THE WILDE SIDE Page 2

  The short white miniskirt she was wearing afforded him a glimpse of her smooth, slender thighs. Enjoying the view, he slowly slid his gaze upward. His mouth went dry as he took in curvaceous hips, a slim waist, and a top that molded to generous, perfectly rounded breasts and showed the faint outline of her nipples pressing against the pink, stretchy fabric.

  Her face was classically beautiful, and even from a distance her skin looked creamy and flawless. Her hair, the color of rich butterscotch, appeared as though she'd just tumbled from some man's bed ... and wouldn't mind tumbling right back in.

  And damn if he didn't want to be that man.

  She had soft, full lips and a sweet mouth designed to give a man all kinds of erotic pleasure. The thought caused his stomach to tighten with awareness and made other parts of his male anatomy leap to attention, as well.

  Finally, he met her gaze, surprised to see that she was staring at him, too, from across the barroom. Then she smiled like an angel – a direct contradiction to her blatantly seductive appearance.

  Momentarily taken aback by that contrast, Scott studied her more objectively. Outwardly, there was no denying she was a combustible combination of temptation and original sin, yet there was something about her, a barely perceptible level of uncertainty he detected that told him she was completely out of her element. Despite the sexy clothes and her attempt at fitting in, her entire appearance made him think of a brilliant diamond nestled amongst dull rhinestones.

  The distinction intrigued him like nothing had in a very long time – especially when pertaining to a woman – and this one undeniably piqued his curiosity, right along with his libido.

  A young, good-looking guy who frequented Nick's Sports Bar approached her, his gait cocky and way too confident, as if he thought he was God's gift to women. His name was Tom, and Scott and his brothers and cousins had nicknamed him appropriately "The Tomcat," because he was always on the prowl for a new conquest.

  The blonde's gaze shifted from Scott's to the other man's, and her smile visibly faltered. Tomcat leaned close and said something to her that made her stiffen and take a step back.

  She shook her head, and Scott read the words, "No, thank you," that formed on her lips.

  Score one for the angel, he thought in amusement. He was gratified to see that she had great instincts when it came to men. And those types were obviously of no interest to her. Which made him wonder all the more what had brought her to a casual, off-the-beaten-path place like Nick's.

  Pulling her shoulders back determinedly, she started toward the brass-and-mahogany bar, walking with an elegance and grace that made her look as though she was gliding across a ballroom instead of a crowded barroom. Yet another contradiction when compared to every other woman in the place. Her hips swayed gently, her long, toned legs took confident steps, and her full breasts jiggled with just enough bounce to make Scott entertain the thought of how those soft mounds would feel in his hands, his mouth....

  The thought made him hard, and he bent low to make his shot, as well as to hide his reaction to the blonde with the centerfold curves.

  Joel groaned, echoing Scott's sentiments. "Lordy, she has a body that makes me want to fall to my knees and beg."

  Alex snickered from where he sat on a nearby bar stool as he watched the game of pool in progress between his older brothers. "More like howl like the dog you are," he ribbed good-naturedly.

  "Whatever works to get myself a treat or two." Joel shrugged unapologetically and took a long drink of his beer.

  "Would you guys knock it off." Scott made his shot and sank a solid ball into the corner pocket, even as he watched from his peripheral vision as the woman slid her trim backside onto a seat at the bar and ordered a drink, then crossed one long leg over the other. "You're acting as though you've never seen a good-looking woman before."

  "Either you've gone blind or you've turned into a monk," Joel said incredulously. "She's not just good-looking. We're talking hot. Sizzling hot. And it looks like a few guys in this place are trying to get lucky with her."

  Sure enough, another guy sauntered up to the blonde to hit on her. Scott felt unjustifiably aggravated, then alternately pleased when she turned him down, too. Her drink, something pink in a cocktail glass, was delivered, and she took a sip as she glanced around the bar. Her gaze found his again, and that brief eye contact between them was stunning in its intensity and sent a surge of heat spreading through his veins ... until another guy stepped in front of the woman and put an end to their silent, and too brief, connection.

