* * *

From across his kitchen table, Ryan watched Jessica reach for her second slice of the pepperoni-and-mushroom pizza he'd ordered for their dinner, take a big bite, and savor the Italian delicacy. He finished off his first piece, liking that she wasn't shy about her appetite, and had to admit that since their episode in the tub an hour earlier, a few notches in her reserve had evaporated, as well. There was a newfound confidence about her he found incredibly sexy, and it made him feel very optimistic about his decision to take time and care with Jessica before they elevated their relationship to a more sexual one.

They'd each taken separate showers after playing in the tub, to wash away the sticky chocolate from their bodies and hair. While he'd changed into gray sweatpants and shirt, she was wrapped in the warm chenille robe while her panties and bra tumbled in the dryer-which left her completely naked beneath the soft, voluminous folds of the robe.

At that tantalizing thought, a familiar heat rumbled through his veins, and he shifted in his chair to find a more comfortable position.

Jessica lifted her gaze to his, her eyes dancing with a carefree radiance that made his heart feel just as light. "Well, counselor, you're one tough attorney, I'll give you that. I think you can fairly claim victory over your most recent case."

He grinned, pleased that there weren't any kind of negative implications in her words against his profession, as there had been in past conversations. No matter how small the hurdle, her tentative acceptance was a promising start.

He tipped his head and regarded her curiously. "And which case is that?"

"Mypractical versusyour sensual." She licked sauce from the tips of her fingers in long, languorous laps he felt all the way to his groin. "You win.Again."

He narrowed his gaze, realizing she was testing her feminine wiles and deliberately enticing him with her slow, thorough attention to her fingers. He resisted the urge to demonstrate lesson number three-that if she teased a hungry tiger, he was certain to pounce and devour.

Exhaling a deep breath that did little to ease the coiling in his belly, he lifted another slice of pizza and set it on the plate in front of him. "That's because Ialways present my cases with irrefutable facts." He could see her absorbing the double meaning of his words, possibly realizing that he didn't purposely try to play the villain in any of his cases. "Utilizing indisputable evidence to the best of my ability is a sure way to win."

"So is knowing the other person's weaknesses, and using that evidence to take advantage of them."

Not an accusation, just a statement based on her own personal experience in the past. And there was just enough of a hint of vulnerability in her gaze to indicate that's exactly where her thoughts had wandered, to a childhood torn apart by the greed of her father and his attorney's quest to benefit his client.

Ryan thought carefully about his answer before replying. "Yes, some lawyers operate that way," he said, not wanting to lie to her, but neither did he want to incriminate himself. "But you can't judge all of us based on that one bad experience, not without giving me a fair chance and taking the time to gather some evidence of your own." Positive, enlightening evidence of him as just an ordinary, hardworking person, without the stigma of being an attorney.

It was a reasonable request, as well as a subtle challenge, and he was relieved and elated when she finally agreed with a quiet, "Okay."

He had no idea how they'd gotten so far off track, and he attempted to steer the subject back to a more pleasant one. "So, getting back to more important matters, ismy gift idea for Brooke and Marc worthy of your approval?"

"Oh, most definitely." She took a drink of her soda, and dazzled him with a provocative smile. "I'll never be able to take a bath again without thinking about you sharing it with me."

Oh, yeah, he liked the sound of that. He might not be there physically every time, but he'd settle for being a part of her fantasies.

Done with her third slice of pizza, she put her napkin on her plate and pushed it aside. "You know, between the cakes, and the bath, I don't think I can take much more of you proving me wrong."

He chuckled at the wry note to her voice, but he was beginning to think that he had something else to prove, to her, and himself-that they could find some kind of common ground which they could build from, beyond their sexual attraction.

Having learned that Jessica responded more favorably to demonstrative measures, he considered his next plan of attack. Reclining in his chair, and stretching his long legs in front of him, he allowed an easygoing smile to curve his lips. "Considering how intimate we got in my bathtub, what do I have to do to change your mind about attending my firm's Christmas party next weekend?"

