3

Anna's blush returned, though she ignored it as fixedly as she’d ignored it the first time. If he could be perfectly calm about this, then so could she.

“Yes, I believe so.” She threw him a disapproving look. “There’s not much to look at after all.” She expected him to be annoyed or even a little chagrined. He was not.

Instead, he laughed, and the sound hit her like a shock, wrapping around her, deep and dark as melted chocolate. And all she could think was that she’d never heard anyone laugh like that. In fact, it had been a long time since she’d heard anyone laugh at all.

“Far be it from me to disagree,” he said, “but the blush in your cheeks would seem to indicate otherwise.”

Oh, yes, he’s very dangerous.

That laugh of his was still resounding through her entire body, like she was a tuning fork he’d just struck, and she couldn’t understand why. She couldn’t understand her response to him at all. She only knew that some instinct inside her was urging her to get away from him and as quickly as possible.

However, Anna had given up listening to her instincts, because they were always wrong. And besides, running away would be to acknowledge that this man had got to her in some way, and she could never allow that.

“The blush in my cheeks has more to do with being suddenly accosted by a naked stranger than anything else,” she said. “You could put on your shorts, you know.”

He raised one straight dark brow. “You could also turn around.”

Anna ignored the burning in her cheeks. “It’s a bit late for that now, isn’t it?”

“Indeed.” The glitter of amusement in his eyes changed, shifting into something else, something more intense. “In that case you won’t mind if I take my time about it.” He tilted his head again and, though his gaze didn’t move from her face, she felt as if he’d scanned every inch of her body. “Feel free to resume blackberry picking. Or you could stay and watch me dress. Either isn’t a problem for me.”

She opened her mouth to tell him that she certainly wouldn’t be staying, but he didn’t wait for her to respond, instead turning and going over to where a pair of black running shorts and expensive-looking running shoes sat. Then he began to dress in an unhurried fashion. His movements had an athletic grace to them that held her oddly mesmerized and she realized after a couple of moments that, far from resuming her blackberry picking as she’d fully intended, she was in fact standing there doing exactly the opposite.

This was ridiculous.

“I’m going now,” she announced, both to herself and to him.

He didn’t respond, bending to tie the laces of his running shoes, black hair gleaming in the sun. Yet her feet wouldn’t move. It was as if her body had a mind of its own and what it wanted was to stay near him, which made no sense whatsoever. She’d had a couple of crushes on boys back in high school, but not since. She didn’t have either the time or the inclination for such things, not when her primary focus was looking after her father and earning enough money to cover their expenses. That was far more important than mooning over some man, so why she was still here, fascinated by this particular man, she had no idea.

He rose again, his T-shirt still in one hand. He made no move to put it on and when he turned to face her, his incredible body still mostly on show, he didn’t smile.

And all of a sudden Anna was certain that the danger she’d sensed from him before was about to make itself known and bizarrely, instead of fear, a sensation that felt a lot like excitement curled through her.

You know this is wrong. Walk away.

But the air between them was thickening with the strangest kind of tension. Hot and electric, like the atmosphere just before a summer storm. She needed to leave, get away from him and his disturbing presence. Get away from the rush of what should not be excitement that crowded in her throat and from the fluttering in her stomach that felt like the wings of a thousand butterflies all beating at once. Get away from this physical response that she knew was wrong and bad for her, yet could not ignore, no matter how hard she tried. But she didn’t move. She stayed exactly where she was.

He started towards her like a great panther stalking its prey, moving with purpose, approaching her without any hesitation, coming so close that she could see drops of water glistening on his skin where he hadn’t finished drying himself. She could smell, too, the fresh scent of the lake on him, undercut with something warmer, spicier and deeply masculine.

Her breath caught. Did men always smell this good or was it just him? He was so tall she had to tilt her head back to look at him, which she couldn’t recall ever having to do with anyone before.

“Look at you.” His deep voice was soft and warm with a familiarity that held her rooted to the spot. “You have leaves in your hair.” He reached up and she was powerless to stop him as he casually extracted something from the tangle down her back. “You are very beautiful,” He added, as he extracted another leaf. Then without any hesitation he slid the fingers of one hand into her hair and closed them into a fist, holding her firmly but very gently, the slight pressure making her tilt her head back ever further.

Anna was absolutely transfixed, her heartbeat so loud she couldn’t hear anything else. Couldn’t see anything else but the darkening of his eyes. She’d never been touched like that before. Never had a man stand so close she could feel his heat, smell his warm, spicy scent. Never had strong fingers in her hair, carefully securing her.

Hunger rose inside her, forbidden and hot and desperate, though for what she had absolutely no idea, and it scared her.

Cedric watched her. The glint in her eyes had gone molten, like liquid gold in the sunlight, and her cheeks were flushed. Her mouth looked full, as if begging to be kissed, and he could see the fast beat of her pulse at the base of her throat.