  "Come on, Scott," Alex said, drawing Scott's attention back to his brothers and the next shot he was about to take. "I've got Dana who is pretty damn sexy, and I can still appreciate a little eye candy. You can't be immune to that hot little package up at the bar."

  No, he wasn't immune at all. A man had to be dead or seriously dysfunctional not to react to the woman – and it was obvious that the steady stream of guys approaching her at the bar felt the same way. He'd seen at least five men try their best to capture her interest, only to bite the dust with a rejection. But that didn't stop others from trying their luck with her.

  "You know," Alex contemplated thoughtfully. "If she doesn't grab your attention or make you feel a bit hot under the collar, then that's proof that you've been way too long without a woman."

  Scott lifted an inquisitive brow Alex's way, unwilling to admit to anything. "And how would you know how long it's been?"

  "Hell, Scott, you're my brother, and I work with you every day of the week. That's how I know." Alex grabbed a few peanuts from the bowl on the table and cracked them open. "When I take off for the night you're still in your office, pouring over plans and estimates and bids that could wait until the next morning. Trust me, if you had a woman you wanted to be with, like I do with Dana, you'd be on your way out of the office the minute the doors are locked for the night and the phones have stopped ringing."

  "You know we have that big job coming up for bid this next week," Scott said, defending himself and his reasons for spending so much time at the office lately. "It's a top priority if we want to expand the business to include commercial structures and renovations. I'm determined to get the job, and that means making sure our estimates are as tight as possible."

  But to his brother's credit, Scott had to admit that Alex's comment hit too close to the truth. It had been over two years since Elaine had duped him in a major way and shattered his trust, and since then he'd focused all his excess time and energy into the family business, instead of women. He'd gone out on a few dates, but none of them had turned into anything serious, mainly because none of those ladies had stimulated his interest longer than a few weeks, tops.

  Ultimately, he was a one-woman kind of man, and playing the field wasn't his thing. Never had been. He'd just turned thirty-three that year, and the singles' scene no longer appealed to him, either – unlike his younger brother Joel, an ex-Marine turned security specialist who claimed to enjoy being a bachelor and all the perks that went with it. Which meant a new flavor every month.

  But this woman at the bar ... she made him feel restless. Hungry. Aroused. And it had been forever since anyone of the female gender had elicited that kind of response from him. She tempted him and would no doubt haunt his dreams tonight, leaving him hard and aching by the time he woke tomorrow morning.

  Inhaling a deep breath, he eyed the eight ball and called the side pocket just as Alex piped in with, "Damn, another one crashed and burned."

  Joel chuckled. "She's a tough lady to please."

  A woman who was picky and selective. Not a bad thing in Scott's estimation, and her critical opinion said enough about her character to let him know that she was discriminate when it came to the opposite sex. Just as he was.

  "Maybe she just needs to be introduced to the right guy," Scott said, and lined up the final shot for the game win.

  "You know, I think you're absolutely right," Joel drawled, and leaned his black-jean-clad hip against th
e far end of the pool table, cue in hand. "Why don't you go and see how far the Wilde charm gets you? And just to make things more interesting and give you an added incentive, here's fifty bucks saying you'll go down in flames, right along with all those other guys." Withdrawing the cash from his wallet, Joel set it on the table.

  "Count me in, too," Alex said, and raised his bottle of beer to Scott before taking a drink.

  It was a direct challenge, and none of the Wilde men ever backed down from a dare. Which was precisely why his brother had issued the bet in the first place, to goad Scott into approaching the woman and provide Joel and Alex with a bit of amusing entertainment for the evening. And for a hundred bucks, Scott decided he was willing to take a chance that there was a whole lot more substance behind the seductive looks that had passed between him and the blonde.

