05 Desperate Match Read Online Free Page A

table lamp, two unlabeled bottles of water sat there sweating. The drug–laced water. He’d heard enough details of Adam and Loren’s matching to know he wanted no part of the drugged water. If he were to find his true match, both parties had to do it with their free will and with all their faculties intact. Sleeping with a woman drugged to desire him wasn’t in his game plan.
    “Rowan, we should have sex.” Jill pulled the T–shirt over her head, revealing a nice handful of breasts with nipples so pretty, pink, and pale. She took a step toward him and got to work on the button of his jeans. She didn’t have to fumble with a belt since he rarely wore one. Buckling one–handed wasn’t a party. His body didn’t suffer the confusion his brain was fighting and responded to Jill’s overtures.
    A faint smile appeared on her face and she stroked a trembling pale hand over his denim–covered erection. “See, you do want me,” she said. Well, duh. Half–naked woman touching his dick? He didn’t know a straight man who wouldn’t respond.
    She tugged his jeans down, taking his boxers with them and got on her knees. He stood there like a dumbass watching this strange woman kneel and start to stroke his penis. It felt good, too damn good. He needed to make her stop. He remained silent.
    After a few amazing moments, he realized this was all about him. He’d never been a selfish lover before. He knelt to hold Jill and maybe do a little reciprocating. “Hey Jill,” he said softly. “Should we move this to the couch?”
    She flinched the second his palm flattened on her bare arm. Goosebumps dotted her skin despite the heat in the room. “Jill?”
    “I’m fine. Stand back up. I’ll finish this. I can do this.” She sounded as if she were convincing herself of her ability to touch him sexually. Now he was the one feeling icy. He stood and yanked his pants on.
    “Rowan? What’s wrong? Didn’t you like what I was doing?”
    He glared down at her, still fumbling with his jean’s button. Damn it. Buttoning things one–handed was never a problem except of course now with a woman watching him. “I liked it fine, Jill. The problem was you didn’t.” There. Jeans closed.
    “What do you mean?” Her arms crossed over her bare breasts.
    “I mean you flinched when I touched you. I know my missing arm bothers you, and don’t lie about it. I’ve had a lifetime of experience gauging people’s reactions to my arm.”
    There was silence in the room as they stared at each other. “You want the truth, Rowan?” she asked.
    “Baby, I live for truth.”
    “I think you’re a very good–looking man, but yes, your missing arm bothers me.”
    He stared at her. “Fuck. You.” He turned to leave with every intention of finding Shep and Doctor Wise to tell them to get Jill the hell off campus. As his hand reached the doorknob he turned to apologize for cursing at her or maybe curse some more. He didn’t know. But Jill had turned her back and was bent over hunting for her discarded T–shirt, and it gave him a good view of a dark purple bruise on her back roughly over her kidneys.
    “What the fuck?” He reclosed the door and spun back into the room. He stalked over to Jill and tugged the pink T–shirt out of her hands. “What the hell happened to you?” He turned her gently in his arm and touched the bruise with one fingertip.
    “Nothing. Give me my shirt.” Her nails dug into the skin on his forearm as she tried to grab back her shirt. He tried to hand it to her, frowning at the unexpected turn this meeting had taken, but she’d already given up on the T–shirt and turned for her sweater.
    “Tell me what’s really going on here.”
    She shoved. “No. I’m leaving. You’ll get your wish. You don’t ever have to see me again.” She withdrew back into herself, grabbing her cardigan and putting the itchy–looking thing on over her bare skin. Ashamed, he handed her the shirt and she shoved it in her