"Oh, you've done quite enough," she said, her voice husky with satisfaction.

He laughed at her brazen comment and the innuendo behind it.

As if suddenly realizing what she'd revealed, she ducked her head, hiding the adorable blush coloring her cheeks. "I can't believe I just said that," she muttered.

His heart squeezed with affection, along with something deeper and more intrinsic that took him off guard. He didn't try and block the sensation as he would have in the past, but instead allowed whatever emotion it was to settle in for a longer stay. "Well, I was hoping since you're still feeling content and satiated, that maybe I could get lucky, too."

A honey-blond brow rose over an eye. "Oh?"

"Yeah," he said, ignoring the faint skepticism in her tone. "Go with me to my firm's party, Jessie."

Jessica's heart pounded so hard in her chest it hurt. What Ryan was asking was not conducive to her emotions and went against everything she believed in. But then again, what she'd allowed to happen upstairs in his bathtub, what she'd asked of him afterward, and what she was beginning to feel for him now, felt soright, no matter howwrong it was.

She should have flat-out refused as she had the other night, but a deeper longing held her back, made her wish that things could be different between them.

Needing something to keep her hands busy, she stood and stacked their plates, then carried them to the sink. "Why is it so important that I go with you at all?" She told herself she was merely curious, but knew she was searching for a reason to accept his invitation, no matter how hazardous to her heart that kind of involvement could prove to be. No more dangerous than her sleeping with him, she supposed.

He stood, too, and helped her clear the table. "After our discussion the other day about your parents, and what I do for a living, I'd really like to show you a different side to the profession, that most of us are just hardworking people trying to make a decent living, trying to help our clients. There's no pressure or expectations involved here, but I'm hoping you'd come away from the party with a whole new outlook on the profession."

His reasoning was straightforward, his motivations basic, catering to her insecurities and doubts. The man definitely had a way of hitting her softest spots, and she realized she wasn't immune to his attempts.

He tossed the cardboard pizza container into the trash and parked his hip on the counter beside the sink where she was washing their dishes. "This is the first time I've ever been invited to Haywood and Irwin's Christmas party. It's a black-tie affair, quite a privilege and a boost to my career, and quite honestly, there's no one else I want to share the evening with but you."

He wanted to share theevening with her. How could she have forgotten that his career was his main focus, not developing a lasting relationship? Not that she was asking him for a commitment, but the reminder did help to put things back into perspective-that her time with Ryan was only temporary.

That fact gave her the perfect excuse to accept his invitation and spend that much more time with him before they parted ways. She gave her head a rueful shake-she was crazy for considering his overture, crazier still for wanting to be with him, despite every reason she had to stay away. Yet just like the situation with the cakes, just like the seduction in his bathtub, she was helpless to resist him.

She struggled between following her desires, and listening to her conscience. Done with the dishes, she turned toward him and accepted the terry towel he gave her to dry her hands, and tried to do the smartthing. "You know, I'm really not a party type of person, Ryan, and I definitely don't have anything fancy to wear to a black-tie affair-"

He pressed two fingers over her lips as a lopsided grin creased his features. "If that's the best excuse you can come up with, then it's pretty lame."

She circled his wrist, pulled his hand away from her mouth, and immediately missed the warmth he generated. "It's the truth."

"Then leave the details to me and I'll make sure you have something appropriate to wear." Before she could argue, he slipped his hands into the front opening of her robe, just below the tie, and grasped her naked hips.

She inhaled a sharp breath, shocked at his bold, unexpected move, and at the fact that she was completely exposed from the waist down. She latched on to his forearms, uncertain what he intended. "What are you doing?" she asked breathlessly.

His dark brown eyes held hers, never looking lower, while his palms and fingers measured the indentation of her waist, the curve of her hip, and the slope of her bare bottom. The earlier warmth he'd created became a raging inferno, curling low in her belly and spreading outward with every languorous stroke of his hands. Yet though she wore not a stitch of clothing, he refrained from caressing her intimately, which seemed to make the experience more sensual, more arousing, more erotic.