy stared, mesmerized by the sight of his huge, pulsing shaft as it thrust toward her. Then she flinched and gulped for breath as his fingers combed boldly through the triangle of dark hair that guarded her warm secrets. She was aware of the shocking, sweet sensitivity of his touch in every fiber of her body. It freed a wild excitement in her and at the same time reassured her. No man who ever touched a woman in this exquisitely sensitive way would ever hurt her.
    "Croft," she breathed, his name a whisper of longing in the darkness. Still braced on her elbows she trembled and knew he could feel the tremors in her legs as he stood between her thighs.
    "Do you like playing such dangerous games, sweetheart?" His touch became more intimate.
    He slid one finger across the small pleasure bud hidden in the soft hair and Mercy sucked in her breath. Part of her felt so excruciatingly vulnerable and sensitized that she didn't think she could bear the deliciously erotic caress. The other part of her wanted to arch her lower body closer to his hand in a silent plea for more. The conflicting sensations came together in a hot spiral of emotion. Not knowing which action she wanted to take, Mercy settled for the safer of the two. She used her elbows as a lever and tried to scramble backward on the bed.
    Croft's other hand grasped her upper leg and held her in place. "You're not going anywhere, honey. Not until you've apologized for all the trouble you've put me through tonight."
    "What about the trouble' you've put me through?"
    "Your problems have just begun," he informed her with deep satisfaction. He stroked his finger lower, finding his target easily.
    "Oh! Croft,
please
." Mercy gasped for bream and her nails dug into the rumpled sheets. Her eyes squeezed shut and her head tipped back as she felt his fingers tracing an intricate design around her heated flesh.
    "Please what? Please touch you here?" He parted her with the tip of his finger and Mercy shivered.