  Scott made his shot, smacking the eight ball solidly into the side pocket, winning him the game. With a smug smile, he picked up the two tens on the table that had been riding on the game and tucked them into the front pocket of his jeans.

  "Since I seem to be on a winning streak tonight, you're both on." And if his luck held out, it would prove to be one helluva interesting evening. "Get ready to suck it up and pay up, boys."

  Chapter 2

  In all her life, Ashley had never been the recipient of what had to be some of the worst pickup lines in dating history. Neither had she ever gone to a bar to deliberately troll for men, and it was becoming increasingly obvious to her that she'd underestimated the singles' scene outside of polite society.

  She'd been approached by half a dozen men so far, none of which had sparked the slightest twinge of interest – sexual or otherwise. They were all too slick and cocky, their arrogance nearly palpable, making it much too easy to turn down their advances.

  Sighing, she turned her gaze back to the gaming area of the bar to take another glimpse of the only guy in the establishment who'd made her feel hot and bothered – just by the smoldering heat she'd seen in his expression the few times their eyes had met from across the room. She was startled to find that he was heading her way, which immediately gave way to a heart-pounding thrill that vibrated throughout her entire body.

  Oh, yeah, he could very well be the one, she thought as she silently appreciated his lean, rock-solid physique and his confident stride that seemed to keep time with the music the band was playing. The tan cotton T-shirt he wore clung to his broad shoulders and tapered to a flat stomach, and his well-worn jeans were snug in all the right places, accentuating narrow hips and hard, strong-looking thighs. There was a rugged edge about him, just enough to give her the impression that he was the kind of bad boy she was looking for tonight.

  She took a drink of her Cosmopolitan, licked her lips, and slowly dragged her gaze back up to his face. His gorgeous, masculine features were backdropped by thick black hair that looked as though it had been repeatedly finger combed. He also had one of the most sensual looking mouths she'd ever seen on a man.

  He was, undoubtedly, what her girlfriends would have labeled the full package. And as he neared, she felt her breathing deepen, felt her body warm and soften ... her skin tingle.

  Instantaneous attraction.

  Sexual magnetism.

  It was all there, clamoring inside her, making her squirm restlessly on the bar stool in anticipation. She prayed that he wouldn't lay a cheesy pickup line on her and ruin what was finally beginning to look like a very promising evening – because if he did, she was out of there and on to new territory.

  He came to a stop directly in front of her, his jean-clad thigh barely brushing her bare knees, making her completely and totally aware of him and his overwhelming presence. Very casually, he placed one hand on the edge of the bar beside her, his wide shoulders blocking her view of everything except him.

  Not that she minded. This close, she could see that his irises were a beautiful, vivid shade of blue, shot with shards of deep gold and rimmed in black. His eyes were intense and compelling, and she felt seared straight to her soul.

  Then his full lips curved into a sexy, disarming smile that made her melt inside. She held her breath, captivated by his gaze and that arresting grin of his as she waited for him to speak first.

  "I'm going to go out on a limb here," he said, his voice a deep, delicious baritone that made her think of smooth, rich Godiva chocolate dissolving on her tongue. "And I'm going to be completely up front and honest with you."

  With a lead-in line like that, she was certain he was heading toward a clever come-on, and she tried not to let her smile prematurely turn into a grimace of disappointment. She was determined to give him a fair chance to speak, just as she had all the others.

  She tipped her head and prompted, "I'm listening."

  "After watching you turn down so many guys, my brothers over there made a bet that I wouldn't fare much better." His blue eyes twinkled charmingly, transforming him from sexy Adonis to boyishly adorable in a flash. "I've got a hundred bucks riding on this, and if you'd be so kind as to pretend that you're interested in me for just a half hour or so, I'd be happy to split the profits with you."

  She stifled a burst of amused laughter at his outrageous proposal, and one quick glance over his broad shoulder at the two good-looking men standing at the pool table watching them so intently was enough to confirm his claim.

