Suddenly, Zeke pulled back. He was still again, his hands back around her waist and unmoving. He held her gaze for a few intense seconds, then he smiled and said, “For a first move, that one was damn impressive.”
Jo giggled in surprised relief. “Really?”
“Hell yeah, angel.”
He moved his hands up her body, up the sides of her breasts to rest lightly on her bare shoulders. She shivered at his warm touch, wanting to feel it all over her body, over every inch of her skin. That was when her fear just dissipated like dew in morning sunshine, just fell away like scales on her eyes. She suddenly understood that she wanted and needed this, and that she wasn’t going to feel afraid or ashamed about what she wanted and needed.
She’d spent enough years of her life steeped in fear and shame. That e