  She couldn't believe they'd placed an actual wager on her ... but it was this man's truthful, straightforward approach that earned her respect and increased the odds in his favor. Instead of allowing her to be the brunt of a humiliating bet, he was letting her know right up front what was going on so she didn't end up looking like a fool later.

  How could she not appreciate such a considerate overture – not to mention the fact that he was willing to split his earnings with her – except it wasn't his cash that she was after?

  She told him as much. "I don't want your money."

  "Okay." He nodded in understanding, and obviously taking her comment as a rejection, he started to pull back, his regret tangible. "Can't blame a guy for trying."

  Without thinking, she grabbed a fistful of his shirt before he could step away, shocking herself with her assertive action when she'd never been so forward with a man before. Then again, wasn't she supposed to be brazen and bold tonight – the kind of confident woman who knew what she wanted and wasn't afraid to go after it?

  And what she wanted was him.

  Letting go of his shirt, she splayed her hand on his chest. He was hot and hard beneath her palm, his body a work of honed muscles and sculpted planes. He was, undoubtedly, one hundred percent virile male. "I may not want your money, but I do appreciate your honesty about the bet."

  He lifted a questioning brow "Do I detect an 'and' in there somewhere?" he drawled hopefully.

  He most certainly did, and she seized the opportunity to turn up the seduction a few notches and see where it led the two of them. "And ... I'm very interested in you." Summoning a sultry smile, she trailed a manicured finger down the center of his taut abdomen to the leather belt cinching the waistband of his jeans. His gaze darkened with heat, and the muscles along his belly shifted and rippled beneath her tantalizing touch, making her own nipples pucker tight in response. "No pretending about it."

  He lowered his hand to her knee and feathered the callused tips of his fingers along the expanse of smooth thigh bared by her short skirt, giving back as good as she was dishing out to him, and increasing the slow-building attraction between them. "Well then, if it's not my money you want, how can I repay you?"

  "Actually, you already have." She released a grateful sigh. "The men in this place are finally backing off."

  He laughed, the unmistakable humor in his tone giving her another glimpse of a man who was not only forthright, but seemed to have a playful side, as well. "You definitely caused quite a stir with your entrance."

  She detected more to his statement than a simple comment, and she considered asking him what he meant, but then his long fi
ngers drew lazy, arousing circles along the inside of her knee, scattering her thoughts. Desire took hold, coiling low and deep inside her. She ached to uncross her legs in a very unladylike manner, just so she could feel the stroke of his hands skimming their way higher, to the place that was suddenly pulsing with heat and need.

  So, this was lust, she thought with amazement ... and it felt so good, so thrilling and exciting and forbidden, she wanted to drown in the sensation.

  He lifted his hand and gently curled his warm fingers along the side of her neck, holding her in place. She watched, mesmerized, as he slowly dipped his head toward hers, and her heart thumped erratically in her chest. At first, she thought he was going to kiss her, but he bypassed her parted lips and grazed his jaw along hers, until his mouth came to rest right up against the shell of her ear.

  She heard him inhale deeply, filling his lungs with the scent of her skin and hair before releasing it in a long, slow exhale and murmuring into her ear, "Care to join me out on the dance floor so those other guys can eat their hearts out and wish they were me?"

  The moment was incredibly sensual, so sweetly intimate in a way she never would have expected. His breath was hot and damp against the side of her neck, his voice so rough-and-rumble sexy she couldn't stop the shiver that coursed through her – didn't want to, actually. She wanted to experience everything this man, and this night, had to offer.

  And part of that was letting everyone know that he was the lucky recipient of her affections – including his betting brothers. "I'd love to dance with you."

  Grasping her hand in his, he led her out to the crowded dance floor. There wasn't much extra room without bumping into someone, but Ashley didn't mind the close proximity that caused their bodies to brush frequently and heightened the sexual tension between them. It had been too long since she'd gone out dancing, and it didn't take her long to lose herself in the throbbing tempo of the music infusing her entire being.